As we ponder what kind of goodness is in store for us all with Apple’s new iCloud, a couple of related tidbits have come to light, including the company finally taking control of the iCloud.com domain and some possible hardware refreshes for WWDC.
MacRumors is reporting on a pair of iCloud-related stories in the days leading up to WWDC 2011, which kicks off Monday, June 6 with a 10am PST keynote headed by Apple CEO Steve Jobs.
First up, the domain registration for iCloud.com now shows Apple Inc. as the proud owner. There were numerous reports claiming that Cupertino purchased the domain name from former owner Xcerion for upwards of $4.5 million, which were never confirmed. Apple has also taken possession of the iCloud.org domain as well.
Although iCloud.com still points to Xcerion’s own rebranded CloudMe.com, that’s expected to change with Apple’s announcement on Tuesday that they’ll be previewing their new iCloud service at WWDC on Monday -- though no one knows for sure when it will actually launch, although it’s widely expected to be part of the forthcoming Mac OS X 10.7 Lion.
Meanwhile, numerous reports claim that Apple’s retail stores are “quickly running out of stock” on the company’s AirPort and Time Capsule products, which seems to indicate that a hardware refresh could be imminent at WWDC next week.
The inventory issue suggests that AirPort and Time Capsule could play a part in Apple’s iCloud initiative. For example, we’ve long believed that Apple should introduce some type of iTunes-centric storage for the home, where multiple users could access all of their music, video and other media from anywhere -- including iOS mobile devices while on the go.
It’s all just speculation at this point, but we’re excited to see what a new generation of AirPort devices coupled with the possibilities of iCloud might bring.
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