iPhone & Mac subscription service trial announced then pulled

LiftForward, a device and software subscription company, announced a trial with Apple to allow Canadian users to pay monthly for iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and Apple services — but then the announcement was pulled.

The new subscription service, reportedly to be trialled first in Canada before rolling out to other countries, was announced in a press release that has since been removed. The company, LiftForward, described the subscription program as being a 'Buy Now Pay Later' (BNPL) service, which Apple has previously been reported to be investigating.

"Apple is rolling out a new BNPL subscription program for most of its products and accessories including all iPhone and Mac books," said the press release, retrieved from a cached copy after removal. "The program will initially cover Apple devices in Canada but expand quickly thereafter to additional countries."

"This is a major step towards matching the growing consumer preferences for continuous access to the latest devices and services without having to own the devices," it continued. " It will allow for iPhone, Mac, Apple Watch and iPad consumers in each country to subscribe to a bundle of devices, accessories and AppleCare over a period of 12, 24 or 36 months."

The release also said that this program would be offered "offered without fees to a limited number of customers."

Apple has previously been rumored to partner for such a deal in Canada with buy now, pay later specialist company Affirm and its PayBright subsidiary.

Although Apple has not made any announcements about BNPL, a claim that it would partner with Goldman Sachs to offer such a service caused shares in rival firms to drop.

Rumored to be called "Apple Pay Later," such a service — on its own or in combination with a subscription — is believed to be a lucrative opportunity for Apple.