Files discovered in the iTunes app on jailbroken iPads suggest the tablets might be getting new radio-centric features.
The files are named variations of “radio button,” and two of them also have the word “buy” in their names, according to 9to5 Mac, which found the buttons while rooting around inside their jailbroken iPad. The icon associated with these files is reminiscent of the radio icon once found in the Mac version of iTunes.
The icons could indicate Apple is bringing the radio feature of its desktop iTunes platform to the iPad, along with an ability to easily purchase the track you’re listening to. Alternatively, Apple could be planning to take down streaming platforms like Pandora, Spotify or Rdio with a radio-like service of its own.
Late last year, reports ran rampant that Apple was hard at work on a Pandora-like streaming radio service. The Wall Street Journal said Apple was negotiating the licensing needed for such a custom radio service, with stations based around your favorite songs or artists. Bloomberg said we’d see the service debut in early 2013.
Music discovery has been a challenge for Apple. It shuttered its music-centric social network Ping at the end of September. Without integration with Facebook (a deal that reportedly fell through), Ping failed to garner devoted users eager to share what they were listening to and buying on iTunes. Ping’s prompts urging users to buy tracks also made it feel less social and more commercial.
With a radio service and a more subtle option to purchase the tracks you dig, Apple could have a more successful recipe for boosting iTunes music sales, and letting you find cool music in the process. Sales of music downloads have generally been slowing in recent years.
Apple pushed a big update to its iTunes platform, iTunes 11, back in November, but its new features centered around ease of use, search, and the ability to queue up tracks (and manage them).
Hidden iPad Buttons Suggest Apple Will Bring Radio Functionality to iTunes
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Hidden iPad Buttons Suggest Apple Will Bring Radio Functionality to iTunes
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Hidden iPad Buttons Suggest Apple Will Bring Radio Functionality to iTunes
