Apple unveils social network, new iPod and TV tool
Apple has launched a music-centered social network at iTunes and unveiled slick new iPod and Apple TV gadgets that promised to win the iconic company more devotees. Ping was built into iTunes 10 software made available as a free download at itunes.com. "It is sort of like Facebook and Twitter meet iTunes," Apple chief executive Steve Jobs said, referring to the world's top online social networking and microblogging services. "It is not Facebook. It is not Twitter. It is something else we've come up with. It's all about music," he said. Ping will automatically be available to the more than 160 million iTunes members worldwide when they update to the new version. "Apple is now in the social networking game, but it is music centric which is really cool," said analyst and Altimeter Group partner Michael Gartenberg. "It is not about competing with Facebook or Twitter. This is about something they use in addition. When I want to hang with my music friends this is where I go." Jobs introduced Ping along with a dramatically overhauled iPod line and a second-generation of Apple TV box that streams television shows and movies over the Web to high-definition television sets. Jobs, dressed in his trademark long-sleeved black shirt, blue jeans and tennis shoes, said the Apple TV device would cost 99 dollars, down from 229 dollars. Apple released the first version of its digital media receiver TV in 2007 but it never caught on with the public and has been referred to by the company as a "hobby." The new iPod Touch allows for video calling. It has front- and rear-facing cameras, which let a user hold video chats with iPhone or other iPod Touch owners using Wi-Fi and an Apple program called "FaceTime." The Touch got the vivid screen from the latest generation iPhone and was touted as the world's most popular portable gaming device. Apple was capitalizing on the allure to videogame players with Game Center software that lets users of the company's mobile gadgets play against each other online. Jobs also showed off a new iPod Shuffle for 49 dollars and a touchscreen version of the middle-range iPod Nano starting at 149 dollars. The new iPod Touch costs 229 dollars for the eight-gigabyte model, 299 dollars for the 32GB model and 399 dollars for the 64GB version. He said the new iPods would be available next week.
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