iTunes 12.2 Released With Support For Apple Music And Beats1 Radio

The wait is finally over for desktop users; you can access Apple Music from your Mac right now

While Apple released iOS 8.4 along with Apple Music earlier today, desktop users were left waiting for access to the service due to the lack of the corresponding iTunes update, which would add support for the music streaming service. Now, Apple has finally released iTunes 12.2, exclusively for OS X Yosemite users, leaving PC users waiting.

The latest iteration of iTunes can be downloaded right now through the Mac App Store’s Software Update system. The Windows version of iTunes 12.2 will also be released shortly. According to latest Apple news, it's new advertisement glorifies the multiple aspects of Apple music.

The new iTunes 12.2 adds a number of new sections within the Music tab of iTunes, mirroring the ones found in Apple Music on iOS. One of those sections is “For You,” which shows you generated tracks which you might like listening to, with the selection based on your entered preferences whilst going through the initial setup of the service along with your entire listening history and music purchase history linked to your Apple account, so if you purchased a song 4 years ago, the system will even take that into account while generating the track list. The update also adds a “New” section which shows you the new and trending music from across the world.

Additionally, there’s a new AAPL Apple Music Connect section, which takes you to Apple’s artist-centric social network. Using the Connect sections, you’ll be taken to a Facebook of sorts for your favorite artists, where you’ll be able to see their text updates, along with images, videos and more. The final “Radio” section gives you access to the new 24/7 live worldwide internet radio station Beats1 along with other radio stations which are based on various songs and artists or others which are directly compiled by music experts.

After the launch of iTunes 12 late last year alongside OS X Yosemite, iTunes 12.2 is the second major update to Apple’s music application, according to latest Apple updates. The previous major iteration, iTunes 12.2, added support for a Notification center widget along with major performance tweaks.

iTunes users can get the Apple Music service for free by opting for a trial period of three months. When the trial period ends, however, you can either opt purchase an individual subscription which will set you back $9.99 or a family subscription which can be purchased for up to six users for $14.99. The new Beats1 radio station along with the normal iTunes radio stations are available for no cost or subscription fees.

Strengths and Weaknesses of Apple Music

Apple has unveiled Apple Music and the release date for the app is 30th July. This might not be a good thing for the company but it will be cross platform.

Latest Apple news is regarding the WWDC 2015 that happened yesterday and along with many other features and iOS 9 being unveiled, Apple has done something for its music app by unveiling Apple Music considering the streaming of music. Now the major question is whether this app will be a hit with public, bringing the masses of users and also stealing some of the users from competitors or whether it will become another app by Apple which we might forget about after downloading. There are some strengths and weaknesses of the app that have been considered in this article.

Strength: On-Demand Streaming 

The music download sales have been falling very quickly and what is rising is the music streaming. People prefer listening to music online instead of downloading it and then giving it a shot. The company desperately needed a transition from the popular iTunes sales model to the streaming subscription or might as well risk the usage falling and revenue decay.

Weakness: Launch Date 

The launch date is quite a bit tricky and might not be a positive one for the company. With the entire world watching and waiting for the features and apps to be unveiled, the company could have let the users go and download the app instantly and begin with the music listening. Instead, Apple news reports that we all are supposed to wait till 30^th June for the launch. Such delays can only help when we are talking about the new devices, they are costly and everyone thinks twice before buying, nobody will show off that they have begun the trial period of some app.

Strength: Availability 

One good aspect is that the company is smart enough to make the Apple Music available on Windows PCs and Android phones. However these won’t be launched until fall. Till then it is only Mac, Apple Watch and iOS.

Strength: Free Trial 

Another good part is that there will be a three-month free trial for the users to give a shot to Apple Music. For a lot of users this might be the first exposure to the search box that will be able to play any song that has ever been made.

Weakness: No Free/Ad-Supported Tier 

There is a problem with free trials, and that is people are discouraged from investing into the personalization of the listening experience they have. Despite the iAd which is unimpactful, the company is not advertising company so when it comes to ad supported tier, the lack of this is something which can be predicted.