iTunes Match live in US, lateness hints at 2012 for UK
Apple's iTunes Match has gone live in the US, though it missed its "end of October" promised date. This spells bad news for us Brits.
iTunes Match is now live, in the US at least. Apple's service that lets you sync tunes with iCloud so you can listen on any compatible device wherever you are, has launched later than promised, which makes us think us Brits might not see it until next year.
Cynical? Us?
If you haven't heard of iTunes Match, it's simple. It stores your music in the cloud instead of taking up valuable hard drive space. So sync your music collection, and you can listen on any iOS device or computer running iTunes wherever you are in the world. You can only upload up to 25,000 songs (though iTunes purchases don't count, so you can spend away), and for the privilege you have to pay $25 (about £15) a year.
It went live today in the US only, but Apple said at its iPhone 4S event last month it was working hard to bring the service to other countries before the end of the year. Though considering Match was promised for the US before the end of October, we don't think we'll be seeing it until 2012. Fingers crossed it does reach these shores before the year is over, we can't wait to listen to music on our iPhone without it taking up valuable app space.
Google's Music Store is rumoured to launch on Wednesday, apparently with the ability to share tunes with friends a la Spotify and Facebook. According to leaked screens, it also seems we'll be getting a free song every single day. Music to our ears.
Can Google Music Store challenge iTunes? And how long should Apple take to bring iTunes Match to these shores? Let us know below, or head over to our Facebook page and give us a tune.