The past week’s rumor cycle has consistently pegged early December as the date when Apple would simultaneously introduce iOS 4.3, iTunes in-app subscription support and News Corp’s new iPad-only magazine, The Daily… but according to sources, that date is very likely aggressive, and the actual rollout has been delayed until early 2011.
Delaying until 2011 makes a lot of sense. A new iOS update hot on the heels of iOS 4.2.1 (which had an undeniably troubled birth) is already aggressive, but timing a major new release of both iOS, a major change to the way iTunes purchases work and launching a new iPad magazine at the same time companies are slowing things down in preparation for the coming holidays seems, in retrospect, like a bit more than even Apple could chew. Better to do it right in the New Year than do it wrong before Christmas.
John Brownlee is a writer for Fast Company, and a contributing writer here at CoM. He has also written for Wired, Playboy, Boing Boing, Popular Mechanics, VentureBeat, and Gizmodo. He lives in Boston with his wife and two parakeets. You can follow him here on Twitter.
