iTunes Software Downloads

Unless you lived under a rock for the last years you already know what iTunes is. One of the most extraordinary digital media player application, iTunes was first introduced by Apple on January 9, 2001, at the Macworld Expo in San Francisco. It started as the software link between the iPods and the music from your PC or MacBook. But then again, as all of the Apple products it grew into something spectacular. The latest version, iTunes 8, was announced in September 2008. In the last eight years, iTunes was re-invented several times. The original version was not at all that interesting. In just nine month Apple released 2.0 versions of iTunes which added support for the original iPods. Version 3 allowed users to create small playlists. The iTunes Store was included in the 4.0 release. In September 2006, iTunes 7 was looking more attractive with the Cover Flow. The last major update, version 8.0, added Genius playlists (not all that useful), and a new visualize. But in the same time the iTunes Store was growing also. From a few albums to all international albums, plus video clips, rentals for movies, audio books and the recent App Store (available for more than 40 countries) there are a lot of changes in 8 years, even for an Apple product.


The App Store opened on July 10, 2008 via an update on iTunes. Applications were available in the moment of launch. At the beginning there were only 500 third party applications available both for iPod Touch and iPhone. Surprisingly as a marketing plan Apple announced that 125 of these applications were free. Apple tried to cover all the categories: education, entertainment, business. In the first weekend Apple announced that over 10 million applications were downloaded. From the 10 million application downloads on 14th of July, 2008, to 15 billion application downloads on 14th of July, 2009, the App Store is a success.



Today, September 5, 2009, the App Store of the USA shows the following statistic:

-Top paid application, Games (6 out of 10, Geared, Alive 4-ever, Frogger, Cooking Dash, Sheep Launches plus!, Bejeweled2), Music (I Am T-Pain), Utilities (Convert), Entertainment (Family Guy).

-Top free applications, Games (7 out of 10, Boxed In, UNO, Geared, Racing Live, Jurassic 3D, Mr. Aah!, Sheep Launches plus!, Dirt Moto Racing Lite), Social Networking (Bump), Entertainment (Discovery Channel).



While the App Store of The United Kingdom shows the following statistic:

-Top paid application, Games (8 out of 10, Geared, Alive 4-ever, Pub Quiz, Modern Combat, Farm Frenzy, Solitaire, Flight Control, Cartoon Wars), Photography (ColorSplash), Entertainment (Pocket Ted).

-Top free applications, Games (8 out of 10, Biker Blast – Off !, Boxed In, Super Hard Puzzle, Geared - Free, Jurassic 3D Rollercoaster, Racing Live, Parachute Panic Lite, Dirt Moto Racing Lite), Entertainment (What’s your IQ ?, Shave Me !).

Apple succeeds in the entertainment category. iTunes, iTunes Store and now App Store (plus the Mac OS platforms) are token of evidence that Apple provides not only excellent hardware but also brilliant software. However, for the time being, Apple has not succeeded in the business category, neither with free or paid applications for the iPod Touch and iPhone. Then again, who knows what iTunes 9 might bring.