Apple reportedly to force Beats Music app on iPhone users

REMEMBER when everyone got mad because Apple put U2 on their phones without asking? Well, they’re doing it again, but this time it might not be so bad.

FIRST it was U2, now it appears Apple will be loading up the Beats Music streaming app on everyone’s iPhone, iPad and iPhone Touch.

The company already recommends iPhone owners download the app, alongside Apple apps like iMovie, GarageBand and Page. But The Financial Times is now reporting that Beats Music will become a core iOS app in an update due “early next year.”

Beats Music is a music streaming app that works similarly to the likes of Spotify and Rdio, but since launching in January is yet to really make an impact on the market.

The move makes sense, as when Apple bought Beats for $3 billion back in May, CEO Tim Cook said that the streaming service was a major factor in Apple’s decision. With numbers not fantastic, a move to make it a bundled app could help bring the subscriber numbers to make Apple’s investment worthwhile.

Happy times. The key figures from Apple and Beats after the $3 billion deal was done.

The Financial Times also suggests that Apple could be giving Beats Music a rebrand at the same time, possibly picking up the iTunes name. The move would give Apple a three-pronged approach for customers, with iTunes offering the traditional way of buying songs, iTunes Radio offering free “radio” stations and Beats Music an on-demand subscription service.

It’s also not unusual for Apple to move apps from being optional to bundled. The same thing happened for iBooks and Podcasts, which were both available on the App Store before becoming unremovable iOS apps.

Beats Music launched in January as a rebranding and redesign of the MOG streaming service, which Telstra still currently offers to customers as an unmetered service. At this stage it’s unclear when Beats will launch in Australia, but Telstra has said that it is happening.