Apple is bringing iTunes to the Windows Store

Apple is planning to bring its iTunes desktop app to the Windows Store. In a surprise announcement at the Build developer event today, Microsoft revealed it has been working with Apple to get iTunes listed in the Windows Store. It might not sound like an important addition, but iTunes is one of the most searched for apps that’s currently missing in the Windows Store.

Microsoft will also need to attract apps like Adobe’s range of creative apps and Google’s Chrome browser. There are signs that Chrome may never appear on the Windows Store as Google will need to rework its browser to meet Microsoft’s strict app requirements. Windows Store apps that browse the web need to use Microsoft’s Edge engine, and the current Chrome desktop app uses Google’s Blink rendering engine. Google could decide to create a new version of Chrome specifically for the Windows Store as it has done before with iOS, but it’s unlikely.

Either way, iTunes is a big addition for regular consumers and a slight boost to Microsoft’s Windows Store efforts. It will still take a lot more than iTunes arriving in the Store to determine the success of its desktop apps in the store, though.