RM20 (USD4.94) doesn’t sound expensive.
That is probably why subscriptions work so well.
RM20 (USD4.94) for this app.
RM15 (USD3.71) for another one.
RM30 (USD7.41) for extra cloud storage.
Maybe RM40 (USD9.88) for streaming.
Then another RM20 (USD4.94) because apparently the useful feature in the app you already downloaded is locked behind Premium.
Individually?
Fine.
Put everything together?
Suddenly you’re looking at RM200 (USD49.40) or RM300 (USD74.10) every month and wondering:
Wait. What am I actually paying for?
Welcome to subscription life.
A few years ago, subscriptions were mostly Netflix, Spotify and maybe Microsoft Office.
Now almost everything wants one.
Photo editing.
Video editing.
Cloud storage.
Password managers.
Fitness apps.
Language apps.
Gaming.
News.
AI assistants.
Note-taking apps.
Even apps that basically do one thing somehow have a Pro Monthly Plan now.
And AI is making this even worse.
Want the smarter AI model?
Subscribe.
Want more image generations?
Subscribe.
Want your AI to analyse longer documents?
Subscribe.
Want features that used to be free six months ago?
You already know the answer.
RM20 Doesn't Feel Like Spending
This is probably the cleverest part.
If an app asked you to pay RM240 (USD59.28) right now, you might think twice.
But RM20 (USD4.94) a month?
"Okay lah."
Except RM20 × 12 is still RM240 (USD59.28).
Now do that across eight apps.
It becomes very easy to spend serious money without ever feeling like you bought anything expensive.
There’s also another problem.
We forget.
You subscribed because you needed an app for one project.
Three months later, the project is finished.
The subscription?
Still happily charging your card.
Somewhere on your phone right now there may be an app earning RM15 (USD3.71) every month just because you forgot it exists.
Respect the hustle.
Buying Software Used to Feel Different
This is the part younger users might not even remember.
You used to buy software.
Actual software.
You paid once, installed it and used it until the computer died or the software became ancient.
Developers obviously need recurring revenue. Servers cost money. Cloud services cost money. AI especially isn't cheap to operate.
So subscriptions aren't automatically bad.
The annoying part is when everything becomes a subscription, including products that don't really feel like they need one.
At some point, consumers are going to start making choices.
Spotify or YouTube Premium?
ChatGPT or another AI service?
Netflix or Disney+?
This editing app or that editing app?
Because nobody wants twenty tiny monthly bills following them around forever.
Maybe that will become the next big technology feature:
Not more AI.
Not another subscription.
Just a button that says:
Pay once. Keep it.
I’d probably subscribe to that.
Wait.
No.
That’s exactly how they get you.