Apple Music, iTunes Movies And iBooks Finally Arrive in China
“Customers in China love the App Store and have made it our largest market in the world for app downloads,” said Apple VP Eddy Cue in a statement. “One of the top requests has been more great content and we’re thrilled to bring music, movies and books to China, curated by a local team of experts.”
Apple fans will be enjoying inexpensive content as Apple looks to get a foothold in the content market. Apple Music will be free to listeners in China for three months, followed by a paid subscription of about $1.57 per month. A family is also available for Apple Music, and the company plans to make Apple Music available for Android phones sometime this fall.
Movies on iTunes are also cheap, at about $.79 for an HD rental. New releases in HD will run movie fans about $2.83 each. IBooks will sell for about $0.08.
Apple will make some content from the U.S. available to Chinese customers, but it’s not clear yet how much of it will be approved by the local curators. Importantly (at least, for angst-ridden teens), Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series will be available via Apple’s iBooks.
When it comes to movies, Apple plans to make several U.S. blockbusters available right away. Avengers: Age of Ultron will be available for HD rental or purchase, as will Jurassic World and Furious 7.