Apple launches Ping with iTunes 10, the 'Facebook for music'

Today, Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced the launch of Ping, a social network which Jobs calls "Facebook and Twitter meets iTunes." This new social network for iTunes 10 already has 160 million users in 23 countries built in right away.

During Apple's keynote address today in San Francisco, Jobs introduced us to Ping, where users can find out what music their friends like, Jobs said. Recent activity from your friends will be sorted in a main page, letting you know what your friends on the network are listening, what concerts they'll attend and more. You can follow both musicians and your friends. And you can be followed, too. "You can see a custom chart of songs and albums to see the top things the people you follow are downloading," Jobs said. Jobs calls Ping "social music discovery", and it's available today along with the refurbished iTunes 10. What else can you do on Ping? Jobs said you can buy or listen to a song directly from someone's status update. Commenting on a photo will showcase your comment to your friends, Jobs said. Also, Ping is emphasizing concerts, with more than 17,000 concert listings available at press time. Jobs mentioned if you publicize you will be attending a concert through Ping, purchasing information automatically appears. The press release states, "Activity feed shows you their posts about artists, albums, songs and concerts, plus a consolidated Top 10 list of the songs and albums your friends and the artists you follow are downloading from iTunes."

Courtesy Apple

An artist page on Ping, for iTunes 10

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This social network already has potentially 160 million users who use iTunes, Jobs said. Ping will also be available for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Apple will also revamp iTunes 10, Jobs announced. One new feature is being dubbed music clean-up – select several songs from the same album and it intuitively finds appropriate art and titles. In addition, "iTunes 10 also features AirPlay wireless music playback to listen to your music on remote speakers using Apple’s AirPort Express base station," the press release says. iTunes 10 is also abandoning its old logo of an encircled CD, replacing it with a double-clef note in a blue circle. Jobs didn't explain the reason for the logo change.