[ad_1]
Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
After 18 years, Apple kills iTunes – well, sort of. The media management software for most Mac users (and many Windows users) is being split in two for different uses: on Catalina Mac's new operating system, music, podcasts and television will have soon from their own applications.
Apple announced the move Monday with new hardware, including a new Mac Pro and Pro Display XDR, as well as entertainment and lifestyle features.
But the company's presentation, at the developer conference in San Jose, California, has sparked a lot of suspense around iTunes. "Tell me about iTunes or leave me alone while I feverishly try to backup my lmao library" tweeted an user.
Apple has set aside a misconception that the iTunes Store (where users buy songs and albums to download) would disappear in favor of Apple Music (the company's streaming service). The iTunes Store will remain, as will the music that people have bought. But Apple has responded to a longstanding complaint of users of the iTunes desktop application: mainly, it is trying to be too many at a time.
At Monday's conference, Craig Federighi, senior vice president of software engineering at Apple, joked about it. "Customers love iTunes and all it can do," he said, before asking sarcastically: "But there's one thing we hear again and again, that's what we're doing. is iTunes able to do even more? "
Apple has announced the launch of a new standalone music application for Mac, as well as a new and improved TV application and a podcast application. Device synchronization will now be handled in the Finder, the macOS file manager. Apple did not specify how the synchronization of iPhones or iPads would be handled on Windows computers.
iTunes will continue as a music store, but the new music application will be more closely aligned with Apple's streaming music service.
Apple has seen a decline in iPhone sales due to the convergence of several factors, including fewer buyers in China and an extended upgrade cycle. The company has changed its name to become a streaming entertainment provider.
And he did not hide his intention to expand his "service" business, including the Apple Music streaming service, a future streaming TV service, and a magazine subscription service.
So, does having music become a thing of the past?
Streaming accounts for 75% of music industry revenues last year. It's so lucrative that streaming music is the scene of one of the fiercest struggles against Apple's alleged monopoly. In March, Spotify announced that it filed an antitrust complaint against Apple with the European Commission. Spotify estimates that the 30% commission on all purchases on the App Store is unfair because it forces Spotify users to pay more.
These accusations do not only occur in Europe. In the United States, the Supreme Court recently ruled that a class action against Apple for the monopoly of the App Store could be pursued.
[ad_2]
Source link