iPhone on subscription: Apple buries old plan
A few years ago, there was a rumor that Apple wanted to rent out iPhones for a monthly fee. But this is unlikely to happen.
iPhone for Rent: Rental idea rejected according to report.
(Image: Mac & i / Pixelmator)
Apple is said to have had the idea of selling iPhone subscriptions as early as 2022. Customers would no longer have to purchase the smartphone, but instead rent it for a monthly fee. This actually sounded like a "win-win" for the company: it would allow Apple to further boost its iPhone business, provide the already rapidly growing service business with more revenue and at the same time appeal to new target groups for whom direct purchase is too expensive - after all, iPhones can now be purchased for just under 2,000 euros. Nevertheless, Apple decided in December not to introduce an "iPhone Hardware Subscription Service". This was reported by the financial news agency Bloomberg. The team has already been disbanded and the employees assigned to other projects.
Pay later service has also been discontinued
According to the report, Apple wanted to launch the service two years ago, i.e. at the end of 2022. It was then postponed to 2023 due to "software bugs and regulatory concerns." After several attempts to get the project off the ground, top management has now decided to abandon it. The project was part of the Apple Pay project group. This group had already launched a "Pay Later" product for the US market, which allowed users to pay bills later, as is known from Klarna. Then it discontinued it this year because Apple was apparently afraid of falling under the same rules as credit card companies.
In addition, Apple already makes it possible to pay off an iPhone over one or two years via its so-called upgrade program. To this end, the company is working with Zinia in Europe – where financing is provided over two years. The financial service includes the option of upgrading to a new device after 12 or 13 months, with "at least" 50 percent of the original purchase price for the old one. However, the subscription service would not have been a credit transaction, but a type of leasing including device exchange –. It is unclear whether Apple would have demanded a "special payment" or simply a flat fee as a monthly price.
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After the internal test, it didn't go any further
Like the now discontinued "Apple Pay Later" program, the hardware subscription was supposed to use the company's own financial infrastructure and be based on self-issued credit, according to Bloomberg. Earlier this year, Apple introduced the iPhone subscription service as a test for Pay Group employees. "Teams working on billing in the App Store and Online Store were also involved."
However, this beta test was never extended to real customers. In the USA, in addition to the upgrade program, Apple also offers a service called Apple Card Monthly Installments, which allows Apple products to be paid off interest-free over several months as an Apple Card customer.
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