ITunes Radio

iTunes Radio was an service from Apple that let users listen to automatically generated playlists based on direct input as well as collected data on music preferences. It was launched on September 18, 2013 as part of iOS 7 and was available in the Music app on iOS devices and Apple TV (2nd generation and newer) as well as in iTunes 11.1 on OS X (it required Mac OS X 10.7.5 "Lion" or newer to run) and Windows. It was first made available in the United States and Australia.
With the release of iOS 8.4 and iTunes 12.2, nearly all functions of iTunes Radio became part of the Apple Music streaming service and was henceforth called just Radio or Apple Music Radio.
== History ==
Apple announced iTunes Radio on June 10 at its 2013 Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC 2013) keynote speech.Apple Announces iTunes Radio, Apple Inc. 2013-06-10. The service launched in the United States on September 18, 2013, the same day as the release of iOS 7, and in Australia on February 11, 2014. Reports of a streaming music service from Apple circulated for weeks before the announcement.
In October 2013, reported that Apple had plans to expand the service to the UK, Canada, and New Zealand by early 2014.Andy Fixmer, “Apple Said to Expand ITunes Radio to U.K. Before Pandora", ‘’Bloomberg Technology ‘’, October 8, 2013 However, by January 2015, iTunes Radio was still only available in the United States and Australia. Apple had announced plans to offer the service in other countries. With the release of Apple Music, most functions of iTunes Radio had become available in 100 countries, although iTunes Radio itself remained limited to the United States and Australia as a free service.
On January 15, 2016, Apple announced that effective on January 28, 2016, iTunes Radio stations, barring Beats 1, would only be accessible to Apple Music subscribers. On January 29, 2016, the iTunes Radio channel was automatically removed from Apple TV devices (3rd generation and earlier), having been replaced by Beats 1 (now Apple Music 1).
== Service ==
iTunes Radio was a free, service available to all iTunes users, featuring Siri integration on iOS. Users were able to skip tracks, customize stations, and purchase the station's songs from the iTunes Store. Users could also search through their history of previous songs. The number of track skips was limited like Pandora Radio's service. iTunes Match subscribers were able to use an ad-free version of the service. The service had pre-loaded stations, including a playlist of trending songs on Twitter. The service also generated a radio station based on input like a single artist with songs by them and other similar criteria. The service's selection process calculated the user's preferences from input of whether the user liked or disliked a track.
== Apple Music integration ==
Previous Apple CEO Steve Jobs was originally opposed to the idea of music subscription services. Through its purchase of audio equipment maker Beats Electronics in 2014, Apple gained ownership of its own service Beats Music. With Beats Music CEO Ian Rogers also becoming responsible for the ad-supported iTunes Radio service, later reported that Apple was planning to merge the two services. Apple also hired noted British radio DJ to serve as a music curator.
After a period of rumors and anticipation, Apple Music was announced on June 8 at the 2015 Worldwide Developers Conference with plans for launch later that month. The "one more thing" reveal had been confirmed by CEO and reports prior to the announcement. Morris added that he expected the service to restore the music industry's prior state of financial prosperity. He said that Apple Music's ad-supported streams would have a on the market where Spotify was unable to profit. Hip hop artist appeared onstage at the announcement event to elaborate on how he used the Connect platform. Apple also emphasized how unsigned artists could participate in Connect.
Apple Music launched on June 30, 2015, in 100 countries. New users received a three-month trial subscription, which reverts to a monthly fee. A family plan allows six users to share a subscription at a reduced rate. Apple originally sought to enter the market at a lower price point for the service, but the music industry rejected the plan. The service debuts as an iOS device exclusive alongside the same-day iOS 8.4 update. Apple TV and Android device support is planned for a Q3 2015 launch. A previously unreleased song by entitled "" was used in promotional material and has been announced as an exclusive release on the launch of the service. The "History of Sound" advert for the launch of the Apple Music service was soundtracked by the tune "There Is No Light" by , from their 2009 album . Upon its launch, Beats Music subscriptions and playlists were migrated to Apple Music, and the service was discontinued.
Apple Music had 10 million paying subscribers just six months after launching, and as of April 2018 has over 40 million subscribers.
==References==
==External links==
*iTunes Radio at Apple (archived 2015-06-08, 2013-06-13)
**Radio at Apple Music
* at Wikipedia
Category:Discontinued Apple services
Category:iTunes
Category:2013 introductions