![]() ![]() All "Mastered for iTunes" releases are now badged as "Apple Digital Masters." All of the "Mastered for iTunes" software tools are still usable for "Apple Digital Masters" creation.Īpple announced it is replacing the iTunes app when the new batch of operating system updates (iOS 12, macOS Catalina, the new iPad OS, etc.) will be released later this year (Fall 2019). In Apple's updated note, available here, it clearly says: "Apple Digital Masters" replaces "Mastered for iTunes" as the name of the program to better reflect the fact that these audio advantages are available to our entire music catalog across the Apple ecosystem, whether streamed or downloaded. Since its release in 2012, mastering studios and record labels submitting music for Apple's catalog (files for iTunes downloads and Apple Music streaming) have been applying the MFiT specifications. This is the BBGun press release that triggered all the rumors. And the main reason for the change, which happened a few weeks ago, has to do with Apple's publicly stated intention of retiring the existing iTunes app and all "iTunes" references from its products. In reality, "the announcement" (if there ever was one apart from the BBGun document) has to do with the fact that Apple decided to create a new designation - "Apple Digital Masters" - to identify its vast catalog of music, which was delivered according to its "Mastered for iTunes" (MFiT) specifications, a set of procedures for mastering engineers to follow. We couldn't find the source document for those statements. About 75% of the Top 100 songs in the US and 71% of Top 100 globally are created from Apple Digital Masters." All former "Mastered for iTunes" songs will continue to be available under the Apple Digital Masters program."Īnd an "additional background" note stated that "Most of today's top releases are from Apple Digital Masters. The reason why I even mention it (I assume that a lot of the rumors on the Internet were amplified or even generated by this "release") was a sort of "Apple statement" at the end saying: "Apple Digital Masters provide premium quality audio without any additional cost on Apple Music and the iTunes Store. This was clearly not something from Apple. Apart from that, the "press release" was strange because it was distributed talking about "Apple Music" and it was hastily edited, using dubious copy-and-pasted text from different sources (from Apple and even MQA's marketing documents), in an effort to describe what the new Apple Digital Masters "thing" actually was. Not from Apple, but from a music artist press agency (BBGun Press) stating: "Apple Music Brings Studio Quality Sound to Streaming with Apple Digital Masters." The release actually says "Apple Music revealed." and quoted some of their own artists like world-renowned concert pianist Lang, music director Gustavo Dudamel, and record producer Don Was, saying "The audio quality is incredible" - and it was not clear at all what they were talking about. ![]() The Apple Digital Masters webpage reflects the changes made to the Mastered for iTunes original page.īut actually, there was a press release in our editorial inbox with that story from the same day (August 7).
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