Apple news site AppleInsider Thursday reported that, going by the information forwarded by unnamed sources `in the know', Apple would likely include the `multitasking' feature in its iPhone OS 4.0 update this summer; thereby enabling several third party apps to run simultaneously as well as in the background.

With the next version of the iPhoneOS supposedly borrowing elements of the MacOS X interface for offering multiple active applications, the report said that the iPhone OS 4.0 release will allow users immediate access to multiple applications, including the ones from third-party developers.

However, while the AppleInsider report quoted sources with a "proven track record in predicting Apple's technological advances," it fell short of specifying how the update would handle two of the leading issues linked to multitasking - performance and battery life.

Though the inclusion of the multitasking feature in the iPhone will be a welcome move for the popular handset's users, Michael Oh, president of Boston-based Apple reseller Tech Superpowers, does not consider the feature to be as important as it may appear.

In a statement, Oh said: "Apple doesn't really need multitasking for the iPhone to be competitive, but the perception is that competitors are going to be pushing multitasking as a feature. The time is about right for Apple to cave on this -- unless there is radically new hardware, the iPhone feels like it is losing ground and staying still."