MacRumors

Bloomberg Businesweek reports that a survey of executive compensation at Standard & Poor's 500 companies for fiscal 2012 shows four Apple executives holding down the second, third, fourth, and fifth slots behind Oracle CEO Larry Ellison. The group of Apple executives, which does not include CEO Tim Cook, benefited from a massive stock grant shortly after the death of Steve Jobs, with the grants vesting in equal parts in 2013 and 2016 as incentives to keep the executives at the company.

Four of the five highest-paid employees at Standard & Poor’s 500 companies aren’t chief executive officers. They’re Apple Inc. senior lieutenants receiving compensation packages designed to keep management intact in an increasingly competitive industry.

The four executives are Bob Mansfield, Bruce Sewell, Jeffrey Williams and Peter Oppenheimer, according to fiscal 2012 compensation figures for top earners filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. About 80 percent of S&P 500 companies had submitted their numbers as of April 12.

The four Apple executives each received 150,000 shares as part of their grants, with the shares worth approximately $64 million each at today's stock price. Salary, bonuses, and other compensation pushed 2012 totals for Sewell, Williams, and Oppenheimer close to $70 million. Mansfield topped the group of Apple executives with total compensation of $85.5 million, as he received accelerated vesting of shares as an incentive to remain at Apple after he had announced his retirement.

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Two other Apple executives saw major stock grants in November 2011, with marketing chief Phil Schiller receiving the same 150,000 restricted stock units as the other senior executives and Internet Software and Service head Eddy Cue receiving 100,000 units just two months after receiving another 100,000 units in recognition of his promotion to the senior vice president level. Schiller and Cue were not, however, included in Bloomberg Businessweek's rankings, as their total compensation is not publicly reported by Apple.

Cook ranked 1016th on this year's list with total compensation of $4.17 million, although he is benefiting from a previous award of one million restricted stock units made when he became CEO. Those units are worth $425 million at today's stock price, with half of the units vesting in 2016 and the remaining half vesting in 2021.

Both The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg are reporting that Foxconn has begun hiring new workers in support of iPhone 5S production. The articles follow a separate report from The Wall Street Journal earlier this month claiming that production on the new iPhone would begin this quarter ahead of a potential summer launch.

From today's Wall Street Journal report:

A company spokesman declined to elaborate on production plans, only saying that Foxconn will continue to expand its workforce in Zhengzhou to meet seasonal demand from clients. But executives familiar with the situation said the company has stepped up hiring in Zhengzhou because it is preparing for production of the new iPhone.

"We have been very busy recently as we will start mass-producing the new iPhone soon," said a Zhengzhou-based executive who has direct knowledge of production plans.

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iPhone being prepared for final assembly (Source: Apple)

Bloomberg's source offered similar information on Foxconn's hiring push:

Workers have been recruited at Foxconn’s plant in Zhengzhou, eastern China, for the past month, ending a hiring freeze imposed in February, said the person, who asked not to be named because the plans haven’t been made public. The extra workers will assemble the new device as well as existing models and have been added at Apple’s request to boost capacity, the person said.

Apple has been rumored to be planning to introduce its next-generation iPhone as soon as the company's Worldwide Developers Conference, which has itself been rumored for its usual June timeframe.

Other reports have, however, been pushing their predictions of the iPhone 5S launch later in 2013, with relatively reliable KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo just last week having predicted that work on a fingerprint sensor would result in the iPhone 5S launching later than many observers have expected. Kuo declined to offer a specific target date for the iPhone 5S launch, but outlined three possible scenarios involving a launch taking place between September and November.

Related Forum: iPhone

suunto_n3_spot_watchWith rumors of an Apple smart watch ramping up over the past few months, a number of other companies have also reportedly been working on their own projects involving watches and other wearable devices. Last month, both Samsung and Google were reported to be working on their own projects, and now The Wall Street Journal indicates that Microsoft is also exploring the possibility of a smart watch.

Earlier this year, Microsoft asked suppliers in Asia to ship components for a potential watch-style device, the executives said. One executive said he met with Microsoft's research and development team at the software company's Redmond, Wash., headquarters. But it's unclear whether Microsoft will opt to move ahead with the watch, they said. [...]

For its potential new watch prototype, Microsoft has requested 1.5-inch displays from component makers, said an executive at a component supplier.

The report notes that this is not Microsoft's first foray into smart watch technology, with the company having launched its Smart Personal Objects Technology (SPOT) platform in 2004 through partnerships with watch companies such as Fossil and Suunto.

Those watches, which received data through Microsoft's MSN Direct FM radio-based service, were discontinued by 2008, but the idea of smart watches is experiencing a rebirth as companies look to make the experience of today's mobile devices even more "personal".

(Image: Suunto's n3 smart watch from 2004, based on Microsoft's SPOT technology)

AppleInsider is reporting that Apple has contacted app developers via its iTunes Connect program to ask them to localize their apps in multiple languages and to market that their apps and books are localized.

In the letter to iTunes Connect members, Apple noted that the App Store and Mac App Store are available in 155 countries with support for 40 languages, saying that "it has never been more important to localize your app and marketing material."

Apple also rolled out a Chinese Support Communities forum, which would give speakers of various Chinese languages the opportunity to help out fellow Apple users in their native tongues.

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The move signals how important China has grown to Apple in the past year, as during a quarterly results call in January Apple revealed that revenues in China were up 67 percent. iPhone saw its most significant growth come in the country as well, up more than 100 percent year-over-year.

Apple has recently had to deal with controversy in China over criticism about its iPhone warranty policies in the country. In response, Apple CEO Tim Cook issued an open letter and Apple Senior VP of Operations Jeff Williams traveled to China to deal with the public relations fallout.

NewImageIntuit Chairman Bill Campbell has been on Apple's Board of Directors since Steve Jobs took over as CEO in 1997. In a town hall meeting at Intuit headquarters, Campbell spoke with Intuit CEO Brad Smith about a number of topics including how to make a product great, what makes the best managers, and more.

Looking towards the future, Campbell didn't mention future Apple products specifically, but he did point to another new product -- Google Glass -- as a blueprint for the future. From Bloomberg Businessweek:

Campbell did tell the audience to expect to see "a lot of things going on with the application of technology to really intimate things." He pointed to Google Glass as one such intimate object. “It’s a phenomenal breakthrough,” he said. "When you start to think about glasses or watches, they become as intimate as the cell phone was."

Campbell also praised Tony Fadell's Nest thermostat, as well saying technology managers should act as "editors", mentioning Steve Jobs and Twitter cofounder Jack Dorsey specifically.

Apple is reported to be working on a smart watch, exactly the sort of "intimate" device that Campbell is referring to.

Pebble, the e-paper smart watch that earned more than $10 million on Kickstarter, now has an official public SDK available for iOS developers.

Your patience has been rewarded…you have a brand new Pebble Smartwatch in your hands. And, of course, now you want to make it do your bidding.

This developer documentation will show you how to create your own functionality for a Pebble Smartwatch.

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At this point in time the SDK is limited to creating different watch faces and does not support the creation of standard apps, though the Pebble website says that a Sports SDK will be added soon, allowing developers to incorporate Runkeeper-style features.

The new Watchface SDK comes alongside version 1.10 of PebbleOS, which also offers up options for disabling backlighting and vibrations along with several bug fixes for iOS users.

NewImageU.S. carrier Verizon has changed its phone upgrade policies, making customers wait longer between upgrades. Until now, customers with a two-year agreement could upgrade at 20 months.

Now, customers will only be able to upgrade at 24 months, when their contract is up. The first customers impacted by this change are those whose contracts expire in January 2014.

In alignment with the terms of the contract, customers on a two-year agreement will be eligible for an upgrade at 24 months vs. today's early upgrade eligibility at 20 months. This change aligns the upgrade date with the contract end date and is consistent with how the majority of customers purchase new phones today. The first customers impacted by this change are customers whose contracts expire in January 2014. As always, customers may purchase a new phone at the full retail price at any time.

Verizon's main competitor, AT&T, allows customers to upgrade after 20 months, with an "early upgrade" allowed at an earlier time with a larger initial payment. Sprint offers upgrades after 20 months as well.

T-Mobile recently rolled out its new "uncarrier" plans, allowing customers to buy an iPhone 5 for $100 down plus 24 monthly payments of $20. Customers can buy a new phone at any time, but they will still be responsible for the monthly payments on prior phone purchases.

iphone_5_lteTopeka analyst Brian White today issued a new research note summarizing his thoughts on the phone he calls the iPhone 5S, expected to be released this summer. Most notably, he seems to have reversed his prior assertion that the next iPhone will have multiple screen sizes, noting that at a trade show in China there was a consensus amongst his sources that the screen size will be unchanged from the iPhone 5.

He claims the left side volume and mute buttons will be arranged differently, in line with a parts leak from yesterday, and says the rumored fingerprint technology will be the differentiating feature for the 5S, like what Siri was to the 4S.

White also shares some additional thoughts about the rumored cheaper iPhone he expects this summer:

Strangely enough, the lower-priced iPhone is still being called the "iPhone mini"; however, the general consensus (albeit a few disagreed and expect a slightly smaller screen) was that this new device would actually have the same screen size (i.e., 4-inches) as the iPhone 5. However, the "iPhone mini" will have a curved back casing made of colored plastic and will be thicker than the iPhone 5. We also learned the pricing could be a bit higher than our recently raised expectation, reaching as high as $400.

The picture around this summer's iPhone releases should continue to come into focus as we see more hardware leaks and get closer to the expected launch.

Related Forum: iPhone

In line with its launch previously announced launch plans, T-Mobile USA today officially launched the iPhone, offering the iPhone 5 nationwide and the iPhone 4S and 4 in markets where the devices are supported on its network. The T-Mobile iPhone is also available through Apple's online store at full price with interest-free financing offered through Barclaycard.

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TechCrunch notes that some T-Mobile retail stores are seeing small lines this morning as customers seek to purchase the device using under T-Mobile's new "Uncarrier" service plans which begin at $50/month with no contract. The business model separates the device and service costs, putting the full unsubsidized device cost onto a separate 24-month payment plan.

As noted by TmoNews, T-Mobile has also rolled out a new television ad for the iPhone, touting the pairing of the popular device with T-Mobile's network and service plans.

It's the phone that's revolutionizing phones. Make sure it's running on the carrier that's revolutionizing wireless. Introducing iPhone 5 on T-Mobile. With our advanced nationwide 4G network, and no more restrictive annual contracts required, only T-Mobile lets your iPhone 5 be as great as an iPhone 5.

Related Forum: iPhone

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Multiple users have emailed MacRumors and posted on Twitter that they are having difficulties sending and receiving iMessages.

Both iMessage and FaceTime were down earlier this week for several hours, though Apple's Services Status page does not indicate any problems as of 7:30AM Pacific time.

Update: Apple has updated its system status page indicating issues with both iMessage and FaceTime.

Update 2: Apple's status page indicates that the issue has been resolved as of 9:07 AM Pacific time, although we are still seeing scattered reports of problems.

French site MacGeneration reports [Google translation] that former Adobe executive Kevin Lynch, who joined Apple as a vice president of Technologies last month, is now heading up a team of engineers with experience designing iPod products.

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While MacGeneration does not know for certain what project the group is working on, the site speculates that Lynch's team may be applying its iPod expertise to Apple's rumored smart watch effort.

Among the names mentioned, we note those of Robert Curtis and Steven Bollinger. The former worked for four years on the iPod firmware, the latter is cited in numerous patents related to Apple's music player and touch screens. Lynch's other recruits have worked on various components of the iPod, from its interface to parts of its system through certain material respects.

Apple's "iWatch" effort is reportedly well underway, with Bloomberg revealing earlier this year that Apple has a team of 100 product designers working on the project. It is, however, unclear exactly how Lynch and his group fit into that team if he is indeed working on the iWatch.

(Thanks for the translation, Arthur!)

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 10
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)

Improvements to the iPad's LED backlighting will allow Apple to create a thinner iPad 5, NPD DisplaySearch's Paul Semenza told CNET.

"It's likely that part of the thinner/lighter design will be reducing the size of the LED backlight, partly by making the display more efficient and partly by using more efficient LEDs," said Paul Semenza, an analyst at NPD DisplaySearch, in an e-mail to CNET.

The Retina displays of the third and fourth generation iPads required a dual-LED backlight along with a bigger battery, which caused them to be thicker than the previous iPad 2.

Semenza also pointed out that a shift to a film-based touch sensor might also serve to reduce bulk. The current iPad mini incorporates a DITO film touch panel sensor which contributes to its 7.2mm thickness. He was unsure whether Apple might consider a switch to different display technology, but some reports have suggested that Apple is investigating IGZO panels.

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Mockup of the 5th generation iPad next to the iPad mini

DisplaySearch has extensive sources in the display supply chain, but a mixed track record when it comes to predictions. Before the launch of the fourth generation iPad DisplaySearch claimed that the tablet would launch with a thinner design, a prediction that ended up being incorrect after the iPad was released with the same form factor as the third generation iPad. The research firm did, however, accurately predict the in-cell display technology used in the iPhone 5.

Rumors of a thinner iPad 5 originated last year and were followed up with photos of an alleged rear shell of the device in January and case leaks in February. Photos of the front bezel of the iPad 5 surfaced yesterday, featuring a narrower iPad mini-style design.

Related Roundup: iPad
Buyer's Guide: iPad (Caution)
Related Forum: iPad

iphone3gsWired is reporting that Apple has agreed to pay $53 million to settle a class action lawsuit, which originated in 2010, that accuses them of failing to honor warranties on certain models of iPhones or iPod Touches.

The settlement, which should be filed in San Francisco federal court in the next couple of weeks, provides cash payouts to possibly hundreds of thousands of iPhone and iPod Touch customers that say Apple did not honor either their one-year standard or two-year extended warranty.

According to several lawsuits combined in San Francisco, no matter what the problem, Apple refused to honor warranties if a white indicator tape embedded in the phone near the headphone or charging portals had turned pink or red. However, the tape’s maker, 3M, said humidity, and not water contact, could have caused the color to at least turn pink.

In November 2010 Apple adjusted their damage assessment procedures so that repair staff had to inspect devices even if a device's indicator tape was "triggered" and changed color. Prior to that change, Apple would rely on the indicator tape when determining a liquid damage event, which would not be covered by Apple's warranty.

The lawsuit's affected devices include the original iPhone, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS and the first, second and third generation iPod Touch. Wired notes that potential payouts could be around $200 or less, depending on how many claims are submitted.

Apple chief litigation counsel Noreen Krall signed the settlement yesterday. Wired notes that Apple admits no wrongdoing, and the settlement will have to be approved by the judge.

itunes_radio_round_iconThe Verge is reporting that Apple is set to strike a licensing deal with Universal Music Group, the largest music label, by next week for its rumored Internet radio service. A deal with Warner Music would follow soon after that, according to The Verge.

Last week, it was reported that Apple was close to wrapping a deal up with Universal Music Group and Warner Music, but no immediate time table was given and it was unclear if any side made concessions on royalty rates.

In early March the New York Post said that one of the sticking points in the negotiations with the labels was that Apple was offering to pay half the royalty rate of Pandora, which was $0.06 per 100 songs streamed. The Verge says that Apple did not succeed in trying to undercut Pandora's rates.

Now, Apple will pay rates nearly "neck and neck" with Pandora, one of the sources said. Because of iTunes huge number of users, the new service is expected to be an immediate threat to Pandora.

The Pandora-like service is supposed to launch later this year and is set up to help iTunes users discover new music, generate ad sales and boost sales of downloads, according to The Verge.

However, Apple still has to strike a deal with Sony Music Entertainment and music publishers, and talks with those companies are said to not be as far along as Universal Music Group and Warner Music. If Apple is able to agree to a deal with Sony in the next couple months, it could possibly debut iRadio at Worldwide Developers Conference this June.

CtrttZeptoLab today previewed the third in its Cut the Rope series of games, this one called Cut the Rope: Time Travel. The company didn't include any details on the new game beyond this teaser trailer, but it's likely to incorporate some sort of time shifting mechanic.

The other two games in this series, Cut the Rope and Cut the Rope: Experiments, both became bestsellers on the App Store and won multiple gaming awards. ZeptoLab's most recent game, Pudding Monsters, was less successful.

Our sister-site TouchArcade has this to say about the Cut the Rope games:

If you're not familiar, the gameplay mechanic of Cut the Rope hinges around solving physics puzzles to feed the above adorable monster candy. Both Cut the Rope proper as well as Experiments should be on your phone (or iPad), if they aren't already.

AppstoreFrance will ask the European Commission for increased regulation following Apple's decision to remove AppGratis from the App Store for violating its developer guidelines, Reuters reports.

During a visit to AppGratis publisher iMediapp, French junior minister for digital economy Fleur Pellerin called Apple's decision "extremely brutal and unilateral....

"This behaviour is not worthy of a company of this size," Pellerin said.

She added that certain Internet companies were guilty of "repeated abusive behaviour" and said she would ask the European Commission and EU member states to better regulate digital platforms, search engines and social media.

Apple has come under European Commission scrutiny in the past for its requirements around the pricing of ebooks, a subject that the United States is currently prosecuting Apple for as well.

fruit_ninja_iconFruit Ninja, the fruit-annihilating game that’s been downloaded by millions of users, is currently available for free as part of Apple's "App of the Week" promotion.

The game, which originally launched in 2010, asks players to use intuitive swipe gestures to destroy fruit while avoiding bombs. Fruit Ninja has had a number of updates since it was released, adding a variety of items along with several different game modes.


Both the iPad and the iPhone versions of the game will be available for free for the next seven days.

-Fruit Ninja [Direct Link]
-Fruit Ninja HD (iPad only) [Direct Link]

Turntable of Turntable.fm fame today launched a new radio app, featuring songs that are hand-picked by friends and other app users.

While Turntable.fm is designed for chatting with other users while listening to music, Piki builds playlists based on the preferences of others. The app allows users to pick a song, which is then incorporated into the radio playlists of followers, creating unique song lists that are created via user-based preference rather an algorithm.

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Find and follow your musical soulmates and listen to a mix of their best songs. Build up your own collection of songs you love for others to hear. What’s inside?

-A free and new music streaming app.
-Discover new music from the people you follow.
-Share songs and see people’s reactions to your picks.
-Get the best mix of music from any streaming app.

In addition to building a playlist based on songs chosen by users, the app allows for specific genres and artists to be chosen to narrow down the selection field. Comments can also be added to songs and shared among users.

Piki can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]