Apple is looking for new additions to its iOS team to help expand the company’s cloud-based services for devices such as the iPhone and iPad, according to Apple Insider. The company posted two new job listings last month which “both describe an emphasis on remote storage for data access”, says the publication, which relates a few theories about Apple’s potential motives. “Some may view the hirings as further evidence of a cloud-based iTunes or other MobileMe-style services from Apple,” it says. A cloud-based iTunes would enable users to stream their music from anywhere to any internet-linked device. Alternatively, Apple might be planning to boost MobileMe, its existing cloud-based service which allows users to sync their data across multiple Macs and iOS devices. So far the take-up of MobileMe is unknown although reportedly Steve Jobs wants to see a greater adoption in 2011.

Predicting a move into cloud computing is becoming a favourite pastime for Apple watchers, so much so that research firm GigaOm Pro recently nominated “Apple Will Tell Us Anything About Its Data Center Operations” as one of five trends that we should not expect to see happen in 2011. Mainly this is a tribute to Apple’s secrecy about forthcoming product releases. Apple has built a massive data center in North Carolina, leading to speculation about its possible use. The company is not saying anything.  An expansion of MobileMe or Apple TV, as well as i-Tunes-in-the-cloud, have all been chewed over as possibilities.