iTunes Festival at SXSW sees Apple concert streaming hit US

Apple has brought its iTunes Festival to the US for the first time, announcing that it will be streaming concerts across five nights at SXSW 2014 in March. Having run for several years as the iTunes Festival in London, the new US push for the free entertainment offer will be streamed to iTunes on PC and Mac, as well as to iOS devices like iPhone and iPad, and to the Apple TV.

The concerts – which will be both streamed live as well as available on-demand afterwards – will take place at ACL Live at the Moody Theater. Confirmed performances for iTunes Festival at SXSW include sets by Coldplay, Imagine Dragons, Pitbull, Keith Urban, and ZEDD, with Apple promising more bands and artists to be announced closer to the time.

So far, Apple has streamed more than 400 concerts from its London iTunes Festivals over the past few years, with "tens of millions" of people watching. Past years' performances are available to purchase, including Justin Timberlake, Jack Johnson, ueens of the Stone Age, Phoenix, and Thirty Seconds to Mars. Jake Bugg, Primal Scream, and Jessie J.

For SXSW, Coldplay will be performing on March 11th, with Pitbull on March 14th, and Keith Urban on March 15th. Imagine Dragons will be on March 11th too, ZEDD on March 14th, Willie Nelson on March 15th, and London Grammar on March 11th.

Apple is yet to confirm whether another iTunes Festival will take place in London this year.