Apple Inc. (AAPL), LinkedIn Corp (LNKD): Is This Alliance Good for iOS 7?

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) may be starting to figure out the social mechanisms among users of mobile devices. LinkedIn Corp (NYSE:LNKD) has already gotten the message, and its niche as a business networking platform has made perhaps the best recent tech IPO story of the last decade. The company continues to grow in the business world and among job-seekers who are likely looking to their network of professional contacts. Considering the current state of the economy, networking for jobs is probably a popular sport among LinkedIn members at this point. After all, landing a new job is about who you know as much as what you know.

Now since Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has unveiled its iOS 7 operating system at the Worldwide Developers Conference last week, there has been much talked about in regards to what is being revealed in the developer code for the OS, which is currently in beta and not expected to be finalized for  public use until the fall by most indications, but certainly it seems that Apple  recognizes the value of social in terms of mobile and is looking for ways to integrate as many social applications as possible.

We know that Vimeo and Flickr found their way onto iOS 6 last year, and Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) became integrated in 2012, a full two years after initial plans to be included in iOS 4.

In the iOS 7 reveal at WWDC, one writer noted that the Shared Links panel on iOS 7 had only Twitter listed, though the developer code had other social networking sites included like Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), Tencent Weibo, Sina Weibo, Youku and others. But one noteworthy inclusion  was that there was some code started to include LinkedIn Corp (NYSE:LNKD) as a native app on the new OS, but the code did not appear finished yet. That  could mean that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) might be reconsidering the addition of LinkedIn, or that the two companies haven’t reached a final agreement on integration as of yet, and only that final approval would be needed to finish the code.

The idea behind it, though, is that those who would have an iOS 7-powered device by Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) could use a single log-in system for the app and be able to have it available anytime like one would with Twitter, Flickr or Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) currently.

This is likely seen as a nod by Apple to LinkedIn Corp (NYSE:LNKD) for its growth in social networking, and it could be seen as an attempt by Apple to become more business- or enterprise-oriented as it moves forward in the BYOD enterprise culture.

What are your thoughts? Would you encourage LinkedIn Corp (NYSE:LNKD) integration into iOS 7? Will this be a good move for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)? Give us your feedback in the comments section below.

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