Apple has hired Timothy D. Twerdahl, the general manager and director of Amazon's Fire TV business, to be the vice president in charge of Apple TV product marketing, reportsBloomberg. Twerdahl joined Apple earlier this month.
Twerdahl has been in charge of Fire TV since 2013, overseeing two generations of the product and its rise as one of the more popular internet-connected set-top boxes. At Apple, Twerdahl will report to Greg Joswiak, VP of iOS and iPhone Product Marketing.
The move will allow Pete Distad, the former head of Apple TV product marketing, to concentrate on helping Apple land content deals, which are headed by Eddy Cue. Before joining Apple in 2013, Distad was senior vice president of content distribution at Hulu.
Having Distad join content negotiations is intended to shore up content for Apple TV, according to Bloomberg, as efforts to secure exclusive content deals for Apple TV have stalled in the past due to failed negotiations.
With the fourth-generation Apple TV, Apple was originally aiming to provide a full a la carte television service that could replace traditional cable and satellite packages, similar to Sony's PlayStation Vue service. However, Apple unsurprisingly saw pushback from both content and cable companies after using negotiating tactics described as "assertive" and "hard-nosed," declining to back down from the terms the company wanted. Apple scaled back its TV ambitions in the past couple of years, though it considered both a slimmed-down subscription service and purchasing Time Warner.
In addition to leading product marketing for the Fire TV, Twerdahl was also the senior director of internet TV at Netflix and a vice president of consumer devices at Roku, according to his LinkedIn.
Ahead of the Chicago Auto Show, Dodge today announced that its new 2018 Durango SRT will come equipped with support for Apple CarPlay, making it the first Durango model to offer the feature.
Branded as the "fastest, most powerful and most capable three-row SUV," the Durango SRT includes a 475-horsepower engine, a new exterior design, new interior options, and more.
It will include an 8.4-inch Uconnect touch screen media center with CarPlay support, Android Auto, HD Radio, downloadable apps, and a 5-year trial of SiriusXM Travel Link and Traffic, plus it will be equipped with a BeatsAudio-branded premium sound system with nine speakers, a subwoofer, and a 506-watt amplifier.
Dodge has previously implemented support in the 2017 Challenger and the 2017 Charger. The 2018 Durango SRT will be available from dealers starting in the summer of 2017.
Following a trip to France, Tim Cook today toured Germany, where he made a number of stops to visit furniture maker Dula, the developers behind the Kitchen Stories app, and the team at Refinery29.
Cook has been documenting his trip on Twitter, sharing a number of photos at each site. Before leaving France, he made one last stop to visit the Marché Saint-Germain Apple Store, where he met with staff, iOS developers, and Apple customers. It was his second visit to an Apple Store following a stop in Marseille earlier this week.
He then headed to Vreden, Germany, where he met with Dula. Dula is a furniture manufacturer that works with Apple to create some of the furniture and hardware used in Apple's retail stores.
Bewundernswerte, außergewöhnliche Handwerkskunst bei unserem Zulieferer Dula heute Morgen in Vreden 🇩🇪. Vielen Dank für die Tour! pic.twitter.com/va4n6oqtCn
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) February 7, 2017
Cook took a tour of the factory and then headed to Berlin to meet with the developers behind the Kitchen Stories app. Created by two women in 2014, Kitchen Stories is a recipe app that walks users through each step using photos and videos.
During his time at Kitchen Stories, Cook also met with Refinery29 for an exclusive interview where he talked about women in the workplace, diversity, wage gaps, and more.
Cook was specifically questioned about the German start up scene, where just 13.9 percent of lead roles are held by women. According to Cook, improving that rate hinges on a work environment that "encourages and motivates women to participate." He went on to say that it's a problem that needs to be tackled early in life, in schools, with young women encouraged to enter the STEM field.
Pay equality was also a subject, and Cook explained that Apple pays all employees equally regardless of gender, something all companies should do.
You know, we're probably an outsider, but we pay well and we pay 100% the same. We make a long-term evaluation every year, in order to maintain that. And if we only notice once that someone earns only 99.8% of the salary of another, then we do everything we can to make up for it. I think every company should try to do it. It's just not right and not fair that women still earn so much less than men.
Cook's full comments can be read over at Refinery29, but the original interview is in German and will need to be translated.
Following his short trip to Germany, Cook will head to Scotland on Wednesday where he will accept an honorary degree from the University of Glasgow.
Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit today ruled that a lower district court must decide whether a damages retrial is required in the long running legal battle between Apple and Samsung, reports CNET.
The case will return to the same San Jose, California court where it was originally heard by Judge Lucy Koh. From today's ruling:
Both parties filed statements urging us to take different actions. While Apple requests continued panel review, Samsung requests that we remand to the district court for a new trial on damages. For the reasons explained below, we adopt neither suggested course of action. Instead, we remand this case to the district court for further proceedings, which may or may not include a new damages trial.
Apple's dispute with Samsung dates back to 2011, when Apple sued Samsung for copying the iPhone's design. Apple was initially awarded nearly $1 billion in damages, but a significant part of that decision was reversed in 2015, leaving Samsung owing $548 million.
Samsung paid the $548 million in 2015, but also asked the Supreme Court to hear the case in the hopes of reimbursement, claiming it was asked to pay a "disproportionate" sum for violating Apple's design patents. $399 million of the $548 million was awarded for the design patent violation, and in December, the Supreme Court sided with Samsung, overturning that particular damages ruling.
The Supreme Court remanded the case back to the U.S. Court of Appeals to reconsider the $399 million portion of the ruling, and the lawsuit was officially reopened in January of 2017. The U.S. Court of Appeals was charged with redetermining the amount Samsung owes Apple for infringing on the design patents, a task that will now fall to the district court because the appeals court says the district court is better suited to make such a decision.
The original damages award was calculated based on the profit Samsung earned from the sale of infringing galaxy devices, but Samsung has claimed the amount should not have been based on the total profits of each device, but rather the individual components that violated the patents, which the Supreme Court agreed with.
The District Court for the Northern District of California will now consider arguments from both Apple and Samsung and determine what additional proceedings, if any, are necessary in the case.
Ever since the original MacBook Pro, Apple has identified the notebooks based on the time of year in which they were released.
Early: January-April
Mid: May-August
Late: September-December
The first MacBook Pro with a Retina display, for example, has a "Mid 2012" model name because it was released in June of that year.
Apple continued this trend when it launched its latest MacBook Pro lineup in October. Both the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, along with the new 13-inch MacBook Pro with a standard row of function keys, were described as "late 2016" models on Apple's website and support documentation.
Just recently, however, Apple appears to have dropped the "late" portion of "late 2016" when referring to its latest MacBook Pro models, as spotted by Apple blog Pike's Universum. Apple now simply identifies all of its latest MacBook Pros as "2016" models on its tech specs pages and under "About This Mac" on the second macOS 10.12.4 beta.
The latest MacBook Pro models are still identified as "MacBook Pro (15-inch, Late 2016)" or "MacBook Pro (13-inch, Late 2016)" under "About This Mac" on earlier macOS Sierra versions for some users. Apple also has a few supportdocuments that still refer to a "late-2016 MacBook Pro" in sentence usage on its website.
Given that Apple only refreshed its MacBook Pro lineup once last year, it is reasonable to assume that "late" was an unnecessary descriptor; however, Apple still refers to its latest 12-inch MacBook as "Early 2016" despite there being no other updates to that notebook last year. The same applies to the "12-inch MacBook, Early 2015."
Apple has also yet to remove "Mid" from its "Mid 2014" MacBook Pro, despite the fact that it was the only MacBook Pro model released in 2014, so this appears to be a clear deviation from the company's traditional nomenclature. We've reached out to Apple for an explanation, and we'll update this article if we hear back.
Update:MacRumors reader Peter Cao tweeted us a screenshot that shows "Late" has indeed been dropped under "About This Mac" on a 2016 MacBook Pro running the second macOS 10.12.4 beta.
John Solomon, Apple's vice president for enterprise and government, left the company recently, Apple confirmed to Reuters. Solomon sold Apple products to major businesses and government entities.
Prior to joining Apple in 2015, Solomon was a longtime Hewlett-Packard executive who ran the company's global consumer printing business. According to Reuters, it is not immediately clear if Solomon's departure will have an impact on Apple's enterprise business, nor is it known why he left the company.
Since 2014 when it inked a deal with IBM, Apple has been ramping up its enterprise efforts to sell more products to big businesses. By partnering with IBM, Apple has been able to help businesses build custom iOS applications, and through a 2016 partnership with Cisco, Apple's iPhones work better on commonly used Cisco networking gear.
Apple has also inked enterprise deals with SAP and Deloitte, with both partnerships aimed at developing the tools and integrations necessary to make it easy for companies to adopt iOS devices and Macs.
Apple Pay is now accepted by 36 percent of merchants in the United States, according to research conducted by retail consulting firm Boston Retail Partners and shared by NFC World. That's up from 16 percent last year.
Boston Retail Partners derived its information from a survey of more than 500 top North American retailers.
22 percent of retailers who don't currently support Apple Pay said they plan to accept the payments service within the next 12 months, while 11 percent plan to do so in the next one to three years. 31 percent plan to take a "wait and see" approach before implementing Apple Pay support.
PayPal was the next most widely accepted payments service at 34 percent, while MasterCard's PayPass came in third with 25 percent. 24 percent of merchants claimed support for Android Pay, while 18 percent said they accept Samsung Pay. Given that many of these technologies are all NFC-based and accepted anywhere NFC payments are available, it seems merchants may be referring to "official" support or may be unaware of the way contactless payments work.
"PayPal has been bumped out of its top spot in this year's survey, with Apple Pay now being accepted at 36% of the retailers participating in the survey. This is up significantly from 16% last year, and signals a growing acceptance by retailers and customers."
"This year, fewer retailers are adopting a wait and see approach for Apple Pay and PayPal -- likely because of the growing support from the payment software ecosystem and the acceptance for these mobile payments by the public."
During Apple's recent first quarter earnings call, Apple CEO Tim Cook said Apple Pay usage had tripled over the course of 2016. Transaction volume was up more than 500 percent year-over-year, and according to Cook, more than two million small businesses now accept Apple Pay.
Jimmy Iovine, who leads Apple Music alongside Eddy Cue, Dr. Dre, Trent Reznor, and Larry Jackson, recently sat down for a wide-ranging interview with Variety covering everything from Apple's goals with the streaming service to its experimentation with exclusives.
Though Jimmy Iovine has no official title at Apple, going by just "Jimmy," he has negotiated many of the streaming deals for the service and has been a key team member since Apple purchased Beats Music in 2014. "Apple, of all the global tech companies, was the one that understood why artists make things," Iovine said, explaining why he had a close relationship with Apple even before the acquisition.
Since its debut, Apple Music has grown to 20 million subscribers, with 10 million added in 2016 alone. Much of that can be attributed to Apple's evolving focus, first on exclusives and now on video. Apple is adding original content to Apple Music, in the form of two TV shows - a reality series based on Carpool Karaoke and drama that will star Dr. Dre.
Iovine wouldn't go into detail about Apple's future plans for original content, but he explained that Apple's goal is to make Apple Music "a cultural point of reference." He says Apple's work on original content shouldn't be compared to other entertainment companies like Netflix.
Iovine, asked if he sees Apple Music attempting to become competitive with the likes of Netflix in the original-content sphere, demurs. "I wouldn't put it that way," he says. "When I read that, or I read that we're taking on whomever, I say no. To me it's all one thing. It's Apple Music, and it happens to have video and audio. ... It has nothing to do with what Netflix is doing."
On the topic of exclusive content, which has created conflict between Apple and both its competitors and record labels, Iovine says Apple is "just experimenting." He says his work with Apple hasn't caused problems with former colleagues in the music business, despite the bitterness over exclusive content.
"I don't lean on [exclusives] too heavily myself," he says. "We did 'em. We'll do some more. But we're just experimenting. I just know that if something feels right and someone wants to, we're willing to do it, to help them really market their record, get the word out, and spend what it deserves."
According to Iovine, the key to Apple's continued success in the music industry is an ability to "speak both languages," referring to the harmonizing of technology and music. He believes there's room in the streaming music industry for many companies, as long as "streaming is done right," with each service being culturally different with a unique feel. "Yeah, they all have the same catalog," he said." But what we're doing is we're just building on top of that. That's where the personality and the feel will come from."
Iovine's full interview, which covers a range of additional topics like his childhood, early jobs, close relationship with Dr. Dre, the founding of Beats Music, Beats 1 Radio, and subscription streaming models, can be read over at Variety and is worth checking out for those who want an inside look at Apple Music.
Apple today seeded the second beta of an upcoming iOS 10.3 update to public beta testers for testing purposes, two weeks after seeding the first beta and one day after providing the second iOS 10.3 beta to developers.
Beta testers who have signed up for Apple's beta testing program will receive the iOS 10.3 beta update over-the-air after installing the proper certificate on their iOS device.
Those who want to be a part of Apple's beta testing program can sign up to participate through the beta testing website, which gives users access to both iOS and macOS Sierra betas. Betas are not stable and include many bugs, so they should be installed on a secondary device.
As a major 10.x update, iOS 10.3 introduces a new "Find My AirPods" option to help users locate a lost AirPod. Located in the "Find My Friends" app, the Find My AirPods feature keeps track of the last known location where AirPods were connected to an iOS device via Bluetooth, and it allows the AirPods to play a sound to make finding them nearby easier.
Along with a Find My AirPods feature, the update also includes a shift to Apple File System (APFS). First introduced in 2016, APFS is optimized for Flash/SSD storage and includes strong encryption and other important features.
Apple recommends all users make an iCloud backup before installing iOS 10.3, as the update will cause the iPhone's file system to switch over to Apple File System.
iOS 10.3 also introduces a tweaked app animation, a new Apple ID profile in the Settings app, a better breakdown on how iCloud storage is being used, SiriKit improvements, new iCloud analytics options, and more.
Apple today seeded the second beta of an upcoming macOS Sierra 10.12.4 update to developers, two weeks after seeding the first macOS Sierra 10.12.4 beta and just over a two weeks after releasing macOS Sierra 10.12.3.
The second macOS Sierra 10.12.4 beta is available for download through the Apple Developer Center or the software update mechanism in the Mac App Store for those who have previously installed a beta.
macOS Sierra 10.12.4 brings iOS's Night Shift mode to the Mac for the first time. First introduced with iOS 9.3, Night Shift is designed to gradually shift the display of a device from blue to yellow, cutting down on exposure to blue light. Blue light is said to disrupt the circadian rhythm and is believed to interrupt sleeping patterns.
Night Shift can be activated through the Displays section of System Preferences, where a setting to have it come on at sunset and turn off at sunrise is available. Night Shift can also be toggled on manually through the Notification Center or via Siri.
The 10.12.4 update focuses mainly on Night Shift, but also includes dictation support for Shanghainese, cricket scores for Siri, and improved PDFKit APIs. Today's beta adds an opt-in option for iCloud Analytics that pops up after installing the update.
Fenox Venture Capital today announced that Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak will share more "untold stories of Apple" at the Startup World Cup Grand Finale on March 24. The event will take place at the Marriott Marquis hotel in San Francisco.
Steve Wozniak, aka “Woz”, will share insights on his time at Apple and tell some untold stories. In 1976, Woz co-founded Apple with Steve Jobs, where he developed the Apple I, and co-created the Apple II. He remains a Silicon Valley icon and is recognized as a pioneer of the personal computer revolution.
Wozniak, better known as "Woz," co-founded Apple alongside Steve Jobs and Ronald Wayne in 1976. He temporarily left Apple after injuring himself in a personal airplane crash in 1981, and he permanently left the company in 1985. He published a book called iWoz in 2007 to reflect on his past with Jobs and the company.
Startup World Cup consists of 16 startup competitions around the world. The top startup from each competition will be flown to the final event in San Francisco, where they will be competing for a $1 million investment prize from a panel of venture capitalists. It is at this grand finale where Woz will speak.
While the latest MacBook Pro with Touch Bar notebooks launched under four months ago, references to possible next-generation models have already been discovered in the latest macOS 10.12.4 beta.
Apple blog Pike's Universum uncovered a trio of motherboard identifiers that do not correspond with any current MacBook Pro model, but use the exact same processor power management data as 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro models released in late 2016. The plist files do not exist in previous macOS Sierra versions.
The next-generation MacBook Pro models would likely be powered by Intel's faster Kaby Lake processors, which are the natural successor to Skylake processors used in late 2016 models. This would be in line with a report from six weeks ago claiming the MacBook Pro will receive only minor bumps in processing power for 2017.
Mac-B4831CEBD52A0C4C would likely be for two new 13-inch MacBook Pro models with function keys. The models would likely have Kaby Lake processors with a maximum Turbo Boost of 3400 MHz and 4000 MHz respectively.
Mac-CAD6701F7CEA0921 would likely be for three new 13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar models. These notebooks would likely have Kaby Lake processors with a maximum Turbo Boost of 3500/3700 MHz and 4000 MHz respectively.
Mac-551B86E5744E2388 would likely be for three new 15-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar models. These notebooks would likely have Kaby Lake processors with a maximum Turbo Boost of 3800/3900 MHz and 4100 MHz respectively.
The blog said it checked the performance bias setting of each motherboard and determined that they are unlikely to be for desktop models such as the iMac and Mac Pro. There is also no GPU data as of yet.
The blog cross-referenced Intel's lineup of Kaby Lake processors currently available with the motherboard identifiers and was able to determine which chips are likely to be used in each new MacBook Pro:
13-inch MacBook Pro without Touch Bar
Intel Core i5-6360U 2.0 GHz (max Turbo Boost 3.1 GHz) with Intel® Iris™ Graphics 540 (15W) Will be replaced by the: Intel Core i5-7260U 2.2GHz (max Turbo Boost 3.4 GHz) with Intel® Iris™ Plus Graphics 640 (15W)
Intel Core i7-6660U 2.4 GHz (max Turbo Boost 3.4 GHz) with Intel® Iris™ Graphics 540 (15W) Will be replaced by the: Intel Core i7-7660U 2.5 GHz (max Turbo Boost 4.0 GHz) with Intel® Iris™ Plus Graphics 640 (15W)
13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar
Intel Core i5-6267U 2.9 GHz (max Turbo Boost 3.3 GHz) with Intel® Iris™ Graphics 550 (28W) Will be replaced by the: Intel Core i5-7267U 3.1 GHz (max Turbo Boost 3.5 GHz) with Intel® Iris™ Plus Graphics 650 (28W)
Intel Core i5-6287U 3.1 GHz (max Turbo Boost 3.5 GHz) with Intel® Iris™ Graphics 550 (28W) Will be replaced by the: Intel Core i5-7287U 3.3 GHz (max Turbo Boost 3.7 GHz) with Intel® Iris™ Plus Graphics 650 (28W)
Intel Core i7-6567U 3.3 GHz (max Turbo Boost 3.6 GHz) with Intel® Iris™ Graphics 550 (28W) Will be replaced by the: Intel Core i7-7567U 3.5 GHz (max Turbo Boost 4.0 GHz) with Intel® Iris™ Plus Graphics 650 (28W)
15-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar
Intel Core i7-6700HQ 2.6 GHz (max Turbo Boost 3.5 GHz) with Intel® HD Graphics 530 (45W) Will be replaced by the: Intel Core i7-7700HQ 2.8 GHz (max Turbo Boost 3.8 GHz) with Intel® HD Graphics 630 (45W)
Intel Core i7-6820HQ 2.7 GHz (max Turbo Boost 3.6 GHz) with Intel® HD Graphics 530 (45W) Will be replaced by the: Intel Core i7-7820HQ 2.9 GHz (max Turbo Boost 3.9 GHz) with Intel® HD Graphics 630 (45W)
Intel Core i7-6920HQ 2.9 GHz (max Turbo Boost 3.8 GHz) with Intel® HD Graphics 530 (45W) Will be replaced by the: Intel Core i7-7920HQ 3.1 GHz (max Turbo Boost 4.1 GHz) with Intel® HD Graphics 630 (45W)
Apple seeded the first beta of macOS 10.12.4 to developers on January 24, and additional betas should follow. It is highly unlikely Apple will launch new MacBook Pros until the software update is officially released at the earliest, which should happen by late February or early March based on previous releases.
Apple could feasibly launch next-generation MacBook Pro models at any point following the release of macOS 10.2.4, but its late 2016 models are still rather new. WWDC 2017 in June is likely the earliest possibility for a refresh, but previous rumors also point towards a launch in the second half of 2017 or later.
Last month, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said new Kaby Lake-equipped MacBook Pros will enter mass production in the July quarter. He also mentioned a "15-inch MacBook" that will include 32GB of RAM and enter mass production in the early fourth quarter, which starts in September.
BeatsX Earphones will launch this Friday, February 10, with Beats By Dre announcing the official date this morning on Twitter. Yesterday, rumors of an imminent launch of BeatsX began circulating following increased activity on Apple's and Best Buy's online listings for the earphones.
In December, Apple updated its BeatsX listing with a vague February launch window, but up until today we had yet to receive a more solid day on which the earphones would launch. In addition to the confirmed launch date, CNET has also reported that two additional colors of BeatsX are coming after launch: gray and blue. When they debut, users will be able to choose from white or black.
Yesterday, February 10 was a date pinned by French reseller Fnac, while other resellers -- like Fry's Electronics -- looked towards a launch later in the month, on February 20. BeatsX include Apple's custom W1 chip for fast device connecting via Bluetooth, enabling users to pair them by simply powering them on and holding them near an iPhone. The major difference with Apple's AirPods is the flex-form cable that connects each BeatsX bud to one another.
YouTube today announced that its new mobile live streaming feature is officially launching to all content creators with 10,000 or more subscribers on their channel, while promising that the rest of YouTube viewers "will have it soon." YouTube has supported live streaming on its website since 2011, but it began a very small beta test of mobile live streaming on iOS devices last summer.
To begin live streaming, creators will only have to open the YouTube app, tap the "capture" button, and their broadcast will be sent out to their subscribers so they can tune in. After a stream ends, former live videos will be indexed alongside traditional YouTube videos, able to be searched for, added to playlists, and protected from unauthorized use. The company implemented a few pieces of creator feedback discovered during the beta, including slowing down live chat and ensuring solid streaming quality on every device.
Our mobile live streaming uses YouTube’s rock-solid infrastructure, meaning it’ll be fast and reliable, just the YouTube you know and love. And we’ve been working hand-in-hand with hundreds of creators to refine the mobile streaming experience while they stream from a boat or take live calls from their fans.
On the monetization side of things, creators will be able to earn money through broadcasts thanks to "Super Chat," which lets viewers "stand out from the crowd and get a creator's attention" through the purchase of chat messages and bubbles that are highlighted in bright colors and remain pinned at the top of the live chat for upwards of five hours. Super Chat will be available for creators in more than 20 countries and viewers in more than 40 countries.
Super Chat gives viewers a chance to add a little visual flair to their chats and gives creators a new way to keep connected to their fans while earning a little money on the side, let’s say for example, while shopping at Target or playing video games :)
YouTube is entering the mobile live streaming video market in a crowded field, following companies like Facebook and Twitter, which each have ways for every user to stream from their smartphone. YouTube's angle on creator-only streaming may help it stand out, and the company has yet to give a hint as to when the rest of its users will be able to stream on mobile.
With a HomeKit-enabled Lutron Connect Bridge, part of the systems, homeowners will be able to to control their lights, window shades and blinds, motion sensors, and more using Apple's new Home app or Siri voice commands on iPhone and iPad. For example, users can ask Siri if the lights are on in the house, and if so, to turn them off.
Lutron's HomeWorks QS and GRAFIK RA 2 systems are available from authorized dealers throughout Europe.
Even though Jawbone has confirmed that it's leaving the consumer wearables market to focus on clinical health products, the company has doubled down on its legal battle with former rival Fitbit, concerning the latter company's alleged theft of trade secrets (via TechCrunch).
The U.S. International Trade Commission has already let Fitbit off the hook for the original claims, but Jawbone is now arguing that the agency only looked at a "limited number of allegations against Fitbit." To back up its argument that the issue remains unresolved, Jawbone referenced in a court filing this month that Fitbit is under investigation by a criminal grand jury concerning the trade secret theft, believing "the issue of what was stolen and by whom remains unresolved."
As of this week, the Justice Department and Department of Homeland Security have been conducting a grand jury probe into Fitbit for five months. Fitbit said that it's cooperating with the investigation "to demonstrate, once again, that these allegations are without merit," with a hearing set for February 15 amid the hopes that the case will finally be dismissed.
The battle between the two companies goes back to 2015, when Jawbone claimed that Fitbit hired five Jawbone employees, who in turn brought with them more than 350,000 secret Jawbone files. According to the original lawsuit, Jawbone said "the files included information about materials, sensors and detailed breakdowns of its costs and profit margins."
Fitbit said that once the files were discovered on a cloud-based backup service of a former Jawbone employee, they were immediately turned over to Jawbone. Ultimately, Fitbit argued that Jawbone's new investigation is built on the exact same "fictional allegations" already cleared by the ITC.
The criminal investigation “is based on the almost identical fictional allegations that were fully rejected by the International Trade Commission after a nine-day trial on the merits and that Jawbone falsely asserted on the eve of Fitbit’s IPO,” Fitbit said in Monday’s statement. “Jawbone is now attempting to exert leverage against Fitbit in civil litigation pending in the California state court.”
Fitbit had a case against Jawbone of its own that it dropped last December because "there was no need to pursue the case" when Jawbone was no longer making and selling the products at issue in the lawsuit. Fitbit also cited Jawbone's financial trouble as a reason to end the lengthy court battle. Jawbone said Fitbit's decision to back out was a "misdirection" on Fitbit's part.
Reuters on Tuesday published a revealing insider report on the Steve Jobs-approved design and ongoing construction of Apple's new "spaceship" campus in Cupertino, California, which is expected to be finished this spring.
The write-up draws from interviews with nearly two dozen current and former workers involved in the $5 billion project, and focuses on the "fanatical" attention to detail demanded by Apple managers throughout the development which is said to have delayed the original 2016 completion date.
According to the report, Apple's in-house construction team enforced many strict rules. For instance, no vents or pipes could be reflected in the surrounding structures, despite the fact that the campus features the world's largest single pane of curved glass.
In another example of the stringent demands that construction workers were subject to, the guidelines for the special wood used throughout the building is said to have run to some 30 pages.
Tolerances, the distance materials may deviate from desired measurements, were a particular focus. On many projects, the standard is 1/8 of an inch at best; Apple often demanded far less, even for hidden surfaces.
The company's keen design sense enhanced the project, but its expectations sometimes clashed with construction realities, a former architect said.
"With phones, you can build to very, very minute tolerances," he said. "You would never design to that level of tolerance on a building. Your doors would jam."
According to architect German de la Torre, who worked on the project, many of the building's proportions were directly inspired by Apple products, from the curve of a rounded corner, to the elevator buttons, which struck some workers as resembling the iPhone's home button.
One of the most vexing features was the doorways, which Apple wanted to be perfectly flat, with no threshold. The construction team pushed back, but Apple held firm.
The rationale? If engineers had to adjust their gait while entering the building, they risked distraction from their work, according to a former construction manager.
"We spent months trying not to do that because that's time, money and stuff that's never been done before," the former construction manager said.
This obsession with minute features is said to have set back other parts of the project. For example, Apple wanted all the building's signage to reflect a sleek minimal aesthetic, but the emergency services' overriding concern was to ensure the property could be easily navigated if they were called to an incident. Discussions on the topic are said to have extended to 15 meetings with fire department representatives.
The article ends with an anecdote about the back and forth between construction workers and Apple managers over the design of a door handle for offices and meeting rooms. Discussions apparently went on for a year and a half – the door handle is reportedly still unfinished to this day.
Amazon has announced it is extending third-party support for its Alexa Voice Service (AVS) internationally, with rollout beginning today across the U.K. and Germany (via TechCrunch).
First launched in the U.S. in 2015, AVS is the voice-interaction software that powers the company's Echo family of smart speakers as well as a range of supporting third-party smart home connected devices, such as thermostats, lamps, fans, wall switches, and more.
The support will mean owners of supported devices can voice-interact with additional services, such as TuneIn Radio and local Skills – Amazon's other API that lets developers build bespoke services to work with Alexa – although users should note that some services like iHeartRadio and Kindle currently only work in the U.S.
The expansion of AVS into Germany and the U.K. follows the launch of the Echo and Echo Dot in those countries last year. Amazon has yet to expand its Alexa-powered range to other markets outside the U.S., but with plans to shift 10 million units in 2017, the company is expected to speed up rollout soon.
Amazon's simple certification process has led to over 250 smart home products being certified to work with Alexa. By contrast, Apple has certified approximately 100 devices to support its HomeKit platform. Alexa-enabled devices also enjoyed strong holiday sales, with an estimated 10 million units already sold.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit today ruled that a lower district court must decide whether a damages retrial is required in the long running legal battle between Apple and Samsung, reports 
Ever since the original MacBook Pro, Apple has identified the notebooks based on the time of year in which they were released.
John Solomon, Apple's vice president for enterprise and government, left the company recently, Apple confirmed to 
