Apple's ubiquitous iTunes Store and its associated services are forecast to generate a staggering $13 billion in revenues during the company's fiscal 2013, growing at an expected rate of nearly 40% over the next three years as publishers trend towards its iBook format.
Popular music streaming service Spotify has officially announced it is coming to the U.S. "soon," but no date has been given for when the service will launch and compete with Apple's iTunes Music Store.
When iOS 5 is released for the iPhone this fall, users will have the ability to purchase new, custom text message tones from the new iTunes Tone Store.
Apple's new iTunes Match service will scan a user's library of songs, including those ripped from their own CDs, and match the songs up with the library of 18 million songs available through iTunes for $24.99 per year.
Sources allege that the much-rumored streaming music service from Apple will scan users' iTunes libraries and mirror them in the cloud, but it reportedly won't be free.
Music industry insiders expect that Apple wants to launch, or at least introduce, its anticipated "iCloud" music streaming service in June, though the company must also reach agreements with music publishers.
Apple's anticipated cloud-based music streaming service could could offer faster playback of Internet-stored content by syncing just small snippets of songs via iTunes.
The availability of The Beatles' catalog on iTunes, along with the resurgence of vinyl, are credited with a 1.6 percent increase in total music sales so far in the U.S. in 2011.
Apple has reportedly ordered as much as 12 petabytes, or 12,000 terabytes, of additional storage for hosting video content on its iTunes Store.
Netflix is the dominant player in America's digital streaming and downloadable video market, representing 61 percent of all viewings, while Apple's iTunes is in a three-way tie for third place with 4 percent.
European trademark applications filed by Apple have surfaced that would finalize the transfer of The Beatles' iconic Granny Smith Apple logos from Apple Corps to Apple and expand the trademark to include technology products.
Comcast agreed to continue licensing of NBC content to online video services like Apple's iTunes in order to receive government approval of its acquisition of broadcast network NBC.
Apple is said to be in talks with record labels to improve the quality of song downloads available from the iTunes Music Store, making them available in a 24-bit high-fidelity format.
The debut of The Beatles on iTunes has proven extremely popular, with the band selling 5 million songs and a million albums solely from Apple's digital music store.
It reportedly took a one-of-a-kind deal in which the band is directly paid royalties from song sales to bring the entire digital catalog of The Beatles to iTunes.
Movie studios have quietly expanded the feature set of content available on Apple's iTunes Store, allowing users to search a film's script for specific words, or select a clip and share it with others on a social networking site.
Though it is half as old as Netflix, Apple's iTunes rental service is believed to be about one-tenth the size of the competing rental service, one analyst has projected.
Apple on Wednesday made a few key changes for iOS developers, upgrading the security of push notifications and allowing international distribution of promotional codes. Also, some HD movies have appeared for the first time in the U.K. iTunes Store.
Apple reportedly beat out rivals Google and Amazon in securing the exclusive digital rights to the back catalog of The Beatles on iTunes through 2011.
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Blake Steven
Slash Lane
AppleInsider Staff
Josh Ong
Neil Hughes
Katie Marsal
Sam Oliver
