Apple Internet Radio - iRadio - on the way? Keep June 10 in your diary
A new streaming music service for iTunes - dubbed iRadio by the technology press - could finally be on the way. Apple signed a licensing deal at the weekend with Warner Music Group for the rights to its recorded music and music publishing.
Apple "internet radio" ready to go?
Under the deal, Apple will give Warner Music Group's publishing arm 10% of ad revenue—more than twice what Internet radio giant Pandora pays major music publishers.
Warner's terms with Apple could pave the way for other major publishing deals to follow, said the Wall Street Journal.
Rumour is that the service will be announced at Apple's annual developers conference, which begins on June 10 in San Francisco.
Apple's plans for an Internet radio service- previously reported in the Journal—"has been in the works for at least a year, but negotiations with music labels have been slow," said the paper.
Apple has signed a deal with Universal Music Group for its recorded music rights but not its publishing rights. There is no deal yet with Sony, thought to be crucial to the product.
Apple's service would allow users to stream songs and be integrated with Apple iAd service, which allows developers to show ads within their apps. Apple remains a leader in music downloads but faces competition from Internet radio services like Pandora and subscription streaming services like Spotify