After Apple announced last year that former SVP of iOS Software Scott Forstall would be leaving the company, it revealed that industrial design chief Jony Ive would be put in charge of Apple's human interface iOS software team. According to The Wall Street Journal, this has led to the human interface group getting earlier briefs about new mobile hardware designs, and Ive has begun to sit in on the human interface team's review sessions to look over new software as well.

During his meetings with the human interface software group, it's said that Ive is pushing for a "flat design" to be implemented in the next version of iOS that's described as "starker and simpler" than previous versions. The WSJ's sources also indicate that it's unlikely that we'll see any major shifts in the OS, though, claiming that any alterations made to iOS will be "pretty conservative."

While this report makes it sound as though there won't be any earth-shattering changes made to the next version of iOS, a slight makeover could be in the cards. That obviously isn't going to sit well with anyone that's hoping for a major overhaul of iOS. However, for anyone that's mostly happy with the platform but just feels that it's starting to get a bit stale, the news that Ive is working to bring a flatter, simpler look to iOS could be good. It's not yet known exactly when we'll get our first official peek at the next version of iOS, but Apple has introduced the past couple of versions of iOS during the summer months. What do you all think of today's rumor? Does a flatter, simpler-looking iOS sound appealing to you?

Via WSJ Digits