Apple has filed trademark applications in Europe for its new iCloud service, which will officially be unveiled at next week’s World Wide Developer Conference (WWDC 2011), beginning on Monday, the 6th of June.
Apple has filed the iCloud trademark under 12 different classes, covering a wide range of services and products. These include online social networking, electronic storage, digital music, computer software, electronic books and magazines, and many more. This broad range of categories suggests that Apple envisions iCloud as a comprehensive service that will integrate various aspects of digital life.
Music and Video Streaming
We are expecting Apple to announce music streaming with its new iCloud service next Monday. This feature is anticipated to allow users to store their music libraries in the cloud and stream them to any of their Apple devices. This would be a significant step forward from the current model, where users have to download music to each device individually. The convenience of streaming music directly from the cloud could revolutionize how users interact with their music libraries.
Additionally, we have also heard that Apple may introduce video streaming sometime in the future. This would allow users to store their video content in the cloud and stream it to their devices, similar to how services like Netflix and Hulu operate. The integration of video streaming would make iCloud a more versatile and attractive service for users who consume a lot of digital media.
Beyond Music and Video
From the looks of all the different categories Apple has applied for the patents for, it would seem that Apple has much bigger plans for their iCloud service than just music and video streaming. For instance, the inclusion of online social networking in the trademark application hints at potential social features that could be integrated into iCloud. This could mean anything from sharing playlists and video recommendations with friends to more advanced social networking features.
The mention of electronic storage and computer software suggests that iCloud could also serve as a general-purpose cloud storage solution, similar to services like Dropbox and Google Drive. Users might be able to store documents, photos, and other files in iCloud and access them from any device. This would make iCloud a one-stop solution for all of a user’s digital storage needs.
Moreover, the inclusion of electronic books and magazines in the trademark application indicates that iCloud could also be used to store and access digital reading materials. This could be particularly useful for users who have large collections of eBooks and digital magazines, allowing them to access their reading materials from any device without having to worry about storage space.
You can find out full details of all the patent filings over at Patently Apple.
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