WASHINGTON, June 10 (RIA Novosti) – Apple unveiled its much-anticipated new iTunes Radio service on Monday, an Internet music feature that allows users to listen to customized radio stations based on their previous music selections.
The new iTunes Radio is the “absolute best way to discover new music,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook to applause from a packed room of software developers and Apple enthusiasts at the company’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), streamed live online from San Francisco.
There are plenty of streaming music services already on the market including Pandora, Spotify and TuneIn, and Google launched its All Access music service last month. But Apple leads the market in digital music downloads, according to the NPD Group, a global market information firm.
The new iTunes Radio lets users access the entire iTunes catalog of songs, with millions of selections to pick from, essentially building customized radio stations based on song genre… or they can tune into featured stations. The new service will be available in the fall.
“iTunes Radio works on your iPhone, iPod Touch, your iPad, even in your living room on your apple TV,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services.
It’s free for those who don’t mind listening to ads, but Apple also offers a new iTunes Match subscription for $25 per year, which allows users to get the music without the ads.
The new music service was the most anticipated aspect of Apple’s Monday announcement, but the firm also unveiled a host of new products and product lines including a new iOS 7 for iPhones and iPads, with new icons, animation and a three-dimensional look, along with a new Mac Pro desktop it says will be designed and manufactured entirely in the US.
The company’s stock has fallen 37 percent since September 2012, when it briefly hit a high of $705. In April, it reported its first quarterly decline in more than 10 years. Shares were up slightly on Monday during the announcement, peaking at $449 but then fell before the closing bell.
