Apple's Version Of Snapchat Is In The Works, Expected To Be Released In 2017?

Apple Inc. is reportedly looking to copy the success of four-year-old Snapchat. According to reports, Snapchat has at least 150 million active users who spend at least 25-30 minutes on the app every day. So it's not surprising that the tech giant is developing a video sharing and editing app and is testing its own Snapchat and Instagram-like app for the iPhone and iPad.

According to Vanity Fair, a report from Bloomberg said that the apps are part of a way to infiltrate social media by the world's most valuable company. One app, which is also developed by the team who created iMovie and video-editing software Final Cut Pro, will let users record short videos, like Snapchat, and then draw over them and apply filters, which can also be done in both Snapchat and Instagram. The video should be recorded, edited and uploaded in under a minute.

A prototype of the app lets users record square-shaped videos, something that was started by Instagram, allows users to upload videos to other social-media platforms or send it to people in their contacts after editing.

The Verge reported that the push into social comes as Apple's iPhone sales are slowly declining and it is becoming quite clear that the $580 billion company will not be able to survive if it relies on its hardware business alone. The company has already given importance to its services businesses such as App Store, Apple Maps, iTunes, iCloud, and Apple Pay, which C.E.O. Tim Cook has said will be the "size of a Fortune 100 company by next year."

Meanwhile, mobilesyrup.com reported that the new social apps are expected to be release in 2017 and won't be part of the new iOS update that is expected to come out in the coming weeks. However, the apps are still required to be approved by a team that works to make sure that Apple's products don't leave too much user data exposed.

At a September 7th event, Apple is expected to reveal a new iPhone with a dual camera system for improved photo quality and a pressure sensitive home button. In other news, Instagram recently launch its own version of Snapchat's quick video sharing functionality called Stories.