Merger of iTunes/Web Browsing?

[boss1]

Everyone knows (should know) there is a huge benefit to being able to have software on PC's that allow for the enticement of the users of such software to buy product that the software mfg. wants to direct users to.

It's a marketing tool that gives marketing leverage to the software mfg. That leverage creates huge revenue possibilities if said software is popular. Some examples are Google, Yahoo, Mozilla, Internet Explorer, AOL, etc. There is another piece of software that fits the category in the manner just described amongst these search engine sites and web browsers. iTunes.


The thought dawned on me when i opened up iTunes and was about the browse through the iTunes store. I scrolled down to the very bottom of the main iTunes store window and there it was. url links.

iTunes software, opened, is a pretty large desktop app (desktop real estate) compared to many other mp3 players that is. Large enough that one could easily imagine using a large window as such as a web browser as well as an mp3 player.

iTunes already has Scroll bars, back and forward buttons, a search box, it sends and receives data via an internet connection just like a web browser, it's polished. It wouldn't be to far a stretch of the imagination to see a web browser button listed on the left hand side above or under Library, Store, Playlists. I think that if Apple added this ability to iTunes it would have a huge positive impact for the growth of Apple. iTunes runs on windows.


Thoughts?

Edit: For those having trouble interpreting my writing style and language. here's a quick mocked up (rather ugly) image of what I'm trying to portrait.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w36/bos1deg/iTunesFireFox.jpg

 

[Zwhaler]

Everyone knows (should know) there is a huge benefit to being able to have software on PC's that allow for the enticement of the users of such software to buy product that the software mfg. wants to direct users to.

It's a marketing tool that gives marketing leverage to the software mfg. That leverage creates huge revenue possibilities if said software is popular. Some examples are Google, Yahoo, Mozilla, Internet Explorer, AOL, etc. There is another piece of software that fits the category in the manner just described amongst these search engine sites and web browsers. iTunes.


The thought dawned on me when i opened up iTunes and was about the browse through the iTunes store. I scrolled down to the very bottom of the main iTunes store window and there it was. url links.

iTunes software, opened, is a pretty large desktop app (desktop real estate) compared to many other mp3 players that is. Large enough that one could easily imagine using a large window as such as a web browser as well as an mp3 player.

iTunes already has Scroll bars, back and forward buttons, a search box, it's polished. It wouldn't be to far a stretch of the imagination to see a web browser button listed on the left hand side above or under Library, Store, Playlists. I think that if Apple added this ability to iTunes it would have a huge positive impact for the growth of Apple. iTunes runs on windows.


Thoughts?

Sorry dude, I can't figure out what you are trying to say. A Safari button within iTunes? All you have to do is move your cursor down one more inch and click on the Safari icon itself in the dock.

 

[wmmk]

Sorry dude, I can't figure out what you are trying to say. A Safari button within iTunes? All you have to do is move your cursor down one more inch and click on the Safari icon itself in the dock.

I think I decoded what he was trying to say, but have to agree with you that this wouldn't necessarily benefit iTunes much. The reason iTunes and the iPod are so great is that they play media extremely well. No more, no less. I think most iTS customers like things that way.

 

[boss1]

I agree that it does play media well and people do like it that way. if iTunes had a built in or optional web browser built in it would reach millions of Windows users as well as Mac users. Users that normally don't use safari. Look at it from a business perspective.


And here's a quick mocked up image of what i'm trying to portrait

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w36/bos1deg/iTunesFireFox.jpg

 

[osirisX]

No thanks. I'd rather have 2 pieces of software done right instead of 1 trying to be 2 at the same time. iTunes is just using Webkit, the same engine Safari uses. Just because it has that does not mean it should become a full fledged browser.

 

[Zwhaler]

I agree that it does play media well and people do like it that way. if iTunes had a built in or optional web browser built in it would reach millions of Windows users as well as Mac users. Users that normally don't use safari. Look at it from a business perspective.


And here's a quick mocked up image of what i'm trying to portrait

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w36/bos1deg/iTunesFireFox.jpg

I don't really see how this is could be beneficial. If I want Safari, I'll just click Safari. Because the second you put Safari into iTunes, people will want their favorites, RSS, the ability to clear history, cookies, cache etc, and then it just becomes too messy. Safari works great as Safari, and iTunes works great as iTunes. Mixing the two won't really turn out right...

 

[wordmunger]

iTunes already does too much as it is. Movies, podcasts, TV shows, and all sorts of other junk clutter up the interface. Adding web browsing would be a disaster.

 

[Mr Skills]

I think what the OP is trying to say is that this could be beneficial to Apple, rather than the consumer per se.

It's an interesting concept. iTunes is so ubiquitous that if you built a browser into it it could quickly take a chunk of market share away from Internet Explorer, and it would be an easy thing to fit into the iTunes interface.

It would force web designers to consider its rendering engine when testing (beneficial for Safari) and could also benefit adoption of Quicktime. Most of all, though, it could mean that people got used to iTunes being the 'one stop shop' for all the media-consumtption they do on their computer. Apple could leverage this power to gain advantages in other markets in the same way as Microsoft has done over the years (e.g. everyone browses using iTunes, so everyone lazily uses iTunes to buy their movies, so everyone buys Apple TV...)

I doubt it will ever happen, and I'm sure the realities are much more complex than I am suggesting, but it's certainly not unthinkable (although it might just be bait for an antitrust suit!).



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