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iPad Issues in China
Yesterday the iPad had been pulled from sale at online retailers Amazon China and Suning.com. The Wall Street Journal now reports that the iPad had been removed at Apple's request rather than as a result of actions associated with the trademark dispute, but Apple's reasons for the request were unknown. However, Apple may request that Amazon China remove the iPad from sale, simply due to Amazon China not being an officially authorized retailer.
The Cupertino, Calif., consumer electronics giant asked Amazon in China to stop selling iPads because it is not an authorized reseller, according to people familiar with the matter. Amazon has since removed iPads offered by other resellers on its Chinese website as well.
Leave a commentSiri itself confirms Japanese support coming soon to Apple's iPhone 4S
Watchful iPhone 4S users noticed on Tuesday that Siri is now claiming to speak Japanese. Apple's Siri virtual assistant for the iPhone 4S claims it can already speak Japanese, despite the fact that the language is not yet enabled in the feature's settings.
When asked what languages it can speak, Siri responds, "I speak Japanese, English, German and French. I'm studying some new languages, too."
It then adds, "You can change the language I'm using…just go to Siri settings." However, the settings pane for the feature shows only English (with separate selections for Australia, United Kingdom and United States), French and German, with no way to select Japanese.
Apple earned $1 out of every $5 US consumers spent on electronics this holiday
NPD's Retail and Consumer tracking Services and Mobile Phone Track found that Apple accounted for 19 percent, or nearly one in five, of all U.S. consumer dollars spent on electronics, during the busy holiday shopping season. Apple, consequently, remained the largest consumer electronics brand for the second year in a row.
All of the other top five brands beyond Apple actually saw a year over year decrease in revenue in 2011. HP's sales dropped by 3 percent, third-place while Samsung dipped 6 percent, fourth-place Sony slid 21 percent, and Dell, in fifth, lost 17 percent.
ITV Warns Apple (Again) Not to Use Their Name
As rumors of an Apple television set continue to swirl, The Telegraph reports that the UK TV network ITV has written a letter to Apple to warn it against using the name "iTV" for its future television product. Though, ITV said that there has been "no communication" between it and Apple. The "iTV" name was previously rumored to be used for Apple's revamped iOS powered Apple TV in 2010, which was said to have made network executives "furious."
Apple anticipated television has been called the "iTV" by some pundits, following the same branding as Apple's other popular products like the iPhone and iPad. ITV, short for Independent Television, has been on the air since 1955, and is the broadcaster of the popular show "Downton Abbey." The network has also spawned three sister channels using its same name: ITV2, ITV3 and ITV4.
Apple reportedly assured the ITV network in 2010 that Apple would not use the "iTV" name. But the death of Steve Jobs is said to raise a serious concern of the network. ITV executives are said to be concerned that Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook could take a different stance from his predecessor.
Chinese Authorities and Retailers Removing iPads from Sale Over Trademark Issues
Last week, Apple was said to be facing a potential fine of approximately $38 million as a result of a trademark dispute in China between Apple and Proview Technology, which claims to have held ownership of the "iPad" trademark there since 2000. Noteworthy, Proview is seeking as much as $1.6 billion in damages. Apple believed that it had acquired the rights to the iPad trademark in China in an earlier $55,000 deal with Proview's parent company that also included European rights. But the Chinese arm of the company now claims that the Chinese rights could not have been part of the deal because those rights were not controlled by the parent company.
Now DigiCha and China.com. report that China authorities have begun taken steps related to the trademark issue, confiscating iPads from retailers' shops. DigiCha reports:
Steve Jobs wins posthumous Grammy
On Saturday, Apple’s late co-founder Steve Jobs was awarded a Grammy Trustees Award to his significant contributions to music and music industry, and his part in creating the iPod and iTunes music store, and the effect that both had on a whole music industry. That Jobs was awarded the Grammy was first announced in December, but the statue was not officially handed over until Saturday. A formal acknowledgement was made during the Grammy Awards telecast Sunday evening. The award is the second Grammy given to Jobs. Apple won a technical Grammy award in 2002.
Apple senior vice president of Internet Software and Services, Eddy Cue, accepted the award on his behalf.
Apple co-founder Steve Jobs did serve on White House council in '90s
The U.S. Commerce Department has confirmed a FBI agent report who claiming that Apple co-founder Steve Jobs served on former President George H.W. Bush's Export Council during the 1990s. He was considered for appointment to the council in 1991.
The Export Council consists of unpaid members who meet a minimum of twice a year to advise the president on trade policy. Given that the Commerce Department said Jobs served during the first Bush administration, it would appear that he was on the council from 1991 to 1993.
Apple now costs just about $460B, more
Yesterday AAPL briefly passed a record $460 billion market cap with new historical stock price high at $493.97 a share. Apple is the most expensive company, the second one is Exxon Mobil Corporation [XOM] with market valuation of $402.72 billion.
Apple Posts Two New iPhone 4S Ads Featuring Siri
Apple has posted two new iPhone 4S ads featuring Siri entitled, 'Road Trip' and 'Rock God'.
Road Trip
From finding gas to discovering a great place to eat, Siri can help you get from A to B like never before.
Foxconn's Servers Hacked, Exposing Vendor Usernames and Passwords
Swagg Security hacking group announced this week that they managed to hack Foxconn servers that expose usernames and passwords for clients and employees. Such information could be used to place fraudulent orders for companies like Apple and Microsoft.
Swagg Security alleged that it had bypassed Foxconn's firewall "almost flawlessly." Using several hacking techniques and a couple of days time, the hackers reportedly dumped "most of everything of significance," including usernames and passwords. According to the group, the leaked passwords "could allow individuals to make fraudulent orders under big companies like Microsoft, Apple, IBM, Intel, and Dell."
Apple to Stream Live Paul McCartney Concert to iTunes and Apple TV
Apple today announced that it would support Paul McCartney's new album release. The company plans to steam a special free video of the live concert on Thursday, February 9 via . The video will also be available directly on users' Apple TVs, signalling new efforts by Apple to increase the utility of its set-top box.
To celebrate the release of Paul McCartney's latest album — available now — we're streaming his exclusive performance at Capitol Studios on February 9 at 7 p.m. (PST). Watch the concert on on your computer, or stream it on your TV using your Apple TV — just choose iTunes Live from the Internet menu.
App developers forced to submit Retina Display screenshots
Yesterday Apple notified members of the company’s iOS Developer Program that they will be required to provide high-resolution, Retina Display compatible screenshots. The screenshots are required when initially submitting or updating an app through iTunes Connect.
The note sent out to third-party software developers says that any future updates will not be approved by Apple unless 960x640 pixel screenshot is included, a change from the company's earlier policy which supported Retina Display screenshots but did not require them.
Apple warns it will crack down on App Store rank fraud services
In a message posted to Apple's Developer site today Apple has warned App Store developers against using promotional services that seek to increase the visibility of their titles by automating sales to inflate their apps' apparent popularity or by posting phony reviews, threatening to terminate their accounts if they do.
"Once you build a great app, you want everyone to know about it. However, when you promote your app, you should avoid using services that advertise or guarantee top placement in App Store charts. Even if you are not personally engaged in manipulating App Store chart rankings or user reviews, employing services that do so on your behalf may result in the loss of your Apple Developer Program membership. Get helpful tips and resources on marketing your apps the right way from the App Store Resource Center."
Best Buy customer survey details 42-inch Apple HDTV with iOS
Best Buy has decided to carry out a survey related to the rumored Apple’s HDTV powered by iOS that, noteworthy to say, has not been released yet. The questionnaire notes that the 42-inch Apple HDTV "finally reinvents what a TV can do," with a 1080p LED flat panel display, connectivity with iCloud, and the ability to use an iPhone or an iPad as a remote control, and "iSight" camera. Such details, however, look like speculations on the part of Best Buy. Since introducing FaceTime video chat, Apple has referred to its forward-facing cameras as FaceTime cameras, not iSight.
The full details from the survey follow:
Apple iPhone 4S A5 chip incorporates Audience EarSmart noise reduction tech for Siri
Apple's A5 System on a Chip incorporates noise reduction technology by Audience, Inc., which optimizes the performance of Siri voice recognition on iPhone 4S.
Audience explains that by "imitating the complex processing that occurs from the inner ear to the brain, Audience's intelligent earSmart technology distinguishes and interprets sounds as people do naturally. In a mobile device, the earSmart processor effectively isolates and enhances the primary voice signal and suppresses surrounding noise--for both transmit and receive--to enable clear conversations nearly anywhere."
The company notes that "far-field uses are more vulnerable to background noise interference and poor voice quality given the speaker's distance from the device," an issue that has previously been noted in regard to rumors that Apple might deploy TV systems incorporating Siri voice technology.