Apple Inc. (AAPL.US) launches "Creator Studio" subscription package: bundling creative apps such as Final Cut Pro for a monthly fee of $12.99.

Apple Inc. recently announced the launch of a new creative app subscription service package called Creator Studio, aimed at addressing the increasingly competitive market and injecting new growth momentum into its photo and video editing software lineup. This subscription package, announced on Tuesday, covers several core creative software such as Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, and Pixelmator Pro, and will officially launch on January 28 at a price of $12.99 per month or $129 per year, with a one-month free trial. As Apple Inc. continues to focus on subscription services to expand its recurring revenue sources, Creator Studio has become another important member of its growing subscription service matrix. In the fiscal quarter ending in September last year, the services business remained Apple Inc.'s fastest-growing segment, with revenue increasing by 15% year-on-year to reach $28.8 billion. This segment's revenue includes sales from the App Store, iCloud, as well as entertainment subscription services like Apple Music and Apple TV. For university students and educators, Apple Inc. is offering a discounted subscription plan with monthly fees as low as $2.99 and annual fees of only $29.99. It is worth noting that the mentioned creative software can still be purchased individually as a one-time payment in the Mac App Store; however, on the iPad, Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro will only be available through the Creator Studio package. Users who have already subscribed to these two software individually can continue to enjoy the original pricing, while new users will need to purchase the package to use them. Apple Inc. emphasizes that all software in the Creator Studio package supports sharing with up to 6 family members, a flexible permission that competitors like Adobe do not offer - Adobe's software such as Photoshop and Premiere do not have this kind of sharing service. Currently, the competition in the creative software industry is becoming increasingly fierce, with Apple Inc.'s competitors accelerating their mobile product layout and continually iterating more powerful versions. Last fall, Adobe was the first to launch its popular video editing software, Premiere, on smartphones, with the iPhone being the first compatible device. This move from Adobe was also in response to the market impact brought by emerging tools such as CapCut from ByteDance and the built-in editor, Edits, in Instagram under Meta. To strengthen its competitiveness in the creative software ecosystem, Apple Inc. completed the acquisition of Pixelmator by the end of 2024. Pixelmator is well known in the industry for its photo editing software compatible with Mac, iPhone, and iPad. It should be noted that another app developed by the team, Photomator, is not included in the Creator Studio package and will continue to operate as a separate subscription service, priced at $7.99 per month or $29.99 per year.