iTunes

Apple posts iTunes Best of 2014 charts

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 14, 2018

Like in years past, Apple ahead of the holidays published its list of the best and most popular apps, movies, TV shows, music and books available on iTunes. In the category of the top paid iPhone app, Heads Up! came in first. Facebook's Messenger is Apple's top free iPhone app and Clash of Clans emerged as the top grossing iPhone app, respectively. On the iPad side, Minecraft, YouTube and Clash of Clans have been rated as the App Store's top paid, free and grossing apps, respectively.

Without further ado, here's the rest of Apple's most popular apps and media in 2014.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens teaser trailer hits iTunes and YouTube, watch it now

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 28, 2014

The official teaser trailer for Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens on Black Friday made its debut on iTunes. Lucas film yesterday tweeted that the trailer will hit iTunes after initially saying that it would only be shown in 30 movie theaters across the U.S. Disney in October 2012 acquired Lucasfilm in a transaction valued at a whopping $4 billion.

The acquisition brought Lucasfilm under Disney's fold and gave the Mickey Mouse house rights to further develop the Star Wars franchise and film new movies in the series in co-operation with George Lucas. The trailer has also hit YouTube and we've embedded it for your viewing pleasure right after the break.

Apple offering free Product (RED) gift cards with select purchases on Black Friday

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Apple today announced its plans for Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving when all retailers will be hosting flash sales on many of their products. As usual, the deals aren't as good as other major stores are offering, but they are worth mentioning.

As part of its RED campaign for World AIDS Day, Apple will be giving away free gift cards with the purchase of select products on Friday. The cards can be used on apps, books and other iTunes content, and their values will depend on what you buy.

Chase offering card holders free iTunes music to try Apple Pay

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Chase is launching a new promotion to entice its cardholders to try out Apple Pay. As noted by MacRumors, the bank is notifying customers that they're giving away free iTunes music this weekend to anyone who adds their card to Apple's payment service.

From November 21 to 23, those who add their Chase Visa card to Apple Pay will receive early access to David Guetta's new album "Listen." Once verified that their card has been added, users will receive an iTunes redemption code via the Chase mobile app.

All Foo Fighters albums are currently on sale on iTunes

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated October 19, 2018

To celebrate the release of their new album called Sonic Highways, all the Foo Fighters albums are currently on sale on iTunes, with most of them starting at just $6.99. If you want to complete your Foo Fighters collection, now is the right time to do so.

An old man like me tends to believe that the earlier Foo Fighters albums are the best, but the younger crowd might disagree. At any rates, these are some albums you should definitely consider.

Artists now receiving more revenue from Spotify than iTunes in Europe

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 5, 2014

Spotify seems to have surpassed iTunes in Europe where royalty payments from the popular streaming-music service is now earning artists more revenue than Apple's stagnant music store, which to this date continues to sell music downloads and does not offer all-you-can-eat subscriptions.

At least that's the key takeaway from a survey conducted by Kobalt Music Publishing, which collects royalties on behalf of 6,000 songwriters and music makers in Europe.

According to the data cited Wednesday by The Wall Street Journal, Spotify in Europe brought artists an average of thirteen percent more revenue versus iTunes during the first quarter of 2014.

The data seems to corroborate recent findings by the Recording Industry Association of America which found that digital music sales on iTunes dropped between thirteen and fourteen percent globally since the start of this year, with Apple officially confirming the drop in its SEC filing.

Disney’s Movies Anywhere out for Android, makes cross-platform movies a reality

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated March 2, 2018

In a somewhat ironic twist of fate, Disney is helping blur the lines between Apple's and Google's respective ecosystems with Tuesday's release of its Movies Anywhere app for Android, now available free of charge in the U.S. Google Play Store. That's right, the app now lets folks buy and enjoy Disney content on both iOS and Android devices.

The movie-curating app debuted as an iOS exclusive in February 2014 with support for free streaming of any Disney, Pixar and Marvel content previously purchased from Apple's iTunes Store. Any of the 450 Disney movies you bought using the app would immediately register as purchased inside the iTunes Store.

Now that Disney Movies Anywhere is available for both iOS and Android, not only can you watch your Disney movies across Apple's and Google's platforms, but also purchase any Disney, Pixar or Marvel Universe movie on Google Play and have it available on iOS and vice versa.

iTunes has the Dark Knight trilogy for $15 and other movie deals

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Heads up movie lovers and Batman fans, the iTunes Movie Store is offering a great deal on the popular Dark Knight trilogy. For a limited time, you can get all three movies: Batman Begins, The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises in HD for just $14.99.

Given that $15 is typically the standalone price tag for each of these movies, the promotion will net you a savings of $30. The three films, which star Christian Bale, come highly recommended too, with all of them rated an 85% or higher on Rotten Tomatoes.

iTunes has all 7 Saw movies for $30 and other Halloween deals

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

With Halloween coming up tomorrow, Apple has discounted a number of horror movies in its iTunes Store down to $9.99. It's also added Saw: The Complete Collection to its Movie Bundles section, which includes all 7 movies from the popular franchise for just $29.99.

Given that each Saw movie typically sells for $12.99, this deal is a savings of more than $60. But if you're not a fan of the Jigsaw killer, there are plenty of other notable movies on sale, including genre classics such as Poltergeist, The Shining, and The Blair Witch Project.

eBay taking 20% off iTunes Gift Cards

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 29, 2014

If you've been on the lookout for the latest deals on iTunes Gift Cards, head over to PayPal’s Digital Gifts eBay store as it's currently offering 20 percent off iTunes Gift Cards in several denominations. The $25, $50 and $100 cards are now available with a twenty percent discount so you'll end up paying $20, $40 and $80, respectively.

That's a nice 20 percent saving right off the bat on anything you purchase on Apple's content stores. iTunes Gift Cards can be used to buy Mac and iOS apps, electronic books, movies, TV shows, music and other digital items carried on Apple's content stores.

You can also apply your iTunes credit toward the purchase of iCloud storage upgrades and use it to buy stuff in apps via In-App Purchases.

Apple confirms iTunes has suffered a decline in digital music sales

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 28, 2014

It's official: digital music sales on the iTunes Store decreased sharply this year, Apple has now officially admitted in an annual filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission covering its just-ended fiscal 2014 year.

Although sales of apps and In-App Purchases generated more revenue year-over-year, going from $9.3 billion in net sales during 2013 to a total of $10.2 billion during fiscal 2014, this was “partially offset by a decline in sales of digital music”.

Apple's SEC filing serves as a confirmation of last week's report by The Wall Street Journal which claimed that sales of digital music on iTunes had decrease between thirteen and fourteen percent since the beginning of 2014.

OS X Yosemite ushers in a revamped iTunes

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated November 1, 2014

iTunes has been redesigned completely to coincide with OS X Yosemite’s design enhancements. The result is a much flatter and cleaner looking app that’s devoid of many of the shadows and layers present in previous iterations.

Just recently, the iTunes Store, which resides within the iTunes app, received an update to match the flatter appearance. This has resulted in a more consistent look across the entire app.

Check out our video walkthrough after the break, which highlights some of the changes in the latest version of iTunes— iTunes 12.