Apple has quietly made a change to its Apple Music Membership FAQ, explaining that Apple Music members no longer need to subscribe separately to iTunes Match. The FAQ appears to have been updated within the last three to four weeks, and unequivocally states that users who subscribe to Apple Music do not need to also subscribe to iTunes Match, as “Apple Music includes all the benefits of iTunes Match to make all of your music available on all of your devices.”
Previously, the Apple Music Membership page explained that users with iTunes Match could use it together with Apple Music, and directed users to an Apple support article on understanding differences between Apple Music and iTunes Match, with the most notable difference being that iTunes Match subscribers were able to download DRM-free 256kbps AAC versions of any tracks matched from their own library, whereas Apple Music customers were only able to access the DRM-encumbered Apple Music versions.
Earlier this year, Jim Dalrymple of The Loop reported that Apple was working on gradually bringing full iTunes Match capabilities to Apple Music subscribers. This recent change to the Apple Music Membership FAQ suggests that Apple has completed this process and Apple Music subscribers will no longer need to maintain a separate subscription to iTunes Match to benefit from features such as improved matching algorithms and DRM-free downloads, although iTunes Match remains an option for non-Apple Music subscribers.
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