Apple and Twitter have joined forces to integrate the microblogging service with iTunes Ping.
Ping and Twitter users can now link their accounts to share Ping activity in your Twitter stream. iTunes can also automatically find other Ping users among Twitter followers.
Once you’ve linked the accounts, whenever you Post, Like, Review, or tell your friends why you purchased a song or album on Ping, this activity will also be tweeted to your Twitter followers — complete with playable song previews.
However there do appear to be some drawbacks. There’s a chance that your Twitter stream will be filled by music recommendations from followers whose tastes differ from your own. And if you do click the preview links, Twitter requires iTunes to start up before it can play.
Apple had originally planned to link Ping to Facebook when it launched the service in September. But the feature was pulled at the last minute after Facebook denied access to its APIs. The two companies had been negotiating over a link-up, but Apple was not prepared to accept what chief executive Steve Jobs described as “onerous terms”.
Facebook said recently that it is confident that the two companies will be able to reach an agreement.
