Apple appears to be testing a new feature that allows developers to automatically charge users after subscription prices are raised. Currently, when subscription fees are raised, Apple requires explicit consent from users. If the customer does not click on the presented “Agree New Price” button, their subscription is automatically cancelled.
But if a new feature Apple is testing rolls out, users may only be notified of the upcoming change after the subscription price increase, but not given the option to cancel. Essentially, Apple is testing an opt-out, rather than an opt-in, system to handle subscription price changes.
When Disney+ recently raised its price to $7.99 a month, some developers noticed that notifications from the Disney+ app were more like reminders about the price increase than a clear opt-in. The notifications that Disney+ users receive have a large “OK” button to let them know about the change, but there’s no built-in opt-out button, instead, the app provides a link to change subscriptions.
Other developers have noticed similar behavior with different subscriptions, and an Apple spokesperson confirmed to TechCrunch that it is conducting a pilot test of the new subscription system.
We’re piloting a new commerce feature that we plan to roll out soon. The pilot includes developers across different app categories, organization sizes, and regions to help test an upcoming enhancement, which we believe will work well for both developers and users, and we’ll share more details in the coming weeks.
If the change rolls out more widely, App Store users will need to pay closer attention to their subscriptions, because without the current system of express choice, the pricing increases will be easier to ignore.