It’s going to be a big week for Apple as the company is expected to announce the imminent arrival of its new Apple Music service and the (eventual) planned rollout of Apple Pay in the UK.
Apple’s announcements will be made at the tech giant’s annual WWDC conference, which gets under way today at 6pm UK time, at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. One of the biggest reveals will be the launch of Apple’s revamped music service, off the back of the company’s big-money takeover of Beats Music.
Apple Music, now a long time in the making, is expected to offer users a streaming music subscription service to compete with industry-leader Spotify. Apple fans will be able to pay a monthly fee to stream all the music they want.
While much has been made of what the service will (or won’t) offer, it’s now believed that all plans will be pay-monthly and there won’t be any ad-supported arm, as there is with Spotify. Users looking to soak up some free tunes will instead have to rely on the company’s new and improved iTunes Radio service, which is also expected to receive its bow at WWDC.
While Apple Music should be with British users this very week (with a spot of luck), those looking to take advantage of the company’s new contactless payment service, Apple Pay, might have to wait a gnats longer.
Apple Pay is already active in the US after its announcement almost a year ago and while American travellers are already able to use it at some terminals in the UK, such as those used by TfL, Brits will have to wait until the summer to make use of the convenience.
Apple is believed to still be in talks with various financial institutions and retailers, though the company is said to be hopeful that things will be sorted inside of two months. We reckon August is a realistic date for Apple to aim for, a month before it unleashes the new iPhone 6s/iPhone 7. The question is, can it take on rival services from the likes of Samsung?
What else Apple has in store for WWDC remains to be seen but, as ever, we’ll be bringing you the latest news from the conference right here.
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