Apple Temporarily Halts New iTunes Match Subscriptions in New International Markets

With Apple launching a broad international roll-out of iTunes Match yesterday to well over a dozen new countries, it appears that the expansion has come with some growing pains for the cloud-based music service. The service had started to prematurely go live for some users the day before, and several hours after the international expansion users around the world reported temporary problems accessing iTunes Store and iCloud services due to usernames and passwords being rejected.

itunes match subscriptions down
While those technical issues appear to have been resolved, demand appears to still remain high for new iTunes Match subscriptions, and we've been hearing word that Apple has temporarily shut down new subscription signups in some of the new countries. Customers attempting to subscribe to the service are reportedly being met with the following message:

New subscriptions are currently unavailable.

iTunes Match is temporarily not accepting new subscribers. Check back later.

So far we have heard of new subscriptions being halted in Canada and the UK, two of the countries that saw the service debut yesterday. Apple instituted a similar temporary pause in new subscription signups following the U.S. launch last month.

As noted in an extensive chart from setteB.IT, iTunes Match rolled out in a total of sixteen new countries yesterday: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, New Zealand, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland, and the UK. The new countries join the United States and Brazil in offering the service.

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro 3 4ths Perspective Aluminum Camera Module 1

New iPhone 17 Pro Details: Brighter Display, Best Battery Life, and More

Wednesday September 3, 2025 5:33 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models will feature a number of significant display, thermal, and battery improvements, according to new late-stage rumors. According to the Weibo leaker known as "Instant Digital," the iPhone 17 Pro models will feature displays with higher brightness, making it more suitable for use in direct sunlight for prolonged periods. The iPhone 16 Pro and...
iPhone 17 Pro Iridescent Feature 2

iPhone 17 Pro Clear Case Leak Reveals Three Key Changes

Sunday August 31, 2025 1:26 pm PDT by
Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 17 series on Tuesday, September 9, and last-minute rumors about the devices continue to surface. The latest info comes from a leaker known as Majin Bu, who has shared alleged images of Apple's Clear Case for the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, or at least replicas. Image Credit: @MajinBuOfficial The images show three alleged changes compared to Apple's iP...
iphone 16 pro ghost hand

iPhone 17 Pro: 5 Reasons Not to Upgrade This Year

Monday September 1, 2025 4:35 am PDT by
Apple will launch its new iPhone 17 series this month, and the iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to get a new design for the rear casing and the camera area. But more significant changes to the lineup are not expected until next year, when the iPhone 18 models arrive. If you're thinking of trading in your iPhone for this year's latest, consider the following features rumored to be coming to...
iPhone 17 Pro Iridescent Feature 2

iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro Prices Estimated Ahead of Apple Event Next Week

Tuesday September 2, 2025 1:50 pm PDT by
Just one week before Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 17 series, an analyst has shared new price estimates for the devices. Here are J.P. Morgan analyst Samik Chatterjee's price estimates for the iPhone 17 series in the United States, according to 9to5Mac: Model Starting Price Model Starting Price Change iPhone 16 $799 iPhone 17 ...
iPhone 17 Pro Dark Blue and Orange

iPhone 17 Release Date, Pre-Orders, and What to Expect

Thursday August 28, 2025 4:08 am PDT by
An iPhone 17 announcement is a dead cert for September 2025 – Apple has already sent out invites for an "Awe dropping" event on Tuesday, September 9 at the Apple Park campus in Cupertino, California. The timing follows Apple's trend of introducing new iPhone models annually in the fall. At the event, Apple is expected to unveil its new-generation iPhone 17, an all-new ultra-thin iPhone 17...
iOS 18 on iPhone Arrow Down

Apple Preparing iOS 18.7 for iPhones as iOS 26 Release Date Nears

Sunday August 31, 2025 4:35 pm PDT by
Apple is preparing to release iOS 18.7 for compatible iPhone models, according to evidence of the update in the MacRumors visitor logs. We expect iOS 18.7 to be released in September, alongside iOS 26. The update will likely include fixes for security vulnerabilities, but little else. iOS 18.7 will be one of the final updates ever released for the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR,...
iPhone 17 Pro on Desk Centered 1

Survey: Nearly 70% of Users Plan to Upgrade to iPhone 17

Monday September 1, 2025 8:24 am PDT by
A new survey has found that nearly seven in ten iPhone owners in the United States plan to upgrade to an iPhone 17 model, signaling strong demand ahead of Apple's expected unveiling of the devices at its September 9 keynote. Smartphone price comparison platform SellCell surveyed over 2,000 U.S.-based iPhone users in August to assess upgrade interest and brand loyalty before Apple's event....

Top Rated Comments

rmwebs Avatar
179 months ago
Ahh the Apple (fake) Cloud continues to fail.

----------

This is the opposite of a screw-up. Apple is taking charge in ensuring that quality of use is not degraded for people who have already purchased the service. Demand is greater than what Apple expected so they'll be opening the gates slowly to allow them to meet demand without crashing the whole thing.
Explain how its not a screw up?

- 2 days ago they prematurely open Match across the world, charge people and are then forced to refund them because they forgot to update the TOS.

- Yesterday they launch, resulting in the iTunes servers being very slow for most of the day.

- Last night the authentication system completely died and was down for the pest part of the night, intermittently coming back online.

- Then they finally release Match, and have to close it within a day as their tiny server farm (NOT A CLOUD) cant handle the load.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ipedro Avatar
179 months ago
What a screw up.

This is the opposite of a screw-up. Apple is taking charge in ensuring that quality of use is not degraded for people who have already purchased the service. Demand is greater than what Apple expected so they'll be opening the gates slowly to allow them to meet demand without crashing the whole thing.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
joelovesapple Avatar
179 months ago
This is just so damn stupid. What sounds like a great product cannot be used by me because according to Apple, I shouldn't be so interested in music. I have so many songs because I absolutely love music. I don't see why I should be punished like this.

I've spent about £8500 on iTunes over the past 6 years (call me stupid if you want) and then this in return?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
daneoni Avatar
179 months ago
Quick question, what happens if I rip another CD after "Match" has finished it's original scan on signing up? Is what is matched on first run what you get for 12 months, or can you add to your Library as normal and those tracks are matched also?
You can update the existing Match DB. Store> Update iTunes Match...or just right click on the songs and select Add to iCloud
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dmblue Avatar
179 months ago
signed up last night in canada.. other than it taking some time to upload and a handful duplicate tracks.. it is working GREAT.

this just made my iTunes experience 20x better.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Apple Knowledge Navigator Avatar
179 months ago
My guess is that, in at least 18-months time, iTunes Match will become a free feature and an integral catalyst for Apple reducing onboard memory on their iOS devices.

It's ridiculously obvious. Make a tidy profit while some initial press/hype exists, then make it a "killer feature" by the time OS 10.8 comes out.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)