Apple extends Apple TV+ free trials until July 2021

Tim Cook Apple TV+ (Image credit: Apple)

What you need to know

Apple has extended its free Apple TV+ offering until July 2021.

That Apple TV+ free trial that was supposed to end in October of last year? Yeah, it's been extended again. Now, people can get free Apple TV+ until July 2021.

Notably, this means that the initial free year of Apple TV+ that started in November 2019 will run for an additional nine months. Apple first announced an extension back in October last year and that was due to come to an end next month. now, it'll run until July.

Already paying for Apple TV+ via the Apple One service? Fear not – according to 9to5Mac, we will all receive a $4.99 credit to cover the cost of a service that is now free.

Any paying subscribers to Apple TV+ monthly plan as of today, January 15, will receive $4.99 store credit for the February to June period, offsetting the cost of their subscription. The same is true for people who currently pay for the Apple One bundle subscription.

It's thought that the reason behind Apple's extension is to give it time to further expand its streaming service. More shows and movies are being announced almost weekly and the second and third seasons of popular shows are set to arrive in due course. Apple is presumably hoping that it can get more people hooked by giving them free access than it can by charging them.

Apple will, of course, eventually need to start charging for Apple TV+. Though at this point I wouldn't want to bet against that trial being extended beyond July.

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Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.