Here’s something that I completely missed, but is certainly worth a mention — Marketcircle has updated Billings Pro and Billings Pro Touch adding support for Marketcircle Cloud.
∞ Apple adds more Samsung devices to lawsuit
Apple amended its complaint against Samsung, adding new devices it contends are infringing on its patents. Apple called Samsung’s attempt to get access to unreleased iOS devices as an “attempt to harass” and said those devices were irrelevant to this … Continued
∞ Gruber, Arment and honesty in publishing
Daring Fireball’s John Gruber and Instapaper founder Marco Arment took two prominent Web sites to task for recent articles they wrote. My interpretation of their critiques come down to one thing — honesty in publishing. Having a difference of opinion … Continued
∞ RIM co-CEOs praise themselves as the company burns around them
It’s hard to tell how executives will react after delivering poor quarterly results, but praising themselves probably isn’t the first thing that comes to mind.
Unfortunately for RIM shareholders, that’s exactly what happened last night. After announcing weaker than expected shipments of BlackBerrys, weak PlayBook shipments, poor financials, and a lower outlook for next quarter, co-CEOs Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis praised their leadership of the company, according to quotes from the call posted on AllThingsD.
“Mike and I would like to address some of the concerns that have been expressed surrounding the executive management structure at RIM and, specifically, the joint nature of our leadership,” said Balsillie. “Mike and I have been partners in this business for almost 20 years, and during that time RIM has grown to $20 billion in annual revenue. We are currently approaching the tail end of a significant transition in our business, that, frankly, few companies would have survived. But we have. And I believe, and I think Mike would agree, that neither of us could have taken RIM this far alone.”
∞ RIM needs to shut up and get a new CEO
It is a sad day for many employees of RIM. During the company’s disastrous first quarter results, they learned some workers would be laid off. But it’s not the workers that are responsible for this mess.
I first came out against RIM back in February when the company was the darling of the media and the PlayBook was the device expected to kill the iPad. At that time, I wrote a story called “RIM needs to shut up and ship,” chastising the company for announcing three generations of PlayBooks before they even shipped one.
RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie said, “I think the PlayBook redefines what a tablet should do.”
Ultimately, RIM released a device that doesn’t even have email or calendaring. This from the company that made its mark in the mobile arena based on secure email. What’s even worse is the response that RIM’s CEO had to the lack of basic features.
∞ RIM implodes: announces layoffs, 500,000 PlayBooks shipped
According to the company’s results, net income for the quarter was $695 million, or $1.33 per share diluted, compared with net income of $934 million, or $1.78 per share diluted, in the prior quarter and net income of $769 million, or $1.38 per share diluted, in the same quarter last year.
∞ Apple sued for violating iBooks trademark
Apple is being sued for violating another “i” trademark — this time its for iBooks.
The lawsuit is being brought by publisher John T. Colby, who purchased the rights to “ibooks” in 2006 and 2007, according to AppleInsider. The company is said to have published over 1,000 books using the name.
∞ Boston Bruins win the Stanley Cup
I honestly didn’t think I’d be saying this, but the Boston Bruins have won the 2011 Stanley Cup.
It’s been since 1972 that the Bruins last won the cup and there’s been a lot of ups and downs since then. As a Bruins fan since that last cup win, I’ve been with the team through all of those tough times.
∞ Negative Duke Nukem reviews bring threats from PR firm
The PR firm responsible for Duke Nukem got itself in hot water today as it made veiled threats to Web sites who delivered poor reviews of the game. (From what I’ve seen, that would be all of them). It got … Continued
∞ iOS ahead in mobile ad revenue, but there's more
A new report from Millennial Media on Tuesday shows that Apple is doing very well in mobile ad revenue — in fact, it’s leading all manufacturers.
Millennial “reports key advertising trends with a focus on mobile manufacturers, devices, operating systems, connected devices and more.” So, to be clear, we are looking only at advertising market share in this report.
∞ iPad 3 rumors in 2011 persist
Rumors of an iPad 3 release started early in 2011, even before the iPad 2 was released. Taiwan’s Economic Daily continued the speculation on Tuesday.
According to the report, the iPad 3 is scheduled to be launched in the fourth quarter of 2011. One interesting note is that the image resolution is reportedly 5-6 times higher than the iPad 2.
I have no specific knowledge of an iPad 3 release this year, but I did write about it in February and why it may make sense for Apple. Here are a few excerpts from that story that I think are still relevant.
∞ TUAW's unlocked iPhone FAQ
If you are wondering about the difference between an unlocked phone and a jailbroken phone, you should have a look at TUAW’s unlocked iPhone 4 FAQ. There’s a lot of useful information, from basic explanations to new pricing plans from … Continued
∞ More malware on the Android store
No matter how much Google does to convince consumers it is good and open, continued reports of malware will hurt its reputation. Google already had to remove apps containing malware once and a report in May said malware on the … Continued
∞ Apple retail chief leaves for JC Penney
Apple Vice President Ron Johnson will leave the company and take over as the CEO of JC Penny.
Johnson has been at the heart of Apple’s retail organization since it began a decade ago. He came to Apple from Target where he was the vice president of merchandising when he left.
Johnson will take over from current CEO Mike Ullman on November 1, 2011. Johnson will also join the PC Penny Board of Directors on August 1, 2011.
∞ iCloud will have a Web-based interface
When Apple introduced iCloud at last week’s Worldwide Developer Conference, there were no discussions about a Web-based interface for the service, which lead some to believe that there wouldn’t be one. I don’t believe this is the case.
Most of the fervor comes from an article written by Josh Topolsky, which is based on the keynote and what he confirmed with Apple PR. Getting around assumptions based on what Steve Jobs said or didn’t say at the keynote is easy. However, getting around confirmation from Apple PR is a little more difficult.
∞ Apple begins selling unlocked iPhone 4
Apple on Tuesday began selling an unlocked version of its iPhone 4 from its online store.
Basically an unlocked iPhone can be used on any compatible network without purchasing a long term contract. This gives the user a great amount of flexibility, but the upfront cost to purchase the phone is expensive.
∞ Lawyer says Apple may settle iCloud lawsuit
After announcing its iCloud service last week at WWDC, Apple was slapped with a lawsuit from Arizona-based iCloud Communications. Apple bought iCloud.com from Xcerion and has 11 applications registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Apple also owns the … Continued
∞ Apple to pay Nokia in patent lawsuit settlement
Apple and Nokia ended their back and forth patent lawsuits on Tuesday with Nokia coming out the victor.
In a press release issued by Nokia, the company said Apple would make a one time payment, presumably for the time Apple has been infringing on the patents, as well as ongoing royalties. Specific terms were not released.
∞ If you think WWDC wasn't successful, you weren't paying attention
Sometimes I think people just don’t pay attention. A major event like WWDC comes, Apple introduces some great products, and still some people think there is little innovation.
Just to recap, Apple announced Mac OS X Lion, iOS 5 and iCloud. The significance of these announcements are not only in their product categories, but also with the entirety of the announcements and how they fit together.
It’s true that Apple didn’t release any new hardware, but we knew Apple wasn’t going to release hardware back in March. That’s no surprise, so let’s look at the significance of the software.
∞ Only 7% of iOS developers are Mac developers too
Analyst Gene Munster surveyed 45 Apple developers at last week’s WWDC to find out how many developed on other platforms. While the number of developers he spoke with is quite small (considering there were 5,000 registered for the event), there … Continued
∞ PlayBook is the 'herpes of tablets'
RIM may want people to compare its PlayBook tablet to the iPad, but journalists have a less complimentary comparison for the device.
While I was attending WWDC last week, CNN said the PlayBook was the “herpes of tablets.” Apparently the news organization was trying to return the PlayBook to RIM and got no response.
∞ My Living Desktop updated for Mac OS X Lion
Amuse updated its Mac OS X app, My Living Desktop, fixing a few bugs and adding support for Apple’s Mac OS X Lion.
In addition to Lion support, My Living Desktop also added some new scenes in the Scene Store; added the ability to install as a standard (non-admin) user; and includes several installer fixes.
∞ The Loop celebrates its second birthday
On June 8, 2009 during the Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco, I launched The Loop. I’m happy to say that two years later, we’re still going strong.
It’s been an incredible two years for Peter Cohen and I at The Loop. Traffic has grown by an incredible amount, regular readers comment on stories, tips from companies and readers alert us to upcoming news, and we’re having a lot of fun.
The Loop is what you could say is my third life in the Mac journalism world. Starting with the launch of MacCentral in 1994 and moving to Macworld in 1999 and then The Loop in 2009.
∞ WWDC 2011 Steve Jobs keynote live update
The Loop is at WWDC and we’re getting ready to bring you live updates from Steve Jobs’ keynote. The keynote starts at 10:00 am PT (1:00 pm ET).
∞ NetNewsWire sold to Black Pixel
Brent Simmons sold NetNewsWire, one of the most popular RSS readers in the Mac market, to NewsGator a number of years ago, but that’s not the end of the story. Simmons told Ars Technica on Friday that he was behind … Continued
∞ Meeting Spot app aims to make WWDC easier for meetings
There was a new app released yesterday by Selligy called Meeting Spot that is going to help out a lot of people at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference being held next week.
Meeting Spot lets you check out all of the cafes, coffee shops, restaurants and sandwich around Moscone to find the perfect place to have a meeting, lunch or both. I’ve been in this position many times, so the app definitely appeals to me.
∞ Apple tops RIM in U.S. mobile market share
Market research firm comScore on Friday released its latest report detailing mobile market share in the U.S. It’s good news for Apple, but continued bad news for RIM.
According to the survey that included more than 30,000 U.S. mobile subscribers, Apple has overtaken RIM to land the third spot in U.S. mobile subscribers. That gives Apple an 8.3 percent share, up from 7.0 percent in January. RIM fell 0.4 points to 8.2 percent.
∞ Gruber, ice water, hell, and Windows 8
Here’s a lesson for people that want to write for a living or even for a hobby — if you are going to quote somebody to make your point, make sure they actually said what you claim they do. Time … Continued
∞ J.P. Morgan: iPad competitors failing
After the release of the original iPad, companies crawled out of the woodwork to announce a tablet of their own. However, those companies are finding that consumers don’t just want a tablet, they want an iPad.
A report released on Thursday by J.P. Morgan Chase says that demand is not what Apple’s competitors had hoped for. In fact, production of tablets has dropped by about 10 percent, according to NYTimes.
∞ Motorola says 70% of returns are because of bad Android apps
There was some startling news from Motorola on Thursday as the company’s CEO spoke at the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Global Technology conference.
According to Sanjay Jha, CEO of Motorola, of all the Android devices that are returned, 70 percent come back because of Android apps and the negative effect they have on performance.