The Apple TV+ free weekend could cost you dearly

Apple is kicking off the new year with a seemingly generous offer – free access to its Apple TV+ streaming service from January 3 to January 5, 2025. Browse the platform’s entire content library.

At first glance, this feels like a no-strings-attached way to explore hits like the brilliant slow horse, De La Sole, “The Morning Show,” and severance pay. While Apple is certainly not guilty of anything nefarious, is it? real Is it that simple?

The offer was billed as celebrating the New Year, but it’s clear Apple has a bigger agenda. By offering users a free weekend full of popular shows, e.g. silo, shrinkand bad sisteror science fiction favorites such as dark matter and for all mankindthe company hopes you will be attracted. When free access goes away, the iPhone maker will be ready to offer a convenient $9.99-per-month subscription option.

The timing of this promotion is no accident. It’s sandwiched between the holiday season and early January, and is specifically aimed at viewers enjoying some downtime after the New Year’s Eve festivities. Apple relies on your curiosity, relying on its carefully curated libraries to draw you into its ecosystem.

What’s the gain? Once you get a taste of Apple’s content, you’ll feel compelled to stick around — not because of the sheer volume of content (its library is much smaller than Netflix or Disney Plus), but because it’s different from other streaming services (see Watch your Netflix) It tends to update its episodes, and if you’re hooked on a few shows, you’ll want to watch more than a weekend’s worth of content.

It’s a clever marketing ploy, but one that deserves some skepticism. So before we dive into the Apple TV+ free weekend, consider what happens after the promotion ends. Are a handful of hits worth another $120 annual fee? For some, that might be the case. But for many, if you don’t have the self-control, this “free” gift can end up costing far more than expected. If you get hooked and sign up for a paid subscription, you have only yourself to blame.