Twitter #Music App Likely To Disappear Due To Poor Download Numbers

Originally published on PopWrapped.  20 October 2013.

If like me, you had completely forgotten Twitter’s #Music even existed, it will be no surprise to learn that the service may soon be closing. A report from AllThingsD says the mobile app is on the outs because of “abysmal” download numbers.

Launched only six months ago, Twitter #Music helps users discover new music based on the artists they follow, Twitter trends, and network activity. Poor integration is being partially blamed for the app’s failure to retain users’ interest. Also likely to blame are the multitude of other music apps at everyone’s fingertips, such as Spotify, iTunes Radio, Rdio and Pandora, to name a few.

As for those low download numbers, the app has been declining ever since its release in April. Peaking at number six back then, its popularity has plummeted to well out of the top 100 in its category.

As a Mashable article pointed out, it is worth noting that Twitter #Music hasn’t received an iOS 7 update yet. This is odd for several reasons, including that iOS 7’s iTunes Radio has Twitter #Music stations. Perhaps this is just another sign that the social networking company is not yet ready to tackle the task of a music app.

Apple Refutes Claims They Can Read Your iMessages

Originally published on PopWrapped.  20 October 2013.



Worried that someone is reading your iPhone texts? You may be right, depending on whom you ask. Apple for one, is denying claims that it can read users’ iMessages. The statement comes after a study by QuarkLabs that concluded the technology giant could read the messages if chose or were required by a government order to do so.

“iMessage is not architected to allow Apple to read messages,” Trudy Muller, an Apple spokeswoman, said to AllThingsD.

Muller went on to say that the QuarkLabs study “discussed theoretical vulnerabilities that would require Apple to re-engineer the iMessage system to exploit it, and Apple has no plans or intentions to do so.”

The research that brought about this question of privacy stated that the way iMessage is constructed gives Apple the option of access. “As Apple claims, there is end-to-end encryption,” QuarkLabs states. “The weakness is in the key infrastructure as it is controlled by Apple: they can change a key anytime they want, thus read the content of our iMessages.”

Put simply, each user has a unique key that unlocks his or her iMessages. Apple is saying that they do not have all of the keys to unlock each user’s messages. However, NBC postulates that if they needed or chose to, Apple could probably “make” a key to get into a user’s messages.

“So when Apple says it can’t read your messages, it’s like saying it doesn’t have a key to your front door — but it does happen to run the locksmith. If they wanted to — or more likely, were compelled to by a government order — they could cut a key that would work just fine,” an NBC report says.