iTunes Radio To Become A Standalone App
The Cupertino company is now testing iTunes Radio as a standalone application with iOS 8, according to sources briefed on the plans. iTunes Radio first arrived as a feature within the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch operating system’s Music application. As a tab in the already-existing Music app, iTunes Radio has not received a promoted presence on iOS, and this likely has deterred growth for the service in terms of advertising revenue and usage.
I have conflicting opinions about this change. iTunes Radio is a big draw for customers and probably deserves to be given some more prominence on iOS. Equally, though, I think the Home Screen suffers from enough ‘application creep’ as it is.
Apple should put a hard line on how many first-party apps it puts on the Springboard now. If it wants to make iTunes Radio standalone, it needs to choose another app to cull.