iOS 6 to Get Redesigned iTunes Store, App Store And iBookstore

As we get closer to the WWDC 2012 Keynote, where Apple is widely expected to give us a preview of iOS 6, more details about the upcoming major iOS software update seems to be leaking out.

So far we've heard that iOS 6 will include an all-new Maps app with an incredible 3D-mode and Facebook integration.

9to5Mac now reports that iOS 6 will also feature redesigned iTunes Store, App Store and iBookstore.

According to sources familiar with Apple’s upcoming iOS 6 mobile software offering, the company’s three major`digital stores will see design overhauls. The overhauls are said to be major and they focus on improved interactivity when making purchases in iTunes, the App Store, and the iBookstore. Social is a big piece of the store overhauls, and Facebook integration is being tested in the iTunes Store portion, at least.

But 9to5Mac also notes that the redesigned apps won't offer improved discoverability. You may remember that Apple had acquired Chomp - an app search engine earlier in the year. We were expecting Apple to use Chomp's technology to improve App Store search and recommendations. But according to 9to5Mac's source, it may not happen in iOS 6, which would be a pity as discoverability of apps is quite a pain with more than 600,000 apps in the App Store.