Ammon News - by AL ARABIYA

Apple fans in the Middle East are up for a double treat as the technology giant, after nearly 11 years, finally launched iTunes on Wednesday in the region with a banner page saying, “The iTunes Store Has Arrived. Browse and buy music and a whole lot more.”

“Customers can choose from over 20 million songs available to purchase and download on the iTunes Store,” read a statement from Apple on their website.

Apple’s online store iTunes, which was founded and operated since 2001 in the United States, is now made accessible in a total of 119 countries at present.

Apple said that they had to “wait until we could launch with the best possible offering for our customers,” adding that they have launched the online store in 56 new markets on Tuesday.

The store offers a wide variety of music selections that can be purchased individually for a price as low as 99 cents each. Furthermore, customers can use local currency to purchase around applications and songs, a report from al-Bawaba stated.

“Customers also have access to the revolutionary App Store with more than 700,000 apps available in 155 countries,” read a statement from Apple.

Apple customers residing in the United Arab Emirates can purchase individual artists songs between four dirhams to five dirhams while albums range between 18 dirhams to 30 dirhams, said a report from Al Bawaba.

However, Middle East customers will not be able to purchase movies and TV shows from the store, a report from the National stated, but Apple commented that they will be bringing in movies and TV shows but did not mention any dates.

But the fun doesn’t stop there, earlier this week; Apple also announced the release date of the anticipated IPhone 5 in the Middle East.

The UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Kuwait and Turkey are set to experience the IPhone 5 on Dec. 14, a statement released on Apple’s website said.

The IPhone 5 is considered the thinnest and lightest IPhone ever released in the market and is equipped with a new 4-inch Retina display.

The IPhone 5 is currently available in 47 countries around the world and has the world’s most advanced operating system, iOS6, along with other new integrated features such as the social network platform Facebook.

The IPhone 5 has been released in the U.S. since September.