Apple announced Apple Creator Studio today. Creator Studio packs a lot into a $12.99 per month (or $129 per year) bundle—roughly the cost of a Canva subscription and meaningfully less than standalone Adobe’s photography or video plans (and a fraction of the cost of combining them).

Creator Studio should hit a healthy segment of prosumer-to-pro users who need (or would like) more than the included iWork, iMovie, and GarageBand and are patching together other services. The fact the apps will also be sold as a single purchase should reduce subscription hand-wringing.

Apple has consistently maintained its modern pro apps, but for years they’ve felt like a sideshow rather than a strategy. This is a significant milestone: Apple has named and defined the segment (“Creators”, which are “professionals, emerging artists, entrepreneurs, students, and educators”), expanded the portfolio (via the Pixelmator acquisition), augmented the collection’s capability set, and has implemented a modern monetization model.

From a customer perspective—like subscriptions or not—subscription pricing signals long-term investment. If you care about Apple’s creative tools, this is a good thing.

Selfish ask: Please add to the collection a lighter version of Lightroom (or, heh, dust off Aperture).