Apple's WWDC will kick off June 3 in San Jose
The company's annual developer conference will return to Apple's backyard in California.
Apple's next developer conference will be June 3 in San Jose, California.
Apple's returning to San Jose's McEnery Convention Center on June 3 for its next developer conference.
The company on Thursday said it will host its annual Worldwide Developers Conference in the California city. The confab is in its 30th year, Apple said. The Mac and iPhone maker likely will host a keynote with CEO Tim Cook on June 3, and the conference for developers lasts through June 7.
This will mark the third year for Apple to hold its developer conference in San Jose. The city -- the third biggest in California and 10th largest in the US -- is about 50 miles south of San Francisco and only about 10 miles from Apple's headquarters in Cupertino.
WWDC is known as the event at which Apple details the newest software that will hit its devices later in the year. The company may be best known for its hardware, but the seamless integration of its hardware with its software is what's set Apple apart from rivals. Apple's ability to control every aspect of its products -- something that began when Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak founded the company nearly 43 years ago -- has been key in making it the most powerful company in tech.
The event comes as software and services are taking on even greater importance for Apple. The company still sells millions of iPhones every quarter, but sales aren't soaring like they used to. People are holding onto their devices for longer, which makes it important to give them services that get them paying monthly. Apple has made augmented reality, mobile payments, streaming music and other areas key focuses over the past couple of years.
There are now 1.4 billion devices running iOS, MacOS, WatchOS or TVOS, which has helped the company's services business soar. In the December quarter, Apple's services business revenue jumped 19 percent to a record $10.9 billion.
The company will host an event March 25 at the Steve Jobs Theater on its campus to unveil its new TV streaming and news services and to make other announcements.
As for WWDC, developers can apply for tickets from now until March 20 at 5 p.m. PT through the WWDC website. Tickets are issued through random selection, and developers will be notified of their application status by March 21 at 5 p.m. PT.
Apple also plans to make up to 350 WWDC scholarships available to students. Last year student developers from 41 countries attended and got a free ticket and lodging for the conference.