Skip to main content

iTunes Festival channel lands on Apple TV ahead of SXSW music shows

1237813 autosave v1 itunes festival
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The iTunes Festival kicks off at SXSW in Austin on Tuesday, and in preparation for the five-day music bash, Apple has launched a dedicated channel on Apple TV.

The channel offers much the same content as the festival-focused app that was rolled out for iDevices last week, with viewers able to spend time perusing pre-show info, including concert times and band bios.

A ‘history of the iTunes Festival’ segment is also offered, together with detailed information on the venue, the 2750-seat Moody Theater in Austin. Most importantly, music fans can watch the performances live, or anytime afterward if it’s more convenient. If you don’t have Apple TV or an iDevice, the festival can also be watched via a Mac or PC.

By the way, if you happen to be attending SXSW this week, how about trying to snag a free ticket for one of the shows ? Click here to find out more.

Big-name artists at the iTunes Festival include Coldplay, Soundgarden, Kendrick Lamar, Pitbull, and Keith Urban. In all, 15 acts will take to the stage for five consecutive days starting tomorrow, with each show kicking off at 8pm CT (7.30pm on Tuesday).

While the tech giant’s music event has been rocking London’s Roundhouse venue annually since 2007, this is the first time for it to take place in the US.

In the UK the festival usually runs every day for an entire month, and over the years has played host to more than 400 artists performing in front of a total of around 430,000 fans. Millions more watch online. The event gives Apple a chance to further market its online store, with a ton of extra music-related sales no doubt scored as a consequence.

The SXSW film, tech and music extravaganza runs from March 7 through 16. Check out DT’s extensive coverage here.

[via Apple Insider] [Image: dwphotos / Shutterstock]

Editors' Recommendations

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
What is hi-res audio, and how can you experience it right now?
Dlyan Wireless Headphones

High-resolution audio, hi-res audio, or even HD audio -- whatever you decide to call it (for the record, the industry prefers "hi-res audio"), it's a catch-all term that describes digital audio that goes above and beyond the level of sound quality you can expect from a garden-variety MP3 file and even CDs. It was once strictly the domain of audiophiles, but now that major streaming music services like Apple Music, Amazon Music, Tidal, Deezer, and Qobuz have embraced it, almost everyone can take advantage of what hi-res has to offer.

But what exactly is hi-res audio? What equipment do you need to listen to it? Where can you download or stream it? And does it actually sound better? We've got the answers.
What does the term 'hi-res audio' mean?

Read more
How to download music from Spotify for offline listening
How to download music and podcasts from Spotify: The downloads folder.

If you're a Spotify Premium user paying that premium Spotify fee, chances are you've taken at least some time curating playlists, liking songs, and using the platform's easy-to-use (and recently revamped) user interface to discover new and old music.

But sometimes all that music or your favorite podcasts aren't available if you find yourself without an internet connection to stream them from — like on a long plane ride or weekend camping trip in the sticks. That's where Spotify's offline listening feature comes in handy, allowing you to download playlists, albums, and podcasts through its desktop and mobile apps so you can still rock out while you're off the grid.

Read more
How to switch from Spotify to Apple Music
Spotify and Apple Music transfer on a smartphone.

Spotify is the world's most popular music streaming service for a reason. It has a massive catalog of music and podcasts, is full of cool music discovery and sharing features, and is really easy to use.
However, with its recent price increase and the fact that it still hasn't joined most of its peers in offering a hi-res audio quality option, you may be considering jumping ship for its closest competitor, Apple Music, which counts lossless hi-res tracks, mind-bending spatial audio, Dolby Atmos Music tracks, and a catalog that rivals Spotify's among the many attractive reasons to switch.

But there's one problem: you’ve spent a lot of time creating playlists and marking songs and albums as your favorites in Spotify. Is it worth the switch? Will all that hard work be lost in translation?

Read more