Apple Is Failing Its Magazine Subscription Service, News+

What began as a way to read any magazine has evolved into something that might be hurting the industry.

In the last few years, Apple has been hard at work improving its services such as Apple Arcade, Apple TV+, and others. One of those is Apple News+, a magazine subscription service that allows users to read exclusive content from publications such as the Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, and Rolling Stone.

The trouble Apple has had with News+ may seem like an anomaly. Other servies, like TV+ and Arcade are doing fine. Apple TV+ has me hooked with shows like The Morning Show (starring Steve Carrell, Jennifer Anniston, and Reese Witherspoon), Ted Lasso, and Central Park (from the creators of Fox’s animated comedy, Bob’s Burgers). While I don’t currently subscribe to Apple Arcade, I was hooked on games like What the Golf — a non-traditional golf video game that uses comedy to throttle the player through its levels — for months.

So what is News+? Why is it doing so poorly?

For starters, publishers probably hate the service. Apple allows me to discover publications and their content via the News app, but calling it “exclusive” is misleading at best.