14 DAY TRIAL // People involved with Apple’s iOS have confirmed that Facebook integration will be baked into the latest version of the mobile operating system, delivering the much needed sharing function that Apple reportedly attempted two years ago with iOS 4.
When the iPhone 4 debuted in 2010, Apple rolled out iOS 4 with Twitter integration but no Facebook ties, much to everyone’s surprise, as the company had been rumored to implement Facebook sharing in its next major iOS update.
Something had gone wrong, though. It became widely believed that Steve Jobs asked too much of Facebook, and the latter ultimately decided not to sign with Apple.
The Mac makers eventually went with Twitter and created their own social network called Ping. Tim Cook himself admitted in an interview last week that Ping had been a flop, spurring speculation that Apple and Facebook might be in talks again to offer system-wide integration across all iDevices starting this summer.
It now appears that said speculation has been confirmed (via Tech Crunch):
“After much speculation, Facebook integration will indeed be baked into the latest version of iOS, we’ve learned.
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It’s important to note that Apple being Apple, something could change in the next week and a half (see again: Facebook/Ping). But as of now, Facebook is a go in iOS “Sundance”. One thing still being hammered out according to our sources is exactly how sharing will work. Sharing is the other big part of the iOS/Twitter integration, and will be important for iOS/Facebook integration as well.”
Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference set to kick off on June 11th is expected to feature a showcase of iOS 6 and the latest developments in the already-confirmed Mountain Lion, the ninth release of Apple’s desktop operating system.