How to Publish to iTunes

Even the owner of the Beatles music had to register as an iTunes seller to publish the songs.

There are two ways to publish your content to iTunes. The first, is if you're the creator of a podcast -- a serialized audio recording -- you can publish it for free to the iTunes directory. If you have content that you want to sell, such as an eBook, music album or TV show, you can publish it to the iTunes store as a registered seller. Apple will take a commission on every item you sell through iTunes.

Things You'll Need

• File server (for podcasting)
• RSS feed generator (for podcasting)

Instructions

Podcast

1. Launch iTunes on your computer, then click on the "Store" link. Select "Podcasts" when you're prompted to choose a genre.

2. Click "Publish Podcast" to begin the process of creating your podcast feed on iTunes. When prompted enter the name of your podcast and the information about what kind of content you are publishing. For example if you are publishing a comedy routine you would want to specify that in the content section.

3. Enter the link to the RSS feed for your podcast. This is the simple code that allows iTunes to keep up-to-date with the new submissions that you publish. The simplest way to create an RSS feed is to upload your audio files to a blog, then use the automatically generated RSS feed created by your blog provider. Click "Submit" when you're done. Your podcast is now published to iTunes.

Sell Content

1. Browse to apple.com/itunes and scroll to the bottom of the screen. Under the "Partner Programs" heading click "Sell Your Content."

2. Click the "Online Application" link under the heading for the type of content you want to publish. Confirm that you meet the requirements that Apple stipulates for working with them, then click "Continue." Note, you must have a valid United States Tax ID number and an iTunes account. If you're a U.S. citizen your tax ID number is your Social Security number.

3. Fill out the remainder of the online application and upload the content that you want to publish. The instructions are show on-screen for each of the different types of media. After the iTunes team has reviewed the content it will be published to the iTunes store and available for purchase.

References

• Apple Support; How to Publish a Podcast on the iTunes Store; July 28, 2011
• Apple iTunes: Content Providers FAQ

Resources

• Apple iTunes: Sell your Content
• Apple iTunes: Podcast Specs