Apple users are reporting crashes involving messaging, iCloud, and Apple Music. As of yet, the cause is unknown.
At a Glance
- The following Apple applications experienced an outage this afternoon: App Store, Business Manager, Music, iTunes, Podcasts, and more.
- Some users retain access to their Apple services, while they remain down for others.
- Many voiced their concerns and complaints on Twitter.
Apple Music And Other Services Go Down
While Apple has yet to comment on their apps being down, their status page shows which apps are functional. Prior to this information going public, even the Apple status page for developers experienced an outage.
“Apple now confirms outages on its website: App Store, Arcade, Business Manager, Music, School Manager, TV+, Device Enrollment Program, iTunes Store, Schoolwork, Radio, Podcasts,” tweeted Mark Gurman of Bloomberg.
Another tweet from the reporter confirmed that Apple Stores were also hit by the outage. He explained: “In addition to Apple’s online services – Music, Maps, Podcasts and more facing outages — I’m told Apple’s corporate and retail internal systems are down too, limiting remote work and retail operations like product pick-ups and repairs.”
Interestingly, some non-Apple apps also suffer from a lack of functionality. For example, WhatsApp users cannot save their chat history to the cloud.
Presumably, location services being down also means that navigation systems do not work. This impacts Apple Maps, but may or may not affect Google Maps and other platforms.
The first reports of outages occurred between 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. eastern. Over 4,000 reported outages for iCloud and Apple Music, while more than 2,000 experienced issues with iMessage. Worth noting is that Apple TV users also suffered from an inability to connect with other devices.
Apple Users Complain About Outage
A number of users blasted the company on Twitter for the inconvenience.
“Apple Maps shut down literally while I was driving to my job interview.. currently pulled over so I can download another app to use,” wrote one user. However, the most common responses to the situation are, of course, jokes. In fact, the majority of Apple users rushed to Twitter just to make sure everyone else was experiencing the same problems.
User Michael Billig tweeted a shot of Apple Store employees using forms instead of tablets. He added: “Apple store systems are down and they’re literally doing everything on paper.”
Another commenter took the opportunity to roast Spotify’s frequent outages by sharing a meme of actor James Franco on the gallows, reading “first time?”
Additionally, one Twitter account brought up an interesting point: what about Apple Pay? As of right now, Apple Pay and Wallet both remain active and available.
The company has yet to issue a statement, but Apple reportedly is taking steps to solve these issues and get their service back online shortly.
