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The record industry reportedly won't let Apple price its streaming service below $10

The record industry reportedly won't let Apple price its streaming service below $10

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No one really knows what Apple's inevitable iTunes-branded subscription service will look like, but details have been emerging over the last few months ahead of its anticipated announcement this summer. We know that Apple is unlikely to offer a free, ad-supported tier, and it seemed like Apple was going to try to undercut competitors like Spotify by offering its service for $7.99 per month. Now, it's looking like Apple might not be able to use price to catch up to Spotify — a report from Billboard indicates that the record companies are unsurprisingly unhappy with Apple's attempt to make streaming music even cheaper. As such, it sounds like Apple is no longer pushing that price point and will instead price its service at the now-standard $9.99 per month.

Apple is also reportedly hoping to use the power and clout iTunes gained over the last decade-plus as the world's largest music retailer to try and get more exclusive content as a way to combat Spotify's dominance in the streaming market. But it sounds like the record labels aren't inclined to give Apple that content at the same time as it is trying to make subscriptions services even cheaper. "Apple is one of the biggest companies in the world," an unnamed music executive told Billboard. "If they want exclusive content, they're going to have to get out the checkbook."