After a closed beta earlier in the month, Microsoft today has launched its Word Flow Windows Phone keyboard in the United States iOS App Store for free. As expected, the iOS version of the app comes with a handful of themes for users to customize the keyboard with, along with the ability to speed up one-handed texting with its unique "Arc mode."
Word Flow keyboard's "Light" theme
Arc mode bends the keyboard into a circular shape, hugging whichever side of the iPhone a user's dominant hand will be typing on, allowing for more efficient one-handed typing than a traditional iOS keyboard. Its default interface doesn't differ from other third-party keyboards, letting users switch between tapping and swiping on the fly to enter text.
As with Apple's included keyboard, Word Flow has a predictive text feature, and users can even turn on a word learning option that will bolster the app's predictive capabilities for each user by sending keyboard information to Microsoft. Elsewhere in the app, users will also be able to upload their own pictures as customized keyboard themes, and even track their typing speed once Word Flow is granted full access in Settings.
Word Flow keyboard with a custom image theme
Anyone who wants to check Word Flow out can download it from the App Store for free [Direct Link], although it is currently limited to United States users only.
The CEO of Chinese conglomerate LeEco has called Apple's product design "outdated" and "obsolete" in an international TV interview, following the company's unveiling of its first self-driving supercar in Beijing last week (via CNBC).
Jia Yueting is both CEO and chairman of LeEco (formerly LeTV), often referred to as the "Netflix of China", but which has a product range that spans smartphones, TVs, mountain bikes, and now electric vehicles. The 43-year-old entrepreneur began his career as a tech support worker before building his own IT and mobile company, estimated to be worth around $4.8 billion. The Chinese media company is also a strategic partner with US-based electric vehicle company Faraday Future (FF).
LeEco CEO Jia Yueting (Image: Imaginechina)
The company's smart LeSEE supercar was unveiled with much fanfare at a Beijing event last week. The self-driving car has a steering wheel that folds away and screens that offer up in-car entertainment for passengers. LeEco aims to outdo Tesla's Model S with its supercar, and also aims to bring LeSEE owners into its ecosystem by supplying them with in-car movies, TV shows, and music.
Jia spoke at a meeting of the China Entrepreneur Club, an exclusive summit of business leaders, where he explained why competition in the Chinese market from the likes of Apple did not worry him.
"We think the difference between us and Apple is very large. Apple is a mobile phone company focused on hardware and software," Jia said. "LeShi [another name for LeEco] is focused on the internet first, and only then on software, and finally on hardware."
The LeEco LeSEE concept electric sedan. (Image: LeEco)
Apple only has individual apps. This was the right choice during the first generation of mobile net, when CPUs and the mobile network speeds were not fast enough. However now we're moving into the next era of mobile internet, these problems no longer exist. Moreover, having separate apps just means great obstacles in the user experience. We hope to break down these obstacles.
One of the most important reasons [for slowing sales] is that Apple's innovation has become extremely slow. For example, a month ago Apple launched the iPhone SE. From an industry insider's perspective, this is a product with a very low level of technology. We think this is something they just shouldn't have done.
As an industry leader, Apple should be developing more cutting-edge products. The iPhone was still a leader five years ago after being launched in 2008 but now the concept has fallen behind.
We believe the next generation of mobile internet will be more open, more ecosystem oriented instead of being a closed loop. Ironically, Apple's over-dominance, lack of internet-thinking and the closed off nature of its systems, all hindered innovation in the internet mobile industry.
Interior of the LeEco LeSEE concept electric sedan. (Image: LeEco)
Apple is expected to report a fall in smartphone sales when it announces second fiscal quarter (first calendar quarter) earnings tomorrow. During its Q4 results announcement in January, CEO Tim Cook noted "some signs of economic softness", but said Apple remained "very bullish on China" given the low penetration of high-speed mobile data usage and the growing middle class.
Apple Car rumors have gained momentum since early last year, when The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple has hundreds of employees working to develop an electric vehicle under the codename "Project Titan." The bulk of research and development may be taking place in secretive buildings in Sunnyvale, California, where late night "motor noises" have been heard in recent months, while one report claimed that Apple may have a facility in Berlin, too.
Bloomberg has been granted an exclusive look inside a Chinese iPhone manufacturing plant where Apple claimed it has addressed cases of excessive overtime.
Pegatron Corp.'s sprawling facility on the outskirts of Shanghai covers an area equal to 90 football fields and employs some 50,000 people in the iPhone assembly process.
After accusations that employees were forced to work long, grueling hours there, Pegatron and Apple adopted new procedures to keep iPhone assemblers from amassing excessive overtime. By granting a western journalist access to the facility for the first time, both companies appear eager to show how the system works.
In the center of the Pegatron campus is a plaza with a firehouse, police station, and post office. Dotted about are shuttle buses, mega-cafeterias, landscaped lawns, and koi ponds. The grey and brown-hued concrete buildings are meant to evoke traditional Chinese architecture, but the scenes inside them are anything but traditional.
The men and women stare into face scanners and swipe badges at security turnstiles to clock in. The strict ID checks are there to make sure they don't work excessive overtime. The process takes less than two seconds.
After passing through metal detectors to sniff out camera-equipped devices that could be used to leak pictures of unreleased new products, the workers follow arrows on the floor and inspirational posters on the wall. They climb up a stairwell with safety netting draped across the middle, to prevent accidents—or suicide attempts. At a bank of lockers, they don blue hairnets and swap their shoes for clean plastic slip-on slippers. At 9:20 a.m., the 320-worker production unit lines up with military precision in four rows for their roll call.
"Good morning!" they shout in unison under the watchful gaze of the Mayor, who is joined by shift supervisors holding iPads jerry-rigged with black tape. They scan in the workers. Six minutes later, they're on the production floor, assembling smartphones moving past on conveyor belts.
To address accusations of excessive overtime Pegatron adopted the ID system, with badges linked to a database that tracks time, wages and even expenditures on dorm fees and lunch. The Taiwanese company claims the arrangement has helped to push compliance with overtime regulations to almost 100 percent, with only a handful of exceptions stemming from engineers working on emergency repairs.
However, Li Qiang, executive director at labor rights group China Labor Watch (CLW), claims that the ID checks are just for show, "otherwise there wouldn't be so many cases with hundreds of workers putting in excessive overtime hours." CLW claims that base pay remains so low that workers need overtime simply to make ends meet. It said 1,261 pay stubs from Pegatron’s Shanghai facility from September and October 2015 show evidence of excessive overtime.
Pegatron said the group miscounted because that period straddled state holidays, when pay was triple the normal rate. Apple and Pegatron said they were never contacted by CLW, which said it approached Apple but didn't get a response. Since March, the group claims to have collected an additional 441 pay stubs that point to continued excessive overtime. Pegatron said it adheres to the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition's guidelines that cap overtime at roughly 80 hours a month.
In 2013, Pegatron came under fire from CLW after the death of five young workers at its Shanghai facilities, including the passing of a 15-year-old factory worker due to pneumonia-related causes. The boy was able to secure a job at a Pegatron factory by presenting a fake ID stating that he was 20. Apple sent a medical team to the Pegatron facility and determined that the worker's death was not related to working conditions.
The same year, CLW alleged numerous safety and workplace violations at Pegatron, including the unethical holding of worker pay and identification cards, as well as poor living conditions within the factory including tight living quarters and packed cafeterias. Apple replied to the allegations, confirming various labor violations and vowing to investigate the incident.
"The fact they let a reporter in shows that they are responding to external pressure and trying to be more transparent – at least on the surface they're trying to fix something," said Jenny Chan, a lecturer at Oxford's Kellogg College. "But they're still not telling us more about how they run the business, the whole labor system."
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.
After a world premiere on HBO last night, Beyoncé's newest album "Lemonade" launched on Jay Z's music streaming service Tidal, with a period of timed exclusivity not divulged by the service. According to sources knowledgeable of the launch plans for Lemonade, that exclusivity window might be just 24 hours, with the album's release on services including iTunes, Amazon, and Google Play expected to hit Sunday night at midnight (via The New York Times).
Earlier today, Tidal announced that fans would be able to purchase Lemonade outright for $17.99 without having to subscribe to the service if they weren't already paying users. The $17.99 "visual album" includes 12 songs and videos, including the one-hour special that debuted on HBO Saturday night. The album's download cost on rival services will most likely be around the same amount.
Even though its download exclusivity will be quite short, Lemonade will remain a streaming exclusive on Tidal "in perpetuity," according to an official representative at Tidal. The unnamed source officially confirmed to Billboard today that "the service will be the only streamer that will carry Lemonade."
Tidal has had a few albums exclusively tied to the service that eventually went on to debut on platforms like Apple Music and Spotify. Most recently, Kanye West famously tweeted that his new album "The Life of Pablo" would "never never never" come to Apple Music or iTunes, which it did about two months later. The move has even put West and Jay Z in hot water with their fans, one of whom is suing the artists and Tidal itself, claiming that they had a plan to "fraudulently induce millions of American consumers into paying for Tidal's rescue," using a false exclusivity window for The Life of Pablo as a ploy to bring new users into the fold.
Update: Lemonade is officially available for users to purchase for $17.99 from the iTunes store [Direct Link].
Apple's global iPhone shipments will fall short of analysts' consensus estimates of 210 to 230 million units in the 2016 fiscal year, according to a new research note issued by respected KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. In a worst case scenario, iPhone shipments in 2016 are expected to reach just 190 million units, which is an 18% reduction in shipment growth and 3 million fewer iPhones than Apple sold in 2014.
Even in a best case scenario, said Kuo, Apple is expected to sell 205 million units, 5 million short of the lower end of analysts' estimate range and amounting to a 11.6% reduction in growth. Regardless of the best or worst case scenario, Kuo predicts Apple will underperform the industry and become the only global top-five smartphone brand to see shipments decline in 2016.
Mockup of iPhone 7 case.
The analyst described slowing market demand for large-screen handset replacements and limited iPhone 7 selling points as key factors behind the expected decline, noting that the contribution of revised-up iPhone SE shipments in the 2016 fiscal year will remain "insignificant".
Given the fact that shipments fell YoY for the first time in 1Q16, we don't think large-screen replacement demand will contribute much to growth. To sustain growth, the iPhone needs to come up with more innovative features to revitalize the user experience, for example in form factor design, software and hardware specs. We don't see many attractive selling points for iPhone 7 in 2H16 and are conservative on 2H16F shipments. While we revise up 2016F iPhone SE shipments from 12mn to 18mn units, this won't offset overall iPhone shipments decline.
Kuo's note predicts that out of Samsung, Apple, Huawei, Oppo, and Vivo, only Apple will see shipments fall year-on-year, which suggests to KGI Securities that the decline in iPhone sales can't be solely blamed on industry structure.
"While we believe the high-end smartphone market still has room for growth, the development of a newer, more innovative user experience is a prerequisite for growth," said Kuo. "We believe only iPhone will see shipments fall YoY in 2016, for three reasons: (1) intensification of market competition; (2) time needed for commercialization of new user experience technologies; and (3) iPhone needs a makeover (e.g. form factor design) to keep attracting consumers."
As far as a handset makeover is concerned, rumors indicate the iPhone 7 will share a design similar to the iPhone 6s, but may be slightly thinner, perhaps through the removal of the 3.5mm headphone jack and the implementation of a thinner Lightning port. Antenna bands across the back of the device may be removed, but are expected to remain at the top, bottom, and sides of the iPhone, while the rear camera may be flush with the case.
Other rumors suggest Apple may be planning to introduce two versions of the iPhone 7 Plus – one with a single lens and a second with a dual-lens camera system that offers DSLR-like image quality with 2-3x optical zoom and improved performance in low light conditions. Whatever form the iPhone 7 takes, Apple will be hopeful of exciting consumers in ways that perhaps the iPhone SE could not, as the company strives to overcome what some commentators have called "peak iPhone".
Apple's earnings announcement for the second fiscal quarter (first calendar quarter) of 2016 takes place on Tuesday, April 26, and will provide a look at sales of the iPhone 6s, 6s Plus, and SE following Apple's record first quarter, which saw the company announce 74.8 million iPhone sales and $18.4 billion profit on $75.9 billion in revenue.
Apple has warned that iPhone sales will decline in the March quarter and has provided Q2 2016 guidance of $50 to $53 billion in revenue and gross margin between 39 and 39.5 percent. Should Apple only take in $50 to $53 billion, the company will see its first year-over-year revenue drop in 13 years.
The U.S. Justice Department dropped its fight to get Apple to help it unlock an iPhone in a New York drug case after someone provided the device's passcode to authorities. In a letter to the judge, obtained by BuzzFeed News, prosecutors explained they no longer needed Apple's assistance.
The government respectfully submits this letter to update the Court and the parties. Yesterday evening, an individual provided the passcode to the iPhone at issue in this case. Late last night, the government used that passcode by hand and gained access to the iPhone. Accordingly, the government no longer needs Apple's assistance to unlock the iPhone, and withdraws its application.
In a statement, also procured by BuzzFeed News, Justice Department spokeswoman Emily Pierce said the case was never about setting a precedent, but instead about law enforcement's "ability and need to access evidence on devices pursuant to lawful court orders and search warrants." Pierce said that now that they have access to the data they wanted they no longer need any help.
Last week, Apple filed a refusal to help the Department of Justice unlock the phone at the center of the New York case, claiming that the government had not yet exhausted all other means of getting the data. Apple argued that the government should have provided evidence it exhausted all other options before asking Apple for help. Additionally, Apple said the FBI did not adequately demonstrate that the method it used to unlock San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook's iPhone would not work on the iPhone in the New York case.
In late February, U.S. Magistrate Judge James Ornstein ruled that the FBI lacked the legal authority to order Apple to hack the New York iPhone. The U.S. Justice Department filed an appeal in March, and Apple responded with a denial last week.
The New York case dates back to October 2015, with the FBI seeking to access data from an iPhone 5s belonging to Brooklyn drug dealer Jun Feng. Although the FBI used "hackers" to access Syed Farook's iPhone 5c, FBI Director James Comey says the method does not work on the iPhone 5s or later. Feng's iPhone 5s is running iOS 7, which Apple does have the means to access, but the company is refusing to do after taking a harder stance on customer privacy and encryption.
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 ticket lottery for Apple's 2016 Worldwide Developers Conference ended this morning at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time, and it appears that some developers who have won tickets are seeing charges on their credit cards. Several MacRumors readers have had their cards charged, and there are reports of charges on Twitter.
Apple has said developers who win the ticket lottery will be notified by Monday, April 25 at 5:00 p.m. PDT, so some confirmation emails may not be sent until that time.
Apple's ticket lottery started on Monday, April 18, giving all developers a chance to enter to win an opportunity to purchase a ticket for $1,599. For the last several years, Apple has distributed tickets via a lottery system as interest in the Worldwide Developers Conference far exceeds capacity.
350 WWDC scholarships are being provided to students and members of participating STEM organizations, and in 2016, Apple is also offering 125 scholarships to aspiring developers with financial limitations.
The 2016 Worldwide Developers Conference will take place on June 13 to 17 at Moscone West, but the keynote event will be held at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, a venue able to accommodate more guests. Apple is expected to announce new versions of iOS, OS X, watchOS, and tvOS at the keynote.
Throughout the rest of the week, developers will be able to interface with more than 1,500 Apple engineers and attend more than 100 technical sessions and hands-on labs. Developers who do not win a ticket will be able to watch live streams of WWDC sessions that will cover a range of topics from the iPhone and iPad to the Apple Watch and Apple TV.
Apple today informed developers that starting on June 1, 2016, all watchOS apps submitted to the App Store must be native apps built with the watchOS 2 SDK or later.
When the Apple Watch first launched, watchOS apps were reliant on the iPhone to run on the Apple Watch, but with watchOS 2, Apple introduced support for native apps. With native app support, developers can build apps that are able to run on the Apple Watch, allowing apps to open more quickly and work more smoothly.
Apple's June 1 deadline for native apps hits two weeks before the company's Worldwide Developers Conference, where it is expected to show off new versions of iOS, OS X, watchOS, and tvOS.
MacHeist today launched its latest software bundle, offering consumers the chance to purchase several popular indie games at a discounted price. The Awesomest Mac + Windows Indie Games Extravaganza features 9 games that are compatible with both Mac and Windows Machines.
The first three games in the list below are unlocked with a payment of as little as $1, while the full list of games can be unlocked with a payment of $20. Indie Game: The Movie is also included.
The last two games, Fez and Prison Architect, will be unlocked for all purchasers when once certain sales targets are met.
The bundle can be purchased from the MacHeist website for the next 10 days. MacHeist is also giving away prizes and other free software titles (Defend Your Life, A Bird Story, and Cloud Knights) through a mini adventure game on the website. 10% of each bundle purchased will be donated to charity, with each person who purchases a bundle able to pick the charity of their choice.
As work on its car project progresses, Apple has been snapping up a huge number of employees with expertise in the automotive industry from companies like Tesla, Ford, GM, Volkswagen, Bosch, and more, along with researchers who have expertise in autonomous vehicles and electric car platforms.
Each of these hires gives us a glimpse into the ideas Apple is potentially exploring for its Apple Car, and a set of recent hires suggests Apple is hard at work prototyping car parts designed for the project as research continues.
Former Tesla employee David Masiukiewicz recently left Tesla to join Apple, reports 9to5Mac. At Tesla, Masiukiewicz was a Senior CNC programmer who worked on hardware prototyping, and at Apple, he's listed as a "Senior Model Maker" in the "Product Realization Lab" where Apple prototypes new parts and designs for the Mac, iPhone, and iPad. His job description gives hints as to what he produced for Tesla:
Precision 5 axis CNC machining of powertrain, suspension and chasis components using CATIA v5 and Openmind hyperMILL software. Programming of Mill/Turn equipment using Esprit.
In response to a question about why he left Tesla for Apple on one of his social media sites, Masiukiewicz declined to give details but said "Apple provided me with many compelling reasons to come work for them."
Kevin Harvey, who joined Apple last year after working in the CNC machine shop at Andretti Autosport, is also working in the Product Realization Lab. Neither Harvey nor Masiukiewicz are confirmed to be working on Apple's car project, but given their previous expertise, it's highly likely their roles at Apple are car related rather than focused on prototyping future iPhones and iPads.
Today's hiring news comes following a report earlier this week suggesting former Tesla vice president Chris Porritt has left the company to join Apple, perhaps for a key role developing the Apple Car.
Best Buy is currently offering users a hefty discount of $200 off of two models of the Stainless Steel Apple Watch, available now through Monday on the retailer's website. Those interested can purchase a 38mm and 42mm Apple Watch with Milanese Loop for $449.00 and $499.00, respectively. The Black Sport Band with Space Black Stainless Steel case has also received a similar discount, with the 38mm option on sale for $349.00 and the 42mm available for $399.00.
The prices will run all weekend on Best Buy's official website, but similar sales will be available in stores, pending stock availability. Best Buy hasn't included any other editions or collections of the Apple Watch in this weekend's deal, but it does lower the barrier for entry into the Stainless Steel version of the wearable for those who have been contemplating upgrading from a Sport, or buying one for the first time.
The 4-day sale isn't focused on Apple Watch, however, with various other Apple products getting a nice discount from Best Buy. The retailer is cutting the price of a few 13-inch MacBook Pro models by $225: the non-Retina MBP (with 4GB memory and a 500GB HD) is on sale for $874.99, while the Retina MBP (with 8GB memory and 128GB flash storage) has been cut down to $1,074.99. The model with 16GB is not part of the 4-day sale.
On the iPad side of things, Best Buy is offering $70 off of the non-cellular versions of the iPad mini 2. Users can get the 7.9-inch display tablet with 16GB of storage in either Space Gray or Silver for $199.99. The sales event caps off its Apple deals with the 4GB MacBook Air for $749.99 (11-inch screen) and $849.99 (13-inch screen).
Anyone looking for more Apple deals can check out the MacRumors roundup for deals going on this week, and on specific products like iMacs, third-party accessories, and even iOS and Mac apps.
Apple has shared a new television ad called "Siri and Liam" to celebrate Earth Day, which is today, April 22. In the 15-second spot, Siri asks Apple's recycling robot Liam what he is doing for Earth Day, before it humorously takes apart the iPhone. It is Apple's second Earth Day ad, the other being "Renewable Energy," shared in the past 24 hours, and continues the company's environmental push this month.
Apple first introduced Liam at its "Let Us Loop You In" media event in March as a robot that can disassemble old iPhones and recover recyclable materials. The robot can deconstruct nearly all parts of the iPhone in order to rescue cobalt and lithium from the battery, separate gold and copper from the camera, extract silver and platinum from the main logic board, and more.
Rumors surrounding this year's iPhone 7 have focused on its removal of the 3.5mm headphone jack, and its 2017 successor has even been the center of a fewreports, but this week Barclays analyst Mark Moskowitz has speculated Apple will skip its traditional "S" upgrade cycle next year altogether. Citing industry sources, Moskowitz says the Cupertino company won't debut a spec-bumped, internally upgraded "iPhone 7s" in 2017, but a completely overhauled "iPhone 8" with "major design changes" and new, next-generation features like wireless charging.
The "mega cycle" upgrade could increase iPhone sales by 10.3 percent, according to the analyst, adding that in addition to wireless charging the iPhone 8 could pack an OLED display, a completely altered form factor, and no home button. Previous reports have suggested Apple is working with suppliers to begin manufacturing OLED panels in 2017 for its iPhone lineup, as well as develop an in-house single-chip solution to integrate its touchscreen and display drivers, allowing for a Touch ID-enabled screen and negating the need for a separate home button.
A mockup of the iPhone 7
Silver lining - there might be no "S" cycle in C2017. Our conversations with industry participants suggest Apple could skip the "S" cycle next year and instead jump to IP8. The jump could showcase major form factor changes, including OLED, no home button, and wireless charging. In our view, these potential changes could drive a mega cycle, underpinning our C2017 iPhone unit growth estimate of 10.3%, vs. 6.3% previously.
Moskowitz's speculation is in line with rumors that have appeared so far, suggesting the iPhone 7 won't have "any must-have form factor changes," and will include only a few internal tweaks and component upgrades paired with a flagship feature or two such as a dual-lens camera on some models. The company's historic cycle would traditionally see this year as a major iPhone upgrade following 2015's iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus launch, but changes rumored so far have been modest.
As a result, the analyst believes Apple will sell 1.8 percent fewer iPhones this year than it did last year, given users' contentment with their current devices and the rumored modest updates in the iPhone 7. Other rumored updates to the iPhone 7 include redesigned antenna bands, the removal of the 3.5mm headphone jack, and possibly even a Smart Connector as seen on the iPad Pro.
The less-than-stellar sales for the 2016 iPhone could lead investors to fear for an iPhone market that is "nearing saturation," according to the analyst, but it would only set up 2017's uptick in sales for the redesigned iPhone 8. Some reports point to interesting new design overhauls for the 2017 iPhone as well -- including the switch from aluminum casing to glass -- but Moskowitz's previouspredictions haven't been entirely reliable, so his forecasts for the iPhone 7 and iPhone 8 should be taken with a grain of salt.
Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak has spoken out in favor of Apple and all other companies in the world paying the same 50% tax rate he does, calling anything less "unfair".
In an interview with the BBC published this morning, Wozniak, who left Apple in 1986, said that every company in the world should pay the same rate he pays as an individual. "I do a lot of work, I do a lot of travel and I pay over 50% of anything I make in taxes and I believe that's part of life and you should do it," he said.
Tax avoidance has been brought back into focus by the recent Panama Papers revelations, a huge leak of documents that lifted the lid on how the rich and powerful use tax havens to hide their wealth.
Asked about companies maximizing profit and the related issue of tax havens, Wozniak said he was personally never interested in making money, unlike his former partner, Steve Jobs. "Jobs started Apple Computers for money, that was his big thing and that was extremely important and critical and good," he said. "[But] we didn't think we'd be figuring out how to go off to the Bahamas and have special accounts like people do to try to hide their money."
"On the other hand," he continued, "any company that is a public company, its shareholders are going to force it to be as profitable as possible and that means financial people studying all the laws of the world and figuring out all the schemes that work that are technically legal. They're technically legal and it bothers me and I would not live my life that way."
Asked if he worried that Apple had moved so far away from its founding principles that it was now looking to actively pay less tax, Wozniak replied: "The company we founded in 1976 knew that we would be a worldwide company selling huge amounts of computers everywhere, and we just assumed we would pay taxes on it. And maybe the tax rates are different for a company than they are for a person, but that's something that bothers me to this day."
Apple is one of several multinational corporations that have been targeted for possible corporate tax avoidance in Europe. In September 2014, the European Commission formally accused it of receiving illegal state aid from Ireland, where it has reportedly paid a reduced tax rate of around 1.8% on its overseas profits.
In a March hearing at the European Parliament's tax committee, Apple claimed it was the "largest taxpayer in the world", in 2015 paying $13.2 billion in taxes worldwide at an effective tax rate of 36.4%.
Earlier this month, candidate for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination for the United States, Bernie Sanders, said he wished Apple would stop trying not to pay its fair share of taxes and move some of its manufacturing to the U.S.
Tim Cook has previously said that Apple pays all of the taxes that it owes. In a December interview with Charlie Rose, he said accusations Apple avoids taxes on revenue held overseas is "total political crap". "There is no truth behind it," he said. "Apple pays every tax dollar we owe."
A decision in the European Commission's probe of Apple's tax affairs in Ireland is unlikely to be reached soon, according to EU competition chief Margrethe Vestager, who told reporters querying its conclusion, "Don't hold your breath."
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.
Apple has released a brand new ad called "Renewable Energy," which takes place entirely within the Messages app. The ad is focused on explaining how 100% renewable energy at Apple's data centers enables users to send and enjoy iMessages to and from friends.
The ad argues that since the tech behind iMessages is renewable and environmentally friendly, users are showing Earth "some love" by using the service. The ad ends with Apple's green-stemmed Earth Day logo and arrives just in time for Earth Day, which is April 22.
In 2013, Apple announced that its data centers were using 100% renewable energy. Worldwide, 93% of Apple's facilities run on renewable energy. Its new headquarters, Apple Campus 2, will also run on 100% renewable energy.
Apple is celebrating Earth Day by updating its retail stores' logos with green accents and providing retail employees with green shirts. The company is also promoting stores that run on 100% renewable energy with new signage.
Last week, the iTunes Movies and iBooks stores mysteriously went down in China. A new New York Timesreport says the stores were forced down by the Chinese State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television.
Initially, Apple apparently had the government’s approval to introduce the services. But then a regulator, the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television, asserted its authority and demanded the closings, according to two people who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
An Apple spokeswoman said the company "hoped to make books and movies available again to our customers in China as soon as possible." The store closures come six months after they were launched alongside Apple Music in the country.
Compared to other tech companies, Apple has had success in launching new ventures in the China. Most recently, Apple launched Apple Pay in the country in partnership with UnionPay, China's state-run interbank network.
After the shutdown of the two stores, China's President Xi Jinping conducted a meeting on China's restrictive internet policies with Alibaba's Jack Ma, Huawei's Ren Zhengfei and other tech leaders in the country, according to The NYT. Daniel H. Rosen, a founding partner at Rhodium Group, a firm that specializes in the Chinese economy, tells The New York Times that China has an interest in promoting Chinese tech companies while attempting to reduce the impact of foreign tech giants like Apple in the country.
Apple is one of eight companies that China has targeted for being "too deeply established in the country's core industries" according to The New York Times. Other companies on China's list include IBM, Qualcomm and Microsoft. Earlier today it was reported that local Chinese handset makers like Huawei faced inventory losses and squeezed market share following the launch of the iPhone SE.
Apple has worked to grow its business in China, now its second biggest market, spending several years in negotiations with China Mobile, the country's largest carrier, to bring the iPhone to its 700 million customers. The two agreed to a deal in 2013. Tim Cook has also made several visits to the country, with Apple also planning to expand its retail efforts.
Last November, when asked whether Apple had run into censorship problems in China, Eddy Cue said that the company had a "great working relationship" with China and that the launch of Apple Music and the iTunes Movies and iBooks stores showed that Apple knew how to work in the country.
4/22 update: The Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post has linked the store closures to the release of controversial independent movie Ten Years, which won best picture prize at this month’s Hong Kong Film Awards, despite being banned in China. News of the store closures broke shortly before the movie became available on iTunes in Hong Kong. The dystopian film imagines Hong Kong in 2025 with language police, mini Red Guards, radical protest and social alienation rife.
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.
Apple today added banners to the iTunes and App Stores allowing customers to donate to the American Red Cross in support of people affected by the earthquakes that hit Ecuador and Japan last week.
Donations made through iTunes and the App Store can be placed using credit cards already on file with Apple, making the donation process simple. Customers are able to donate $5, $10, $25, $50, $100, or $200 to relief efforts. 100% of all donations made through iTunes will be given to the American Red Cross. [Direct Link to Donations]
48 people have died in Japan and thousands more were injured after magnitude 6.2 and 7.0 earthquakes hit southwest Japan on April 14 and 16, causing severe damage in the Kumamoto and Ōita prefectures. More than 140 aftershocks have also affected the region.
In Ecuador, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit approximately 110 miles from Quito on April 16, killing more than 500 people and injuring thousands more.
United States Federal Bureau of Investigations Director James Comey today gave some hints on how much the agency paid to access the iPhone of San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook, suggesting a sum upwards of $1.3 million.
According to Reuters, Comey said the FBI paid an amount exceeding what he will make in the next seven years and four months as director of the FBI. Comey's annual salary is at $183,300, and without raises or bonuses, will result in earnings of $1.34 million.
Speaking at the Aspen Security Forum in London, Comey was asked by a moderator how much the FBI paid for the software that eventually broke into the iPhone.
"A lot. More than I will make in the remainder of this job, which is seven years and four months for sure," Comey said. "But it was, in my view, worth it."
According to anonymous law enforcement officials, Farook's iPhone did not contain contacts or messages resulting in new leads in the investigation, but it did clarify that Farook did not make contact with a third-party following the attack, suggesting he and his wife did not have assistance from friends or family members.
The FBI reportedly paid the sum in question to "professional hackers," at least one of which is a "gray hat" researcher that sells security flaws to governments, black market groups, and companies creating surveillance tools.
The method used to gain entry to the iPhone 5c owned by Farook does not work on the iPhone 5s or newer, but the FBI can continue to use it to access iPhone 5c devices running iOS 9.
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.
Apple today 
