Apple Reportedly Planning To Integrate Beats Into iOS, iTunes, And Apple TV

As reported by Mark Gurman of 9to5Mac, Apple is planning to deeply integrate Beats Music streaming into iOS, iTunes, and Apple TV. When we say deeply integrate, we are not talking about installing the Beats Music app into iPhones, but instead, having a music streaming service that is fully integrated across all Apple products and services.

At first, Apple reportedly discussed with record labels the possibility of offering a monthly streaming plan at a $5 per month cost. However, the company settled on a plan that costs $7.99 a month instead.

A lot of people may prefer to get the initial $5 a month deal, but a $7.99 a month plan is not that bad, especially when you consider that other music streaming service providers like Spotify, Google Play, Rdio, and Rhapsody, just to name a few, offer plans that cost $9.99 a month. Apple's pricing, though, can not beat Pandora's premium, advert-free plan, which only costs $4.99 every month.

It has been a rollercoaster ride for Apple and Beats Music in the last few months. Apple originally planned to introduce the new and improved Beats brand in March, just a month away. But it appears that the tech giant may delay the launch until June, just in time for Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference.

In August of last year, Apple had acquired Beats Music for a sum of $3 billion. Since that acquisition, industry watchers have been trying to determine Apple's exact plans for the music streaming service and music headset manufacturer. It does not help that Apple has been rather mum on the subject, preferring instead to just push the music streaming service quietly to existing iTunes users and promoting Beats headsets via Apple Stores. For the record, iTunes and Beats have yet to officially merge, although industry analysts are saying that it could happen anytime this year.

There were reports late last year that Apple was planning to have Beats Music automatically installed on all iOS devices by the year 2015. By pre-installing the music streaming service, be it under the Beats brand name or otherwise, Apple would have an upper hand in promoting its own music-related service over other competing brands like Spotify or Rhapsody. Moreover, a paid music streaming service would definitely create a new revenue stream for Apple, not to mention help attract new customers into its fold. Beats Music, after all, was already a known and respected brand even before Apple bought it. If Apple manages to fully integrate the Beats across all of it services, it may have well captured that specific demographic that is loyal to the Beats brand too.