Rumor: Apple Lossless Audio Coming to iTunes Music Store?

A lot of people openly questioned Steve Jobs’s use of the term “audiophile” as he introduced the barely interesting iPod HiFi in late February. Because, that term and 128-bit AAC audio — a total joke, even without considering that a comapct boombox will never be true audiophile sound in the eyes of the high-end fanatic. […]
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A lot of people openly questioned Steve Jobs's use of the term "audiophile" as he introduced the barely interesting iPod HiFi in late February.

Because, that term and 128-bit AAC audio – a total joke, even without considering that a comapct boombox will never be true audiophile sound in the eyes of the high-end fanatic. But the truth could be closer very soon, if AppleInsider can be trusted on a recent report. Repea after me: Lossless. Audio. Downloads.

In a private release of iTunes Producer 1.4 this week, Apple said the software "now encodes music in Apple Lossless format, which produces larger audio files and will increase upload time."

iTunes Producer is distributed to record labels by Apple as a tool for prepping and submitting their content for inclusion on the iTunes Music Store. The iTunes service currently serves up tracks in only the Advanced Audio Coding (AAC) format.

I continue to wonder how Apple will handle introducing new products to the iTMS that offer the same content in stratified quality levels.

Would lossless audio cost more, or is the fact that such songs would fill an iPod a lot quicker tham AAC and necessitate the purchase of additional iPods? Could consumers trade in their low-quality audio for the kind Kind?

Either way, this could go a long way to getting Apple real respect in the high-end audio market, especially if they work with suppliers in that market for iPod compatibility.

Thanks, Andrew!