ITunes Store

iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple Inc. It was opened on April 28, 2003, and has been the largest music vendor in the United States since April 2008, and the largest music vendor in the world since February 2010. It offers over 60 million songs, 2.2 million apps, 25,000 TV shows, and 65,000 films as of January 2017.

History

The iTunes Store was introduced by Steve Jobs at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in April 2003. It was initially available on Mac computers and the iPod, and was later expanded to Microsoft Windows in October 2003. In April 2008, the iTunes Store became the largest music vendor in the United States, and in February 2010, it became the largest music vendor in the world.

Content

The iTunes Store's content is divided into music, movies, TV shows, podcasts, books, and apps. The music section offers over 60 million songs, from all major record labels and thousands of independent labels. The movie and TV show sections offer a wide range of content, from new releases to classic films and TV series. The podcast section offers over 550,000 active podcasts, including both free and premium content. The book section includes both ebooks and audiobooks, with a wide range of genres and titles. The app section offers over 2.2 million apps for iOS devices.

Pricing

Pricing on the iTunes Store varies based on the type of content and its popularity. Most songs are priced at $0.99, $1.29, or $1.99, with albums typically priced between $9.99 and $14.99. Movie rentals typically cost between $2.99 and $5.99, while movie purchases typically cost between $9.99 and $19.99. TV show episodes typically cost $1.99 or $2.99, with season passes available for most series. Prices for ebooks and audiobooks vary widely, as do prices for apps.

Digital Rights Management

From its launch until the introduction of iTunes Plus in 2007, songs purchased from the iTunes Store were protected by Digital Rights Management (DRM) technology, which limits the number of devices that can play the content. In 2009, Apple began selling all music on the iTunes Store without DRM.

See Also

• Apple Music
• App Store (iOS)
• iBooks Store
• iCloud
• Apple TV

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