Mac App Store to open in new year

Apple announced on Thursday that its Mac App Store will launch internationally on Jan. 6.

The online store will allow visitors from 90 countries, including Canada, to browse free and paid applications in six categories: education, games, graphics and design, lifestyle, productivity and utilities.

The aim is to let Mac users find, download and install applications more easily.

"The App Store revolutionized mobile apps," said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. "We hope to do the same for PC apps with the Mac App Store by making finding and buying PC apps easy and fun. We can’t wait to get started on January 6."

The Mac App Store will be free to users of Mac OS X Snow Leopard through a software update.