Indian students get the aye of Apple with lowest subscription

Apple’s student subscription plan in India is available for under a dollar, its cheapest service in the world, even undercutting the cost of premium services from local rivals Gaana and Saavn.

Information technology giant Apple has launched a campaign with large billboards across major cities in India to promote its Apple Music subscription service at Rs 60 a month for students. The aim is to build loyalty among young customers.

Launched in November, Apple’s student subscription plan in India is available for under a dollar, its cheapest service in the world. It even undercuts the cost of premium services from local rivals Gaana and Saavn.

The Indian companies also offer free streaming of music to users, supported with advertisements.

Apple launched its music streaming service in India last June, at Rs 120 a month, undercutting the cost by over five times compared to the US, and priced much lower than in similar markets such as Thailand, Indonesia and Brazil.

A student subscription in the US costs $5, while the same service costs $2.5 in the other three emerging markets.

The Apple Music push in India comes ahead of the company's plan to locally assemble its affordable iPhone SE in the country.

By making the service available on Android devices as well, it hopes Music will be a way for customers in India to get a taste of its system, prodding them to buy an iPhone.

Apple has also begun streaming its music on the entertainment platform of cab aggregator Ola, for reaching the latter's 25 million customers.

A little over one in nine smartphones sold in India today run on Google’s Android operating system, with Apple having a little under three per cent of the country’s smartphone market in terms of sales.

As it looks to grow its share significantly over the next decade, it is pushing subsidised services such as Apple Music and lower-cost older generation iPhones.

“All the pieces of puzzles are coming together for Apple. Local assembly, retail stores and services would be the new stickiness factor to get as many users as possible to taste their eco-system,” says Neil Shah, director at Counterpoint Research.

“Apple Music (student offer) could be the first way to generate interest, so that they can lay the foundation for the future for iPhones.”

Photograph: Reuters.