Steve Jobs to Unveil iCloud and iOS 5 at WWDC, Still No Mention of New Hardware

Over the last few months we’ve heard several rumors surrounding Apple’s new cloud service. Though cloud-based storage was originally thought to be part of a major MobileMe revamp, gossip has taken the service from a feature to a headline.

Between the rumblings of music industry insiders and digital evidence that Apple recently purchased the iCloud domain name, it’s been pretty safe to assume Apple had something up its sleeve. But for the ever-skeptical “I’ll believe it when I see it” folks, Apple has finally made the cloud service official…

The iPhone-makers put out a press release this morning that instantly turned the iCloud rumor into reality. Apple has been publicly silent about their upcoming service, which some analysts predict will, “transform digital music.”

“Apple CEO Steve Jobs and a team of Apple executives will kick off the company’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference with a keynote address on Monday, June 6 at 10 a.m. At the keynote, Apple will unveil its next generate software – Lion, the eighth major release of Mac OS X; iOS 5, the next version of Apple’s advanced mobile operating system which powers the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch; and iCloud, Apple’s upcoming cloud services offering.”

Though we’ve heard multiple rumors on how the service will work, it’ll be interesting to hear how Apple rolls out their cloud product – and at what cost. From their 12 petabyte storage purchase, to their massive billion dollar data center, what could Apple have possibly cooked up?

Perhaps the greatest news in Apple’s announcement today is that the company’s charismatic leader, Steve Jobs, will be speaking at the event. With the CEO still out on medical leave, his appearance bodes well for both stock holders and Apple fans alike.

Also of note is the continued omission of any indication that a new iPhone might get unveiled at the event. The press release, much like earlier WWDC invitations, suggests that software will be the highlight of this year’s conference. This aligns with previous rumors that the next-gen iPhone would debut this fall.

Though I’m not holding my breath, it wouldn’t surprise me to see an iPhone announced June 6th – right on schedule. After last year’s iPhone debacle, why wouldn’t Jobs and company go through great lengths to keep the new hardware under wraps?

What do you think? Any last minute cloud feature requests?