Apple iTunes to play last song

SAN JOSE, California -- Apple on Monday announced the demise of its groundbreaking iTunes platform in favor of 3 more tailored apps, as it refines its offerings to be a stage for digital music, films, podcasts and more.

iTunes transformed the way people buy and listen to music after its launch in 2001, but is now being phased out, Apple senior vice president of software engineering Craig Federighi said, while helping kick off the technology giant's annual gathering of developers in Silicon Valley.

"The future of iTunes is not one app, it's three," Federighi said.

"Apple Music, Apple Podcasts and Apple TV."

Since the launch of iTunes, lifestyles have shifted to streaming music, video and more from the internet cloud as online data centers and high-bandwidth connections gave rise to on-demand entertainment expectations.

The iTunes software let users manage and listen to music collections as well as buy digital versions of songs.

"There is no reason for iTunes to exist, period." said Creative Strategies analyst Carolina Milanesi.

"If I want music, I have an the app. If I want TV, I have the app. That is how people are thinking today."

The transformation of iTunes into 3 separate apps comes with Apple preparing the international launch of an eponymous TV+ later this year.

The new content will be available on an upgraded Apple TV app, which will be on smart television sets and third-party platforms including Roku and Amazon's Fire TV. 

The California company showed off its podcast app on Monday as well, and said that service would be tailored to work independently on its smartwatch.

Some features from iTunes will be melded into the other Apple apps. 

It remains to be seen what will become of the iTunes version tailored for Windows-powered computers, or how people will be able to move music libraries they have amassed.

Software innovations and improvements revealed at the opening day of the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) touched the company's entire line-up from wrist-wear to iPhones and Car Play along with smart assistant Siri.

The innovations come as Apple shifts to emphasize digital content and other services to offset a pullback in the once-sizzling smartphone market, and with many news organizations struggling to monetize their online services.

Apple is aiming to leverage its position with about 900 million people worldwide who use at least one of its devices.

APPLE SIGN-IN

The packed WWDC audience cheered when executives spoke of improvements that promised to make it easier for one app to work across the array of devices.

Apple is apparently trying to get app makers looking beyond the iPhone to the company's family of hardware with a message of "better together," Milanesi reasoned.

"It is about the breadth of those devices together," the analyst said.

As high-end Android-powered phones made by Google become more attractive to iPhone users, having apps that extend experiences across Apple Watch, iPad, TV and Mac help keep them loyal to the brand, according to Milanesi.

"Not only are you driving more engagement with Apple, you are lowering the risk of having users go elsewhere," she said.

Next-generation iOS software powering iPhones coming out later this year was reworked "top to bottom" to be faster, according to Federighi.

Apple chief Tim Cook and other executives focused on privacy features of improved software across the range of devices.

Protections being added to iOS mobile operating software included the option of giving apps permission to access location just once, instead of all the time, and letting users know when apps are tracking their whereabouts.

A new "Sign In With Apple" feature will be launched as an alternative to logging in using Facebook or Google accounts.

"This can be convenient, but it can also come at the cost of your privacy," Federighi said.

"These log-ins can be used to track you."

The iOS log-in feature will let people sign into apps using AppleID information, but provides the option of masking user names or email addresses with randomly generated information.

"The entire experience is meant to help you have control over your data," Federighi said, to applause.

"A lot of love for random addresses here."

Apple also announced changes that will make iPads easier to use as auxiliary screens for Mac computers, and even perform a bit more like laptops themselves with capabilities like multiple windows operating simultaneously.

The company unveiled a new Mac Pro high-performance desktop computer aimed at professionals, with a starting price of $5,999.

Apple previewed its iOS 13 for mobile devices, which includes a "dark mode" display, an upgraded maps application and faster access through its facial recognition sign-on.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Apple to retire iPod nano and shuffle

Touch became the last iPod standing on Thursday as Apple removed nano and shuffle stand-alone digital music players from its lineup.

Late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs introduced the devices some 12 years ago with his legendary showmanship flare, and the small, easy to operate players helped the company revolutionize how music was sold.

Apple confirmed to AFP that it is no longer selling nano and shuffle, and the MP3 players vanished from the Apple website.

"Today, we are simplifying our iPod lineup with two models of iPod touch now with double the capacity starting at just $199 and we are discontinuing the iPod shuffle and iPod nano," the company said in an email.

Industry trackers and California-based Apple itself have long acknowledged that the do-it-all iPhone would eat away at sales of one-trick devices such as iPod MP3 players, so the farewell was met more with nostalgia than surprise.

The trend toward streaming music services, including the launch of one by Apple, has made devices designed just for carrying digital tunes around less enticing for consumers.

Shuffle devices about the size of matchbooks and featuring click-wheels for control but no screens debuted in early 2005, with Jobs touting that they let people carry broad libraries of music right in their pockets.

The small gadgets became popular with runners and others involved in physically active endeavors due to the ease with which they could be toted.

The iPod nano also hit the market in 2005, featuring click wheels and screens that improved the ability to select songs. Nano devices evolved with subsequent models, leading to one with a multi-touch screen and the look of an iPhone.

Neither the shuffle nor the nano linked to the internet, instead relying on downloading music from Apple online shop iTunes through computers.

Three years ago Apple discontinued the last version of the original iPod Classic, introduced in October of 2001.

The remaining products in the line are iPod touch models boasting much larger storage capacity and the ability to link wirelessly to internet hotspots for online content such as music streamed from services such as Apple Music.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Nude-free Playboy hits iTunes, Google Play

WASHINGTON - Playboy said Wednesday its nude-free magazine would be offered for the first time as Apple and Google digital subscriptions, as the iconic brand shifts to win over a new generation.

The magazine, which recently threw in the towel on nudity as part of an effort to reach a broader audience, made its debut on the iTunes and Google Play stores.

"Since introducing a brand new vision for Playboy magazine earlier this year, we have expanded our distribution channels in many powerful ways, including higher visibility on an increased number of traditional and digital media platforms," said David Israel, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Playboy Enterprises.

"Inclusion in the iTunes and Google Play stores is an important milestone for Playboy as we continue to explore opportunities to introduce our content to new audiences all over the world."

Playboy, which broke lifestyle taboos in the 1950s with bare-breasted pictures in a magazine for the mass market, unveiled "a top-to-bottom redesign" starting with its March 2016 edition.

Facing a deluge of online pornography, Playboy shifted its focus in a bid to offer lifestyle content that is "safe for work" and more widely distributed on social media.

Playboy still includes provocative pictorials of women, but without nudity, a major turnabout for the magazine which launched in 1953 with an edition featuring Marilyn Monroe.

The magazine also gained fame for its interviews of major public figures from Jimmy Carter to Fidel Castro, and fiction from writers including Vladimir Nabokov, Haruki Murakami and Margaret Atwood.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Apple heads to trial over digital music claims

OAKLAND, California - Apple Inc. will defend against allegations that it abused a monopoly position in the digital music player market as it heads to trial in a case that could cost the company about $1 billion if it loses.

Opening statements are scheduled to begin on Tuesday in an Oakland, California, federal court in the long-running class action, brought by a group of individuals and businesses who purchased iPods between 2006 and 2009. They say a 2006 iTunes update dictated that iTunes music could only be played on iPods, unfairly blocking competing device makers.

Plaintiffs are seeking about $350 million in damages, which would be automatically tripled under antitrust laws. Apple says the software update contained genuine product improvements, and thus should not be found anticompetitive.

The case is one of a handful of antitrust lawsuits Apple has defended over the past year. A New York federal judge found Apple liable last year over allegations it colluded with publishers to drive up e-book prices. Apple is appealing that ruling.

Apple was also one of several tech companies that agreed to settle claims that they colluded to hold down salaries by agreeing not to poach tech workers from competitors. A U.S. judge rejected that $324.5 million settlement as too small, though Apple has asked an appeals court to reinstate it.

The case headed to trial on Tuesday harks back to Apple's pre-iPhone era, when the iPod was its flagship mobile device. Several emails from Apple co-founder Steve Jobs are expected to be entered into evidence, along with short deposition excerpts of Jobs videotaped before he died.

Apple executives including software chief Eddy Cue and marketing senior vice president Philip Schiller are also expected to testify.

Apple faced a challenge in the online music market from Real Networks, which developed RealPlayer, its own digital song manager, plaintiffs claim. It included software which allowed music purchased there playable on iPods.

In 2006, Apple introduced a software update that barred RealPlayer music from the iPod. Plaintiffs claim that discouraged iPod owners from buying a competing device when it came time to upgrade.

Apple, meanwhile, argues in filings that RealPlayer had less than 3 percent of the online music market in 2006, making it "implausible" that its iTunes update would have had such a huge impact on iPod owners' buying decisions.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

'Songs for PH' album launched on iTunes

MANILA – The global music community has come together for the Philippines with record labels Sony, Warner Music and Universal banding together to release the compilation album "Songs for the Philippines" on iTunes.

The album features 39 hit songs from various artists such as The Beatles, Michael Buble, Bruno Mars, Beyonce, Eminem, Adele, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Madonna, Jessica Sanchez and many more.

Proceeds from the all-star album will go to the victims of super typhoon Yolanda (international name: Haiyan) through the Philippine Red Cross.

The album, which costs $9.99, is now available worldwide on iTunes.

Below is the complete list of tracks in the album:

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Facebook, Tumblr, iTunes join 'Yolanda' relief efforts

MANILA – Popular online services Facebook, Tumblr and iTunes have joined international relief efforts for the victims of super typhoon “Yolanda” (international name Haiyan).

Facebook’s millions of users are now greeted on their home page by an ad asking them to donate P200 to typhoon-affected victims via the Red Cross Red Crescent global network.

“The full amount of this donation will go to the Red Cross Red Crescent global network response,” read the ad, which appears on top of Facebook’s news feed.

Users of the social networking site may donate via PayPal or through their debit or credit card.

Apple’s media store iTunes has a similar plea for its users to donate to the Red Cross, with its official Twitter account posting a link on where people can send money.

Meanwhile, a note has been uploaded on Tumblr, encouraging its users to donate to the United Nations’ World Food Programme.

The post also features online resources to find loved ones or request rescue.

Thousands of families in Visayas were affected after the onslaught of “Yolanda,” which is said to be the strongest storm to ever make landfall.

Several individuals and organizations here and abroad have been extending their help to the Philippines, whether through sending relief goods or giving monetary aid.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

New app helps shoppers navigate Divisoria

MANILA – Afraid of getting lost in Divisoria? A new smartphone application offers a detailed guide to Manila’s most popular bargain hotspot.

The Divisoria Guide app features an offline map covering all the streets in Divisoria and some notes and tips on scoring a deal.

The app was created by 24-year-old entrepreneur John Christian Yayen, who admitted to getting lost in Divisoria several times.

“[The] Divisoria Guide is the perfect app for everyone who would dare to visit that part of Manila, especially nowadays that even search engine giant Google has very limited information about it,” said Yayen, a BS Nursing graduate of the University of Santo Tomas.

Yayen believes that the Divisoria Guide app will be helpful not only for customers, but also for small business owners who are looking to set up shop in the area.

He said it took him nearly a year to cover all parts of Divisoria, noting that some locals and Chinese businessmen in the area are not even familiar with some of the places he discovered.

The Divisoria Guide app is initially made for Apple’s iOS operating system and is now available for download on iTunes at $2.99 (around P130).

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Jessica Sanchez's debut album tops iTunes PH

MANILA, Philippines – Filipino-American singer Jessica Sanchez, who finished second during the 11th season of “American Idol,” continues to enjoy success as her debut album tops the iTunes Philippines charts.

Sanchez’s newly released album titled “Me, You & the Music” was released in iTunes on April 30.

It now ranks first in the “Top Albums” list of iTunes Philippines, beating foreign acts such as Adele, Bruno Mars, Maroon 5 and One Direction.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Beatles hits become mobile phone ringtones

SAN FRANCISCO -- Hits from The Beatles have finally joined the chorus of ringtones available for mobile phones.

Catchy 30-second snippets from more than two dozen of the famed 1960s British rock band's top tunes are available exclusive at Apple's online iTunes shop, a message Wednesday at official website thebeatles.com.

"Fans around the world can, for the first time, purchase ringtones for the Beatles' 27 UK and US #1 hits, exclusively on iTunes," the message announced.

"You can even assign your favorite tracks to your favorite people," it continued.

The ringtones were priced at $1.29 each and could be downloaded for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch devices. The list of Beatles songs included "Can't Buy Me Love" and "Let It Be."

The Beatles arrived on iTunes in November of 2010 after what late Apple's Steve Jobs described at the time as "a long and winding road."

A decade had been spent getting the music of "Fab Four" -- Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr -- released in digital form for Apple's wildly popular mobile devices.

The vast catalog of Beatles hits had been held back for years from Internet download sites amid legal squabbles, although their songs have long circulated as unlicensed downloads available from unlicensed peer-to-peer networks.

article source: interaksyon.com

Coroner confirms Whitney Houston found in bathtub

LOS ANGELES --Â Coroners on Sunday completed their autopsy on the body of singer Whitney Houston and confirmed that she was found in the bathtub of her Beverly Hills hotel room, but said the cause of death would not be determined until more lab tests were completed.

Ed Winter, assistant chief coroner for Los Angeles County, revealed little about the autopsy at a news conference, but said medical examiners found no visible signs of trauma or foul play.

He declined to comment on various media reports that Houston, 48, had drowned in her hotel bathtub, possibly after succumbing to drugs or alcohol. He added, "I'm not going to comment on any of the meds or prescriptions that were obtained."

"I'd just comment that she was found in the bathtub. ... I believe somebody removed her from the bathtub and the paramedics did CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) on her."

He said toxicology tests, which would take six to eight weeks to conduct, would be necessary to determine what factor, if any, drugs or alcohol might have played in Houston's death.

He also said a "security hold" had been placed on the case, as has been done in previous high-profile investigations, to keep further details from being divulged.

The coroner's briefing came as the Grammy Awards opened a few miles away at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, where rapper-actor LL Cool J paid tribute to the late pop star just after the start of the star-studded music show.

"We've had a death in our family and so at least for me ... the only thing that feels right is to begin with a prayer for a woman we loved, for our fallen sister, Whitney Houston," he said.

His brief prayer was followed by a clip of Houston singing her hit, "I Will Always Love You," as the crowd responded with a standing ovation.

Houston, who enjoyed tremendous professional success but struggled with drug abuse for years, died on Saturday afternoon in a fourth-floor room at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. She was at the hotel to attend an annual pre-Grammy gala held that evening by her mentor, record mogul Clive Davis.

The Grammy salute Sunday capped an emotional day for those closest to the pop diva and those who admired her as an entertainer. From the New Jersey church where Houston's singing career first took flight to the hotel where her life abruptly ended, family and fans expressed their grief on Sunday with prayer, tears and raw anguish.

Houston's only child, daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown, 18, was taken by paramedics from the hotel to nearby Cedars-Sinai Medical Center on Sunday suffering from anxiety, Beverly Hills police and fire officials said.

A fire department spokeswoman declined to disclose any information about the daughter's medical condition but said she was "awake and talking" at the time she was transported.

Brown, who was reported by celebrity news website TMZ.com as being enraged at authorities for not being allowed into the hotel room where her mother's body was found, was treated at the hospital for stress and released, a source close to the family told Reuters. A hospital spokeswoman declined comment.

CNN reported that Houston's ex-husband, R&B singer Bobby Brown, canceled a long-scheduled performance in Nashville, Tennessee, with his former band, New Edition, to fly back to Los Angeles and attend to the couple's daughter.

Tears and prayers

At the New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey, Houston's hometown, fans and admirers gathered to celebrate her life during three Sunday services, portions of which were devoted to the singer and her family.

Cards and flowers were tied to the railings of the church, where congregants hugged and cried at the entrance. Among those paying their respects was the Reverend Jesse Jackson, the civil rights activist.

"The suddenness of it all leaves us traumatized," said Jackson, who watched Houston grow up and sing at New Hope. It was in that red brick church on a quiet backstreet near downtown Newark where Houston's career began as a soloist in a gospel choir in the 1970s.

While the cause of Houston's death remained undetermined, media reports on Sunday focused on her public behavior in the hours before her death.

The Los Angeles Times said Houston, disheveled, sweaty and smelling of alcohol, was behaving erratically when she stopped by the Hilton two days earlier, accompanied by her daughter, for rehearsals. She was seen flailing her hands frenetically, skipping around the ballroom and wandering aimlessless through the lobby, the newspaper said.

Members of Houston's family expressed their grief in a brief statement saying they were "devastated" by her loss.

"This is an unimaginable tragedy and we will miss her terribly," it said. "We appreciate the outpouring of love and support from her fans and friends."

In a separate statement issued through People magazine, former husband Bobby Brown, with whom she had shared a long struggle with substance abuse, said, "I am deeply saddened at the passing of my ex-wife, Whitney Houston."

Brown was described by an unnamed relative as "beside himself" with grief, according to the magazine.

On the West Coast, the First AME Church of Los Angeles, the city's oldest African-American congregation, held a special moment of silence in Houston's memory.

"Many of us were rooting and pulling for her because she has been a blessing to this generation with talent, with a special anointed voice," Pastor John Hunter told parishioners. "We will miss her. This world will miss her."

Houston's songs were already dominating Internet music sales early on Sunday. Her album "Whitney Houston - The Greatest Hits" was the top seller in the music category on Amazon.com, and her signature hit, "I Will Always Love You," was the No. 1 download at iTunes.

Over the course of a 30-year career in which she established herself as one of the most-admired and influential singers of her time, Houston won six Grammys, 30 Billboard awards and 22 American Music Awards.

The soundtrack for the hit movie in which she starred, "The Bodyguard," was among the best-selling film soundtracks ever.

By the early 1990s, Houston's success on stage was accompanied by an increasingly troubled personal life. In 1992 she married singer Bobby Brown and their tumultuous 14 years together were marred by drug abuse and domestic violence.

The last 10 years of Houston's life were dominated by drug use, rumors of relapses and trips to rehab.

source: interaksyon.com

Archuleta Soap To Air Overseas

MANILA, Philippines — It’s phenomenal, this rise to fame of David Archuleta. After he announced his plan to temporarily leave the music industry and go on a two-year mission service for the Church of Jesus Christ and Latter Day Saints, his last stint as an artist has been religiously followed by fans all over the world. Filipinos are as avid as David’s fans worldwide, especially now that David is starring in TV5’s “Nandito Ako” along with two homegrown talents, Jasmine Curtis Smith and Eula Caballero.

And now there’s a clamor for the series to air overseas. They are also excited to hear David’s version of “Nandito Ako” and are requesting to have it on iTunes. Some fans from Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore and other Asian countries are even flying in just to watch Archuleta in action.

Too bad David did not have enough time to record the English version of the song, “Forever With You” which greatly disappointed the composer, US-based Aaron Paul del Rosario (who composed “Nandito Ako” for Ogie Alcasid).

“But I am not losing hope, my publishing company, PolyEast, are helping me look for an international singer to record ‘Forever With You.’ I was so excited when I was told David Archuleta could record it but he simply didn’t have enough time for this,” Aaron told us.

David also promoted his TV5 mini-serye at SM Fairview two Saturdays ago. With a crowd estimate of 3,500, the entire mall was rocked by deafening screams of fans.

Catch the stars of “Nandito Ako” on their future mall shows. Get details and updates from www.followarchuleta.ph and by following @TV5manila on Twitter.

“Nandito Ako” airs on TV5 on Feb. 20.

source: mb.com.ph

Ryan Reynolds named Sexiest Man Alive

People's Magazine Sexiest Man Alive 2010 has been announced and it’s none other than sexy hunk Ryan Reynolds who is now married to Scarlett Johansson. I am a big fan of Reynolds and i love him!

Now the upcoming Green Lantern movie hit the web this evening offering fans a glimpse of Ryan Reynolds. Green Lantern Stars Reynolds together with Blake Lively, Peter Sarsgaard, Tim Robbins, Mark Strong, Taika Waititi, Temuera Morrison, Angela Bassett, Jay O. Sanders and Jon Tenney.


The long awaited Green Lantern film is set in a universe as vast as it is mysterious, where a small but powerful force that existed for centuries. The movie trailer premiered on Entertainment Tonight and can now be watched in HD on iTunes.