Rumors Swirl Over Apple's Plan for Beats Will they or won't they? Apple's grand plan for Beats Music remains under wraps.
By Nina Zipkin
Another day, another rumor about the future of Apple's $3 billion buy.
TechCrunch reported earlier today that Apple will shutter the Beats music streaming service, but an Apple spokesperson has called the report untrue.
Additionally, Recode reported that though the Beats Music brand may change or disappear over time, the Beats headphone brand will remain intact.
The tech giant snapped up Beats in May in a much discussed $3.2 billion deal, taking in the headphone and music streaming business, as well as bringing the music industry know-how of co-founders Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine. Back in August, Beats Music's CEO Ian Roberts was tapped to oversee iTunes Radio as well.
Related: Beats $3.2B Sale Proves It's Great, But Not Necessarily at Headphones
While the iPhone 6 and 6 plus, which were released to line-forming crowds last week, didn't come pre-loaded with the Beats Music app, the recent Apple TV update did.
When Apple bought Beats, many questioned if the streaming service could stand out in a crowded field that included major competitors like Spotify, Pandora and Google Play. It seems that the company's game plan will include some form of incorporating the tech into iTunes while also reframing the service, which brought in 111,000 subscribers, to better line up with the Apple brand.
