Apple Debuts iTunes Web Widgets
Apple debuted a new social networking feature for its iTunes Music Service that would allow customers to share their purchases, reviews, and favorite artists through a customizable widget.
Called My iTunes, the service includes three flash-based widgets that use a customers account information to create customized lists of music based on that users purchase history. The widgets can be placed on a user's blog, Web site, or social networking profile.
"Apple is only syndicating iTunes Music Store behavior, not your entire music library history, which seems like a good privacy trade-off for the mass market," Web technologist Niall Kennedy said.
Three widgets are currently available: the first lists recent purchases; the second shows music that the user has reviewed on iTunes; and the last shows a "tag cloud" of the artists the customer has purchased through the service.
"Use My iTunes to share your top reviews, favorite artists, and new music, movies, and TV shows from the iTunes Store with anyone who visits your site," Apple said on its Web site.
The service is not activated by default. A user must first go into their iTunes account and enable the functionality, which includes a page where the user gives Apple consent to look into their accounts in order to create the widget.
Users can access the widget code through the iTunes program.