Last month, Apple acquired Lala, a web based music subscription service. Several sources agreed that the purchase felt rather awkward given the infrastructure of lala.com that uses flash, something Apple doesn’t covet. Apple would also have to struggle with a non-transferable music license given the widely reported fear the music industry has of giving Apple more control over downloaded media.

Conclusions were reached that what Apple was after was an experienced core of engineers who were running a capable and competent business of storing and distributing music (NY Times). Presumptions were made about the future of web based services, and the possibility that Apple is cognizant of the dramatic shift towards cloud based services; thus acquiring said employees would be another step towards that cloud.

Wild speculations are being made left and right about Apple’s event next week, in which they will likely unveil their tablet. News sources are claiming that the new iPhone OS is likely to be on display as well, along with improvements and the ability to run multiple applications in parallel. While all these developments are fascinating to uncover, the most anticipated part of the event will be discovering the nature of the Tablet.

While we’re speculating, I would make the following assumptions of the Tablet.

1. It’s going to have moderate hardware – expect something in between a solid laptop and a next generation iPhone.
2. It’s going to offer a host of cloud-based services, possibly a precursor for a new version of iTunes that will become web based soon.
3. It’s going to be toted as a portable media outlet.

Could this be the beginning of subscription based iTunes? It’s quite possible. Apple’s image has always focused around trend setting. The iPod and the iPhone both provided the right service at the right price. Perhaps a shift towards cloud based services is what will allow Apple to provide us a robust media device with connectivity at an affordable price point.

I suppose we’ll have to wait until next week.

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