Apple releases iTunes 4.8 with video support [updated]

Apple has quietly released iTunes 4.8 for both Mac OS X and Windows. According to the brief release notes, version 4.8 includes “new Music Store features and support for transferring contacts and calendars from your computer to your iPod (requires Mac OS X version 10.4 on your computer).”

This update will presumably bring support for at least some of the previously mentioned new international iTunes Music Stores, including Australia, Switzerland, Sweden, Norwary, and Denmark. In fact, French iPod enthusiast site iPodGeneration is reporting that Apple will be holding a press conference tomorrow at Zurich to introduce the service in Switzerland.

iTunes 4.8 also adds new video features, including the ability to drag and drop movie clips from your computer into the iTunes Library for easy cataloging and organization. Clips appear with a new movie camera icon in your library; however, categories such as “album” and “composer” continue to be used for these files, and no new “videos” or “movies” genre has been added to accommodate them.

There is also a new “show video full screen” button that lets you easily watch full-screen movies that have been organized in your iTunes Library, as well as options to view movies in a separate smaller window, or within the main iTunes pane. When you “get info” on videos, they appear with a preview picture that can be resized to your liking. The video functionality does not appear to allow users to transfer videos to currently available iPods.

As stated in the release notes, users of Mac OS X v10.4 Tiger can now manage their contacts and calendar information right in iTunes instead of using iSync. Windows users will still need the help of a third-party utility to transfer contacts and calendars to their iPod. (See screenshots of the new video and contact/calendar features by clicking read more.)

Update: iTunes 4.8 also patches a security hole in the software. “The MPEG4 file parsing code in iTunes versions prior to 4.8 contains a buffer overflow vulnerability. Parsing a maliciously-crafted MPEG4 file could cause iTunes to terminate or potentially execute arbitrary code,” Apple says. “iTunes 4.8 addresses this issue by improving the validation checks used when loading MPEG4 files.”

Update #2: Several iLoungers report that Apple has made a select number of music videos available for download as bonuses to single or album purchases at the iTunes Music Store. For instance, those who buy Morcheeba’s The Antidote will get the video for the band’s “Wonders Never Cease” for free with the album. There does not currently appear to be any videos available for individual purchase.