Apple Working on New Beats Music Service Integrated into OS X and iOS, Available on Android
Apple is working on a new Beats-based paid music streaming service that will be deeply integrated into iTunes on Mac and the stock Music app for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, according to 9to5Mac. The report claims that the Apple-designed streaming service will also be available for Android and through a new Apple TV app in the works.
"Based heavily upon cloud streaming, Apple’s new service is centered around the user’s music library. A new search feature will be able to locate any song in the iTunes/Beats catalog, and users will be able to stream music from the catalog as well as add songs to their personal libraries. Users will be able to select specific tracks to store on their iOS devices and/or computers, or keep all songs solely in the cloud. Apple will also deeply integrate Beats Music’s Playlists, Activities, and Mixes features into the new service, letting users access a vast array of pre-made, human-curated playlists to fit various activities."
The report adds that Beats Music users will be able to merge their existing account with an iTunes/Apple ID account for seamless transition to the new service. The app's design will shift away from the traditional red and black branding of Beats and feature a user interface that resembles the look and feel of iTunes and the stock Music app on iOS. New social features will also be included for sharing music and playlists with friends.
Apple's new subscription-based service is expected to cost $7.99 per month, cheaper than the $9.99 per month charged by Beats Music and competing services such as Spotify, Rdio and Google Play Music. While the new Beats service will inevitably have some overlap with iTunes Radio, iTunes Match and the iTunes Store, the report claims that Apple will retain all three offerings.
While Beats Music is available for Android, this new service will mark the first time that Apple develops an Android app in house. Apple CEO Tim Cook has previously expressed that he does not have an issue developing an app for Android if the circumstances make sense, but this will be the first time the company actually delivers on that idea. Unlike Beats Music, however, no Windows Phone app will be offered.
Due to some personnel changes and other difficulties in the collaboration between Apple and Beats, which the iPhone maker acquired last year for $3 billion, the timeline for this new streaming service project remains in jeopardy. The report claims that while Apple originally planned to launch the service in March, sources claim that the company is now more likely to launch the service at WWDC in June.
Popular Stories
Significant changes are expected to arrive with Apple's fourth-generation iPhone SE, in terms of both design and hardware, MacRumors has learned. The iPhone SE 4, known internally under the codename Ghost, is expected to receive a new design derived almost entirely from the base model iPhone 14. According to our sources, the iPhone SE 4 will use a modified version of the iPhone 14 chassis...
At WWDC 2022 last year, Apple previewed the next generation of CarPlay, promising deeper integration with vehicle functions like A/C and FM radio, support for multiple displays across the dashboard, personalization options, and more. Apple said the first vehicles with support for the next-generation CarPlay experience would be announced in late 2023, but it has still not shared any additional...
Wednesday September 27, 2023 1:57 pm PDT by
Juli CloverJust a week after releasing iOS 17, Apple has seeded the first beta of iOS 17.1 to developers. iOS 17.1 adds some features that Apple promised were coming to iOS 17 in the future, plus it refines and improves some existing features. This guide covers everything new in the first iOS 17.1 beta. Apple Music Favorites You can favorite songs, albums, playlists, and artists in the iOS 17.1...
iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max overheating concerns continue to make headlines this week, with the topic highlighted by The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg. Both of the reports document anecdotal complaints from customers, and outline potential causes, but it's unclear how many devices are actually affected. Bloomberg said the overheating could be caused or compounded by the iPhone's setup...
Apple plans to release an iOS 17 update to address a bug that may contribute to the reported iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max overheating issue, according to a statement the company shared today with MacRumors and Forbes reporter David Phelan. Apple also says some recent updates to third-party apps have overloaded the system and contributed to the overheating issue. The report notes that...
Apple added a USB-C port to the iPhone 15 lineup this year, allowing it to work with USB-C cables, USB-C power banks, and more. It turns out that some USB-C battery packs are not working properly with Apple's iPhone 15, resulting in charging issues. As highlighted on Reddit and the MacRumors forums, not all existing USB-C power banks can be used with the iPhone 15 models, perhaps due to the...
Apple today released iOS 17.0.2 and iPadOS 17.0.2 updates, with the software coming five days after the releases of iOS 17.0.1 and iPadOS 17.0.1. Today's iOS 17.0.2 and iPadOS 17.0.2 updates arrive as build 21A351 and can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. Note that iOS 17.0.2 was previously made available for iPhone...
Top Rated Comments
It clearly says it isn't. Read the freakin article before trying to be the "first!" commenter.
MGT: "Add another big bloat, er block of functionality in the form of streaming audio"
CODER: "But we already have iTunes Radio"
MGT: "Yes, keep that... but also weave in this paid version of streaming music too. Customers have spoken and they want to pay for iTunes integrated streaming music AND have free streaming music in the SAME application"
CODER: "What customers want that?"
MGT: "Customers!"
CODER (to other coders after MGT departs the room): "I wonder if those are the same 'customers' that wanted Ping?" Another Coder: "Or want to do away with playlists?" Another Coder: "Or the U2 album pushed into their music collection?"
MGT (to other managers after getting back to the executive mtg room): "We'll roll out a free trial and motivate the masses to upgrade iTunes and iOS player because they must for ongoing iDevice & Mac compatibility. Shortly thereafter we can spin how we have more than 100M users on our new streaming music service."
Other MGT: "Genius!"
Soon after the rollout...
Apple fans in full techgasms: "best streaming service ever!", "shut up and take my money"
Others: "but Spotify", "but Pandora"
Apple fans: "Spotify/Pandora is a joke", "...an abomination", "...I never liked either of them" (so YOU shouldn't either), "hundreds of millions of iDevice and Mac users have voted that Beats is best", (a conjured statistic like) "99.9% will find Beats to be all they ever need in a streaming service"
Others: "but <either> does this better"
Apple fans: "troll", "if you like those so much, why are you here?" and again: "hundreds of millions of iDevice and Mac users have voted that Beats is best" and "99.9%..."
Did I miss anything? ;)
And yet we still can't merge two Apple IDs.
Otherwise excited about this. Beats just isn't doing it for me largely in part to the poor desktop version of the player. If merged into an actual application (even if it is iTunes) I'll almost certainly be switching from Spotify.
Last March you said iTunes Radio would only need 12 months to beat them. ;)
https://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=18868663
Perhaps they can pull their fingers out and release this attempt at streaming in more than two countries, otherwise it will never be a "world leader". :rolleyes: