Cloud Capable iTunes This September? Not So Fast...

[Michael Essany]

According to "Apple sources" speaking in total anonymity and confidence, one of the most hotly anticipated iTunes upgrades may be on tap for late summer. As it stands, iTunes could finally get the cloud capability we've all been hoping for. The update, of course, wouldn't come as a shock to anyone as such a development has been widely anticipated for what seems like ages. But there are doubts about a September roll out. And not without good reason.

A Boy Genius Report (which started the whole iTunes cloud talk again) indicates that the new cloud capabilities for iTunes will be partitioned into three groups: (1) Streaming music and movies from Apple’s servers to your computers, devices, etc. (2) Streaming music and movies from your home computers to your other computers, remote devices, etc. (3) Wireless iTunes syncing with devices.

While that all sounds fine and good, our sources (and those also speaking with CNET) are holding off on pronouncing September as the definite launch time-frame for the iTunes revamp. Why? Because there are issues beyond Apple's control that could continue to delay the iTunes update. Apple, for example, still hasn't secured the licenses it will need from a variety of content providers, including the top four music labels in the US.

Although Apple is believed to have been working on the aforementioned major iTunes tweaks since it scooped up Lala last winter, it is quite possible, in fact, that Google's rumored and much talked about iTunes competitor (streaming music, with songs for download) could be released before iTunes gets the cloud capability that seems like a no-brainer to all who continue to wait for its arrival.

[GmAz]

I think its going to be extremely restricted and lack features that people want because Apple says we don't need them. Two more weeks and I'll have my DX and be rid of Apple.

[whereswaldo]

Hasn't this been a rumour for like a year?

[feidhlim1986]

Because Apple's annual iTunes/iPod event is usually September, this rumor usually pops ups around now.
I honestly do not see why an iTunes "cloud" is appealing to anyone. You will most definitely only be able to stream music you have bought from iTunes. And you'll be streaming these songs to devices with built-in storage of multiple gigabytes whose main purpose is to store your music locally so it can be accessed at any moment without the need to have an internet connection.
Once again I'll clarify, that a cloud based iTunes would only be of little use to someone whose entire music library has been bought from iTunes,

[whereswaldo]

^^ true, that's what I thought when i saw this "news" article

[rickuk]

Once again I'll clarify, that a cloud based iTunes would only be of little use to someone whose entire music library has been bought from iTunes,

Knowing Apple, they wouldn#t believe that people obtain music from anywhere else

[tudtran]

With the iPhone 4 reception problem. I can't stream it any way

[sfrawley]

With SimplifyMusic scooped up by Google and now shut down for Macs/iPhones, we sure need a way to stream to iPhone or iPad from a home library. It is my music and I should be able to play it on my devices.

[rhekt]

Don't Think I would need this that much. Not much music in my library

[AnthonyGiola]

Hmm. Sounds neat in concept, Final Thing would without a doubt have a reception problem. Which in turn would be fixed by falsifying reception to trick everyone....

[feidhlim1986]

With SimplifyMusic scooped up by Google and now shut down for Macs/iPhones, we sure need a way to stream to iPhone or iPad from a home library. It is my music and I should be able to play it on my devices.

You can.....its called syncing with iTunes.
Don't think for a second that an Apple streaming service would work to non-Apple devices.

To counter-act the argument of "but Apple built a ginormous data-center to store our music"....they would not need a butt load of storage for this.

Because it would only compromise of iTune purchased stuff, Apple wouldn't have to make a copy of each song a user has bought and actually store their gigs of music in a nice folder on this data-center. The media already exists somewhere on iTunes Servers. They would only have to have a reference file or link to the already stored song on the iTunes Store Database which would be at most a few KB's and to store reference libraries for a Billion customers owning 10,000 songs each would only take up a few Terabytes. I'm sure some people here have more than enough storage needed for that.

[VBLUE42]

Two more weeks and I'll have my DX and be rid of Apple.

Good riddance!

[Nightz]

My I ask. What is Cloud?
This is the first time I've heard of it.

[Cer0]

My I ask. What is Cloud?
This is the first time I've heard of it.

Items streamed to you or stored on a server farm not locally on your device or computer.

[nautical79]

Hey messany i have a news for you:

Lefties accuse Apple
They say it discriminates against the iPhone

Apple
The iPhone is disconnected if it holds in a special way, as do the lefties.
CNET
If you have an iPhone in April and let you badly because you are left, "I can offer some words of consolation? There is an organization for people like you. And the organization is not happy with Apple.

Seeking justice

According to the Daily Telegraph, The Left Handed Club, which has about 90 thousand members, says that Apple is discriminatory against those whose left hand is using.
" Lauren Milsom, who heads the Left-Handers Club, told the newspaper: "I would strongly suggest that Steve Jobs hired some lefties in their design team and test their phones in the future, and urgently address this issue to ensure that the phone is suitable for all audiences. "

If you have not noticed, the problem is that the iPhone 4 does not seem ideally suited for those who hold with the left hand.
In fact, simply hold the phone in the left hand can cause a loss of reception. Apple seems to have suggested that perhaps users could hold otherwise, regardless of left-handers

Now the club insists that Apple should take their fault and not let the lefties in limbo.

"Clearly we need more evidence to be sure that this is the case, but if so, prospective clients should be advised handed the phone does not work for them, until it can be redesigned to remedy the fault'' said Milsom.

If the United States has enjoyed eight were left-handed presidents (Reagan, Bush I, Clinton and Obama among others), one might think that one or two people of the minority left-handed may have passed an interview process to Apple and work there.

Maybe Apple thinks that their phones are best seen in the right hand. However, it would be good for Apple to its employees handed to silence nuisance.

According to Left-Handers Club, under the water look better, reach puberty earlier than right-handers, and one in four Apollo astronauts were left-handed.

But here it is, by far the most important thing that should make everyone think about the lefties: The Left Handed Club tells us that four of the five original designers of the Macintosh computer were left-handed.

Sounds like a news you usually post.

[Crotia]

Because Apple's annual iTunes/iPod event is usually September, this rumor usually pops ups around now.
I honestly do not see why an iTunes "cloud" is appealing to anyone. You will most definitely only be able to stream music you have bought from iTunes. And you'll be streaming these songs to devices with built-in storage of multiple gigabytes whose main purpose is to store your music locally so it can be accessed at any moment without the need to have an internet connection.
Once again I'll clarify, that a cloud based iTunes would only be of little use to someone whose entire music library has been bought from iTunes,

Right, but if you can potentially stream music from your iTunes library then this would be great since even the iPhone4 only has a measly 32GB of storage

[sfrawley]

You can.....its called syncing with iTunes.
Don't think for a second that an Apple streaming service would work to non-Apple devices.
at.

You are so wrong. SimplifyMusic allowed me to access anything in my library from anywhere - synced or not. There will never be an iPhone that can sync that. Simplify worked well for me and on on request I could pull rabbits out of my library for any taste. And it did not require jailbreaking.

Somebody will do it if Apple won't and I will pay for it when they do. Then Apple will do it to steal their thunder. Did you hear Apple even has a new IOS that 'multitasks'. Cool idea!

I wonder where that came from?

[dito0020]

I dont think the future of MP3s should be set on the cloud, just think about the amount of data- specially with this new caps that are coming around. Hard disk space is growing really fast, really cheap nowadays- remember when a 80GBs HDD was 150 bucks??

[Cer0]

Remember when a it used to be 100$ a gig? Now you can get a 3TB external hardrive for 250$.

[alectra82]

WTF is cloud. I am friends with google, but I am feeling lazy.