Apple’s iTunes store is exclusive to iOS devices and Apple has always said this would never change. However, a recent report has claimed Apple is now considering giving Android users a standalone iTunes app through the Google Play Store.
The report comes from three unnamed sources via Billboard and merely suggests that Apple might one day launch an iTunes app for Android phones. It’s probably wise not to get your hopes up until Apple themselves confirm this, as 95% of the information “leaked” about Apple products turns out to be fallacy designed to troll hipsters.
The concept is not completely ludicrous though – Android is growing faster than iOS, with more and more people adopting cheaper smart phones with Google’s mobile OS every day. Apple needs to look for new ways to either secure the mobile market or branch out and the company isn’t helped by a rumoured “double-digit decline” in music download sales for the US iTunes store. So what better way to boost this than to give Android users the opportunity to purchase music from iTunes instead of Google Play?
Apple is also talking with senior label executives about launching an on-demand streaming service to rival Spotify and Beats Music. They haven’t elaborated on whether this would replace or run alongside their iTunes Radio, or how it will differ but Apple seems to be exploring all monetary options at the moment.
If this is the case it will be a long time before anything comes to fruition as Apple still has a lot of red tape to clear before it can simply launch these new services, let alone an iTunes app for Android, which Google will obviously be opposed to. The company would need to arrange and come to agreements with record labels and apparently the company is still in the early stages of that process. We could be months or even years away from seeing these final products, but I’m sure that if Apple set their sights on something they will achieve it.