Apple sanctions phone-repair shops for iPhone fixes

NEW YORK — There may soon be more places to get an Apple-sanctioned fix for a cracked iPhone screen.

Apple said Thursday that it will sell tools and parts to independent phone-repair shops in the U.S. and later in other countries. The repair shops need to have an Apple-certified technician. Repairs at these shops, though, will be limited to products already out of warranty.

Customers with in-warranty repairs will still need to visit an Apple store or one of more than 5,000 authorized service providers worldwide, including all Best Buy stores in the U.S.

With iPhone sales on the wane and people hanging on to their phones longer, Apple is trying to ramp up its services business, with offerings such as music subscriptions. It plans to launch a video streaming service this year.