Now, when the subscription fee increases, the customer must explicitly agree to the price change through the "agree to new price" interface. If customers don't click agree when the warning appears, their subscription will be automatically cancelled, but this is changing.
In the future, developers will be able to raise the subscription price and let it update automatically. Customers only need to be informed without direct consent. Apple said that "under certain conditions, with advance notice to users", developers can provide the price of automatic renewal, and users do not need to take action and will not affect their subscriptions.
Apple has specific restrictions on developers to ensure that this feature is not abused. No more than once a year, and no more than $5 and 50% of the subscription price, or $50 and 50% of the annual subscription price.
Apple said it would always inform users in advance of price increases through e-mail, push notifications and messages in the app. Apple will also provide instructions on how to view, manage and unsubscribe.
Through this update, under certain conditions and with advance notice to users, developers can also provide price increases that can be renewed automatically, and users do not need to take action or interrupt the service. The specific condition of this function is that the price increase is no more than once a year, no more than $5 and 50% of the subscription price, or $50 and 50% of the annual subscription price, and is allowed by local law. In these cases, apple always notifies users of price increases in advance, including through e-mail, push notifications and messages in the app. Apple will also inform users how to view, manage and unsubscribe if they wish.
When the price rises more than once a year or exceeds Apple's threshold, users need to choose to join as usual before the price rises. Apple said this would also happen in areas required by law.
Apple is already testing the changes in these subscriptions, which basically changes the rise in subscription prices from choosing to enter the system to choosing to exit the system. As early as April, some developers noticed that when Disney + increased its price to $7.99 a month, the notice sent by the app was a reminder rather than an option to join.
At the time, apple said it was "piloting a new business feature" and described it as "an improvement that we believe is good for both developers and users". With this change, App Store users should ensure that they pay attention to the warnings received in the application, push notifications, and email to ensure that they do not miss the rise in subscription prices.