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MacStories Weekly: Issue 495 - January 9, 2026

How iTunes Shaped the Apple of Today

John
iTunes 1.0. Source: [Ars Technica](https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2001/01/macworld-expo-sf-2001/#page-7).

iTunes 1.0. Source: Ars Technica.

25 years ago, Apple introduced iTunes, an app for managing your digital music collection that evolved into a media jack-of-all-trades in the years that followed. It’s hard to overstate iTunes’ importance to today’s Apple, even though it’s been years since the app last existed on any of its hardware. iTunes’ story is a reflection of...

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John Voorhees
John is MacStories' Managing Editor, has been writing about Apple and apps since joining the team in 2015, and today, runs the site alongside Federico. John also co-hosts four MacStories podcasts: AppStories, which covers the world of apps, MacStories Unwind, which explores the fun differences between American and Italian culture and recommends media to listeners, Ruminate, a show about the weird web and unusual snacks, and NPC: Next Portable Console, a show about the games we take with us.
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