NYT: Trent Reznor ‘point man’ in designing iOS 8.4 Music app with Beats-based streaming service March 26, 2015
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Beats Reznor Iovine Dre

Apple’s Spotify-like subscription music service based on its $3 billion Beats acquisition last year is fully underway, The New York Times reports in a new article heavily corroborating our own reporting on the upcoming music service from the past several months. A few interesting details in the report describe two projects being largely led by music industry veterans rather than engineers…

Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor who served as Beats Music’s Chief Creative Officer and moved to Apple through the acquisition is the ‘point man’ on designing the iOS 8.4 Music app overhaul we reported earlier this year which will include the Beats Music-based streaming music service. Reznor described his current role at Apple in an interview last fall as designing for a project around music.

Famed Radio 1 DJ Zane Lowe, who Apple recently hired from BBC Radio, is said to be assigned to “reconfiguring” the admittedly stale Pandora-like iTunes Radio offering which is already integrated with the iOS Music app. According to the report, Lowe, who is known for musical trend spotting, has been tasked with becoming the voice of “a more geographically targeted” iTunes Radio that would resemble “a traditional radio station.”

The Times’ reporting again corroborates our prior reporting that Apple executives have targeted a lower monthly subscription price compared to the current $9.99/month rate while avoiding a free-tier while echoing recent reports that Apple could be unsuccessful in negotiating cheaper rates.

While the NYT does not name iOS 8.4 as the targeted release to include the Beats-based streaming service included in the new Music app, the report does cite the iOS release codenamed Copper highlighted in our prior report which we know to be iOS 8.4:

-According to sources, the iOS 8.4 upgrade is well into development and is codenamed Copper, a popular ski resort in Colorado.-

Apple currently plans to unveil the iOS 8.4 release including the overhauled Music app and subscription music service in early June at the company’s annual WWDC event. [9 to 5 Mac]