By Graham K. Rogers

Earlier today, the pricing (as promised) in the iTunes Store was changed to Thai baht rather than US$ that has been used since the store arrived here. App prices in the Mac App store were also adjusted. I will make some comparisons later to see how the selections compare.

Adding to its commitment to users here, Apple has also updated the iTunes sections for music with some areas dedicated to those who prefer to read and write Thai; and of course for those who like Thai music. A press release from Apple tells us,

The full immersive experience of Apps and iTunes Store gets more exciting with the launch of the Thai language pages featuring local currency payment for Thai fans!

At Apple Music, we are profoundly passionate about music. It's a force that's driven and inspired us from day one. So we've set out to make it better. To bring you more music than ever with access to millions of songs and we are delighted to announce the addition of GMM Grammy, Thailand's largest independent label featuring hot artists including getsunova, Bodyslam and 25 Hours.

For just 129 THB a month or 199 THB for your family, give you personal recommendations from people who know and love music. To deepen the connection between artists and fans. To revamp radio with expertly crafted on-demand stations. This is Apple Music. And it's just the beginning.

In order to view these new features, the press release notes that the language settings on iOS devices and Macs need to be set to Thai, although I was able to view the sections (in a mix of English and Thai) on both the Mac and the iPhone I am using.

After the language change and restart, the iTunes and Music app screens reload, but the content is the same as far as I can see. Pricing on both Thai and English pages here is now in Thai baht. There was more Thai content displayed in All Genres in the Music app on the iPhone. Likewise in the iTunes app, a lot of Thai songs and albums were featured, but lower down there was still plenty of non-Thai offerings, as well as links to the genres (like Classical).

It is of course good to see Apple expanding its services with more localised content and this should continue. Can we hope for Apple Pay next?

Graham K. Rogers teaches at the Faculty of Engineering, Mahidol University in Thailand. He wrote in the Bangkok Post, Database supplement on IT subjects. For the last seven years of Database he wrote a column on Apple and Macs. He is now continuing that in the Bangkok Post supplement, Life.