9to5Mac believes that Sony BMG will soon begin offering their music catalog to Apple in the iTunes Plus format. iTunes Plus is Apple's marketing term for higher quality (256kbit) audio tracks without any copy protection (DRM). Apple first started selling iTunes Plus tracks from EMI in May, 2007.
Despite Apple's willingness to sell DRM-free music, the other major record labels have withheld this ability from the company in an effort to reduce iTunes' marketshare in digital music downloads. The biggest beneficiary appears to be Amazon who currently offers DRM-free digital downloads from all four major music studios.
Sony BMG's iTunes participation would leave Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group as the remaining Apple holdouts. If true, Macworld San Francisco could be a possible announcement date for the new agreement.
Thursday August 13, 2026 4:20 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Apple will introduce at least five new devices at its iPhone-centric event next month, and it's also possible we'll get devices waiting on Siri AI like the Apple TV.
iPhone 18 Pro
The iPhone 18 Pro is going to look like the iPhone 17 Pro, but with a smaller Dynamic Island. It's getting some internal updates, including a new Wide camera with a variable aperture for more control over lighting ...
Friday August 14, 2026 12:15 pm PDT by Juli Clover
For the first time since Apple started selling standard and "Pro" iPhones, we're not going to get an entry-level iPhone model this fall. Apple doesn't plan to release an iPhone 18 in September, and will only launch the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, and foldable iPhone Ultra. The lower-cost iPhone 18 won't come out until spring 2027.
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Friday August 14, 2026 6:24 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple will release iOS 27 in September, and despite the company's focus this year on refining its flagship operating system and nixing bugs, there are still many additional features on the way, not least of which is Apple's new context-aware Siri, re-tooled for the generative AI era.
This year's major iPhone software update isn't all about AI, though, as the following feature list...
Apple's first foldable iPhone, with a book-style design featuring a ~5.5-inch outer display and a ~7.8-inch inner display with a minimal crease down the middle.
