By Jack Perkowski, Contributor
Sometimes, too much success in China can create its own set of challenges. Ironically, the very success that Apple Inc. (NasdaqGS: AAPL) has had selling its products to Chinese consumers may be at least part of the reason why the Cupertino, California company found itself at odds with the powers that be in China in recent weeks. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
Filed under: Technology, Google, Facebook, Internet, Mobile Technology
By PETER SVENSSON
NEW YORK — Facebook Home, the new application that takes over the front screen of a smartphone, is a bit of a corporate home invasion. Facebook is essentially moving into Google’s turf, taking advantage of software the search giant and competitor created.
Facebook Home will operate on phones running Google Inc.’s (GOOG) Android software and present Facebook status updates, messages and other content on the home screen, rather than making the user fire up Facebook’s app. The software will be available for users to download on April 12 and will come preloaded on a new phone from HTC Corp., sold by AT&T Inc. in the U.S.
Google gives away Android, the most popular smartphone software in the world, in the hope that it will steer phone users toward Google services, such as Maps and Gmail, and the ads it sells. Compared to ads targeting PC surfers, mobile ads are a small market, but it’s growing quickly. Research firm eMarketer expects U.S. mobile ad spending to grow 77 percent this year to $7.29 billion.
With Home, Facebook is inserting itself between users and Google, diverting them to the social network’s own ads and services. It’s taking advantage of the fact that Google places few restrictions on how phone manufacturers and software developers modify Android. By contrast, Facebook Home would not work on the iPhone without approval from Apple Inc., and close collaboration with the company.
“Facebook Home can only reside on Android because only Google was daft enough to allow it,” said independent phone analyst Horace Dediu, via Twitter.
At the launch event Thursday, Facebook Inc. (FB) CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Google was aware of the project, but Facebook didn’t work them to create Home. Asked if he believed Google could change tactics and restrict apps like Home, he said it was theoretically possible, but highly unlikely for Google to do a “180-degree change” in its stance on Android’s openness.
It’s not the first time a big Internet company has co-opted Android: Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) has gone much farther with its Kindle Fire tablets. They run a version of Android that strips out all Google services, replacing them with Amazon’s equivalents. Barnes & Noble Inc. does the same thing with its Nook tablets. These devices lie outside the Google system, whereas phones running Facebook Home still come with Google apps like Maps and the Play Store for music, movies and applications.
The Play Store has many examples of downloadable applications that modify the Android home screen — so-called “launchers.” Home, however, represents the first time a major …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance
By Tim Worstall, Contributor The Wall Street Journal is reporting that there are plans for Apple to release two new iPhones this year. This is at the stage of “people say that” but the WSJ has a pretty good track record on such rumours from Apple. Apple Inc. plans to begin production of a refreshed iPhone similar in size and shape to its current one in the second quarter of the year, according to people familiar with the device’s production, teeing up a possible summer launch for the next version of its flagship device. At the same time, Apple continues to work with its manufacturing partners in Asia on a less expensive iPhone that could be launched as soon as the second half of this year, these people said. The four-inch device likely will use a different casing from the higher-end iPhone. Apple has been working on different color shells for the phone but its plans remain unclear. Apple has a rather strange relationship with the technical press. At The Register, where I also freelance, it’s well known that Apple will never respond to any sort of query from anyone connected to it at all. Apple has been known to brief the WSJ though: so when the WSJ says that it’s been told such and such about Apple I’m tempted to believe them. That Apple talks to the WSJ and not to the tech press could be taken as an indication that their PR is directed at the financial markets not geeks. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
Filed under: Technology, Apple, Mobile Technology, iPhone, Consumer Electronics
NEW YORK — The Wall Street Journal says Apple is set for a possible summer launch of the next iPhone, rather than a fall launch like the last two models.
Apple Inc. (AAPL) is also working on a cheaper iPhone model that could win it some market share in developing countries, the paper says. It cited unnamed people “familiar with the device’s production.”
The report is in line with the expectations of company watchers and Wall Street analysts. The iPhone 5 costs around $600, and while Apple maintains older iPhones in production, even those aren’t cheap enough to compete effectively against low-end smartphones running Google Inc.’s (GOOG) Android software.
Apple doesn’t comment on future products before its launch events.
%Gallery-183720%
Filed under: Technology, Apple, China, Mobile Technology, Consumer Electronics
By CHRISTOPHER BODEEN
BEIJING — Apple apologized to Chinese consumers after government media attacked its repair policies for two weeks in a campaign that reeked of economic nationalism.
A statement Apple posted in Chinese on its website Monday said the complaints had prompted “deep reflection” and persuaded the company of the need to revamp its repair policies, boost communication with Chinese consumers and strengthen oversight of authorized resellers.
State broadcaster CCTV and the ruling Communist Party‘s flagship newspaper, People’s Daily, had led the charge against the U.S. company. They accused Apple Inc. (AAPL) of arrogance, greed and “throwing its weight around” and portrayed it as just the latest Western company to exploit the Chinese consumer.
The attacks quickly backfired, though, and were mocked by the increasingly sophisticated Chinese consumers who revere Apple and its products. State-run media also inadvertently revived complaints about shoddy service by Chinese companies.
Nonetheless, Apple responded with an apology from CEO Tim Cook.
“We’ve come to understand through this process that because of our poor communication, some have come to feel that Apple’s attitude is arrogant and that we don’t care about or value feedback from the consumer,” Cook’s Chinese statement said, as translated by The Associated Press. “For the concerns and misunderstandings passed on to the consumer, we express our sincere apologies.”
Although Apple enjoys strong support from Chinese consumers, the vehemence of the attacks and the importance of the Chinese market appeared to have persuaded the company to appear contrite.
The People’s Daily newspaper ran an editorial last Wednesday headlined “Strike down Apple’s incomparable arrogance.”
“Here we have the Western person’s sense of superiority making mischief,” the newspaper wrote. “If there’s no risk in offending the Chinese consumer, and it also makes for lower overheads, then why not?”
Chinese observers accused People’s Daily of gross hypocrisy and pointed out that the newspaper had maintained a stony silence when Chinese companies were implicated over food safety, pollution and other scandals. Meanwhile, CCTV was shamed when it emerged that celebrities had been recruited to blast Apple on Weibo, China‘s version of Twitter, in what had been billed as a grassroots campaign.
“The public responded in two ways to this incident,” popular commentator Shi Shusi wrote on his Weibo account. “One group supports this criticism but quite a number of people felt that there are state monopolies which have severely violated customer’s rights, but which are not being exposed.”
Poor Customer Service
Popular business magazine Caijing said its readers identified a long list of abusers, including state banks that lend to those with political connections while stiffing ordinary savers with low rates on deposits; a government oil company that sets gas prices and other rates as it sees fit; and state telecom providers notorious for …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance
By Tim Worstall, Contributor I have to admit that I don’t really see anything wrong with some of the things that China is allegedly doing to Apple. Oh, I know there are pieces flying around out there that this is all just part of the Middle Kingdom‘s attack on foreign companies. That’s it’s a plot to do Apple down. But in terms of what is actually being said and done it doesn’t look all that bad to me: BEIJING—A Chinese regulator said it would heighten supervision over Apple Inc.’s consumer-rights practices as state media continued to attack the company over its after-sales practices. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
Filed under: Technology, Apple, Electronics, Mobile Technology, Consumer Electronics
By PETER SVENSSON
NEW YORK — T-Mobile USA on Tuesday said it will start offering the iPhone on April 12, filling what its CEO said was “a huge void” in its phone lineup.
T-Mobile, the fourth-largest of the national U.S. phone companies, has been losing customers to the bigger companies, which all sell Apple Inc.’s (AAPL) iPhone.
“This is a big deal for us,” T-Mobile CEO John Legere said at an event in New York.
The company will charge $100 up front for the iPhone 5, then another $20 per month for two years. That’s on top of service fees for voice, text and data that start at $50 per month. The total monthly cost starts at $70 per month, a substantial discount to prices offered by bigger companies.
In some areas, where its network supports them, T-Mobile will also sell the older iPhone 4, for $15 down and $15 per month for two years, and the 4S for $70 plus $20 a month for two years.
T-Mobile’s network has, until recently, not been able to offer high-speed data service to iPhones. It’s now able to deliver high-speed data to iPhones in some cities, and it has lured over 2.1 million off-contract AT&T Inc. (T) iPhones, executives said Tuesday.
The company also announced that it is firing up an even faster data network, based on so-called “LTE” technology, in Baltimore, Houston, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Phoenix, San Jose, Calif., and Washington. Unofficially, the network is also active here and there in New York, as demonstrated at the event.
By the end of the year, T-Mobile says LTE will be available where two-thirds of the nation’s population lives. The iPhone 5 can access the LTE network for faster data downloads, while the older iPhones can’t.
T-Mobile is the last of the four major carriers to launch an LTE network, but already has a relatively fast “4G” network. It’s been hamstrung by a lack of space on the airwaves, but gained some room last year from AT&T as part the compensation for a failed buyout attempt. That’s allowing it to start building the LTE network.
T-Mobile wants to boost its LTE capacity and speeds even further by merging with No. 5 carrier MetroPCS Communications Inc. and thus gaining access to its space on the airwaves. That deal faces opposition from MetroPCS shareholders. By coincidence, they are voting on the merger on April 12, the same day T-Mobile starts selling the iPhone.
T-Mobile also said it will start selling the Samsung Galaxy S 4 …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance
Filed under: Stock Picks, Alternative Investment, Mutual Funds, Index Funds, Dividend Stocks
Investors are getting more excited about the stock market now that it has fully recovered from the financial crisis and started to set new record highs. But if you’re looking to invest now, you have to protect yourself from the possibility that the long bull market could reverse itself.
It’s always tough both financially and psychologically to recover from immediate losses on investments you just bought, so taking steps to avoid big losses is well worth the effort.
With that goal in mind, here are five exchange-traded funds that can strengthen your portfolio against the threat of a possible stock–market decline while still giving you exposure to further gains if the bull market continues.
iShares MSCI USA Minimum Volatility (USMV)
This ETF seeks out stocks that tend to rise and fall more gently than the overall stock market. With a concentration on health-care stocks like Eli Lilly & Co. (LLY) and consumer-oriented stocks like cereal giant General Mills Inc. (GIS), the iShares ETF focuses on stocks with defensive characteristics that hold up well under any economic environment. That won’t keep the fund from losing money in a falling stock market, but it should help reduce the extent of your losses. And with low costs of just 0.15 percent annually, the ETF doesn’t charge a ton to give you that protection.
PowerShares S&P 500 Low Volatility (SPLV)
Like the iShares ETF above, this fund focuses on low-volatility stocks in defensive industries. But the mix of investments in the PowerShares ETF is different, as it concentrates largely on utility stocks, which make up more than 30 percent of the fund’s portfolio right now. Utility giants Southern Co. (SO) and Consolidated Edison Inc. (ED) provide strong dividend income, and their ability to rely on regulated income from millions of utility customers gives them security even when the economy starts to falter. The fund’s costs of 0.25 percent per year are a bit higher than the iShares ETF but are still reasonable for ETFs generally.
PowerShares S&P 500 BuyWrite (PBP)
At first glance, this ETF looks a lot like a typical index-tracking fund, owning Apple Inc. (AAPL), ExxonMobil Corp. (XOM), and many of the other big companies in the S&P 500. But the twist this ETF uses is to write covered call options against that stock, boosting income at the expense of giving up some of the upside in its stock holdings. During bull markets, that strategy underperforms the overall market, but it produces more favorable results when stocks decline. With expenses of 0.75 percent, the strategy is a bit pricey, but it’s still an interesting way to protect against the full impact of a downturn.
iShares S&P Preferred (PFF)
Stocks come in two flavors: common and preferred. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance
At 17, he’s a tech whiz, he’s rich—and he can even offer some advice on how to raise your kids. Teenage programmer Nick D’Aloisio’s decision to sell his news application Summly to Yahoo for what’s rumored to be a massive payout has turned him into a media sensation. The sale caps a short but successful career at Apple Inc.’s vast app store, where hundreds of thousands of pieces of software compete for the attention of smartphone and tablet users. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Phys.org
Filed under: Technology, JC Penney, Apple, Retail, Wal-Mart
By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO
NEW YORK — Ka-ching! The cash register may be on its final sale.
Stores across the U.S. are ditching the old-fashioned, clunky machines and having salespeople — and even shoppers themselves — ring up sales on smartphones and tablet computers.
Barneys New York, a luxury retailer, this year plans to use iPads or iPod Touch devices for credit and debit card purchases in seven of its nearly two dozen regular-price stores. Urban Outfitters, a teen clothing chain, ordered its last traditional register last fall and plans to go completely mobile one day. And Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, is testing a “Scan & Go” app that lets customers scan their items as they shop.
“The traditional cash register is heading toward obsolescence,” said Danielle Vitale, chief operating officer of Barneys New York.
That the cash register is getting the boot is no surprise. The writing has been on the wall for a long time for the iconic machine, which was created in the late 1800s. The register was essential in nearly every retail location by 1915, but it now seems outdated in a world in which smartphones and tablets increasingly are replacing everything from books to ATMs to cameras.
Stores like smartphones and tablets because they take up less floor space than registers and free up cashiers to help customers instead of being tethered to one spot. They also are cheaper: For instance, Apple Inc.’s iPads with accessories like credit card readers can cost a store $1,500, compared with $4,000 for a register. And Americans increasingly want the same speedy service in physical stores that they get from shopping online.
“Consumers want the retailer to bring the register to them,” said Lori Schafer, executive adviser at SAS Institute Inc., which creates software for major retailers.
Faster is Better
J.C. Penney Co. (JCP), a mid-price department-store chain, said the response by customers has been great since it started rolling out iPod Touch devices late last year in its 1,100 stores. The goal is to have one in the hands of every salesperson by May. The company said that about a quarter of purchases at its stores nationwide now come from an iPod Touch. ks
On a recent Thursday afternoon at a Penney store in the Manhattan borough of New York City, Debbie Guastella, 55, marveled after a saleswoman rang up three shirts she was buying on an iPod Touch.
“I think it’s great,” said Guastella, who lives in Huntington, New York. “The faster the better.”
It’s been a long fall for the cash register, which innovated retail …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance
Ka-ching! The cash register may be on its final sale.
Stores across the country are ditching the old-fashioned, clunky machines and having salespeople — and even shoppers themselves — ring up sales on smartphones and tablet computers.
Barneys New York, a luxury retailer, this year plans to use iPads or iPod Touch devices for credit and debit card purchases in seven of its nearly two dozen regular-price stores. Urban Outfitters, a teen clothing chain, ordered its last traditional register last fall and plans to go completely mobile one day. And Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, is testing a “Scan & Go” app that lets customers scan their items as they shop.
“The traditional cash register is heading toward obsolescence,” said Danielle Vitale, chief operating officer of Barneys New York.
That the cash register is getting the boot is no surprise. The writing has been on the wall for a long time for the iconic machine, which was created in the late 1800s. The register was essential in nearly every retail location by 1915, but it now seems outdated in a world in which smartphones and tablets increasingly are replacing everything from books to ATMs to cameras.
Stores like smartphones and tablets because they take up less floor space than registers and free up cashiers to help customers instead of being tethered to one spot. They also are cheaper: For instance, Apple Inc.’s iPads with accessories like credit card readers can cost a store $1,500, compared with $4,000 for a register. And Americans increasingly want the same speedy service in physical stores that they get from shopping online.
“Consumers want the retailer to bring the register to them,” said Lori Schafer, executive adviser at SAS Institute Inc., which creates software for major retailers.
J.C. Penney, a mid-price department-store chain, said the response by customers has been great since it started rolling out iPod Touch devices late last year in its 1,100 stores. The goal is to have one in the hands of every salesperson by May. The company said that about a quarter of purchases at its stores nationwide now come from an iPod Touch.
On a recent Thursday afternoon at a Penney store in the Manhattan borough of New York City, Debbie Guastella, 55, marveled after a saleswoman rang up three shirts she was buying on an iPod Touch.
“I think it’s great,” said Guastella, who lives in Huntington, N.Y. “The faster the better.”
It’s been a long fall for the cash register, which innovated retail as we know it. The first register was invented following the Civil War by a little known saloon owner. Before then, most store owners were in the dark about whether or not they were making a profit, and many suffered since it was easy for sales clerks to steal from the cash drawer unnoticed. But by 1915, cash registers were ubiquitous in stores across the country, with more than 1.5 million sold by then.
More recently, stores have been looking for ways to modernize checkout. Since 2003, self-checkout areas that enable customers to scan and …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News
Filed under: Investing
The debate over how America’s largest companies use cash will pick up again. Moody’s Investor Services released a study that forecasts how big the cash balances will be at some of these public corporations at the end of 2013.
The kind of activism Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) has faced about distributing its cash to shareholders through a higher dividend or share buybacks almost certainly will spread to the other companies on the Moody’s list.
The Moody’s report put Apple’s year-end cash balance at $170 billion. Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT), Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) and Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) are also on the Moody’s list. Perhaps the most critical difference between these companies and Apple is that they have shown a history of acquisitions. Apple has never used its money that way, at least on any large scale.
According to MarketWatch:
Overall, corporate-cash stockpiles at U.S. non-financial companies rated by Moody’s grew to $1.45 trillion in 2012, up 10% from 2011, according to the report.
Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Dividends & Buybacks Tagged: AAPL, CSCO, GOOG, MSFT, PFE
Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Filed under: Investing
Corporate Cash Piles Up
The debate over how America’s largest companies use cash will pick up again. Moody’s Investor Services released a study that forecasts how big the cash balances will be at some of these public corporations at the end of 2013. The kind of activism Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) has faced about distributing its cash to shareholders through a higher dividend or share buybacks almost certainly will spread to the other companies on the Moody’s list. The Moody’s report put Apple’s year-end cash balance at $170 billion. Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT), Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) and Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) are also on the Moody’s list. Perhaps the most critical difference between these companies and Apple is that they have shown a history of acquisitions. Apple has never used its money that way, at least on any large scale. According to MarketWatch:
Overall, corporate-cash stockpiles at U.S. non-financial companies rated by Moody’s grew to $1.45 trillion in 2012, up 10% from 2011, according to the report.
Cypriot Parliament to Weigh In
The parliament in Cyprus may block the government‘s attempt to seize money from the savings accounts of its citizens as a way to raise money to get access to bailout funds. If so, the anxiety about the action, and its possible effects on the plans of other financially weak EU nations, should drop. Some analysts believe there could be a sort of contagion, if countries like Greece run out of options to close budget gaps. Cyprus does not have anywhere else to turn for the money, which is the primary reason it took such measures. According to Reuters:
Cyprus‘s parliament is unlikely to pass legislation taxing deposits which has prompted turmoil in its banking system, falling short on a condition for an international bailout, government spokesman Christos Stylianides said on Tuesday.
Apple and Its Shadow
Wherever Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) goes, Samsung is never far behind it. The South Korean company said it will build and market a smartwatch, just as Apple is rumored to be doing. Among a heightened competition, the launches are likely to cause another round of intellectual property and patent challenges in courts around the world. These kinds of fights already are well along as Samsung has challenged both the iPhone and the iPad. According to Bloomberg:
“We’ve been preparing the watch product for so long,” Lee Young Hee, executive vice president of Samsung’s mobile business, said during an interview in Seoul. “We are working very hard to get ready for it. We are preparing products for the future, and the watch is definitely one of them.”
Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Market Open Tagged: AAPL, CSCO, GOOG, MSFT, PFE
Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Filed under: Telecommunications
In an exclusive interview with The Australian Financial Review, BlackBerry (NASDAQ: BBRY) CEO Thorsten Heins took a swipe at Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) and the venerable iOS operating system. Heins predicted that BlackBerry’s new operating system, BlackBerry 10 (BB10), and the touchscreen Z10 smartphone would have 100,000 apps available by the time of the phone’s U.S. launch later this week.
Heins also had this to say about the iPhone:
The user interface on the iPhone, with all due respect for what this invention was all about is now five years old.
The inference we are supposed to draw is that newer is not only different, but better. That may well be true, but the usual corollary of that inference is that in order for something new to disrupt the existing marketplace it must be 10 times better and cost half as much. Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) tipped the cost scale to free with its Android operating system, and Android is now the global leader in software platforms for smartphones.
BlackBerry, and Heins, then cannot compete with Google on cost or with Apple or Google on apps, so what’s left? Heins points to BB10’s multitasking capability, something neither Apple nor Google yet supports.
But the paradigm Heins appears to be applying is that a smartphone operating system should be more like a laptop’s or a PC‘s. That is not where the industry is headed. The ubiquity of smartphones and tablets is changing the way users interact with devices, and the apps-driven interfaces already have begun to surface, as in Windows 8 from Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Google Chrome.
Heins had a lot more to say and you can read more about it here.
Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Consumer Electronics, PC Companies, Telecom & Wireless Tagged: AAPL, BBRY, GOOG, MSFT
Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Filed under: Retail
The unit of Safeway Inc. (NYSE: SWY) that issues gift cards and other prepaid and reloadable cards this morning filed a Form S-1 with the U.S. Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) to raise up to $200 million in an initial public offering. The unit, which will be called Blackhawk Network Holdings Inc., will trade on the Nasdaq Exchange under the ticker symbol HAWK.
Safeway currently owns about 96% of Blackhawk and “will continue to hold shares of Class B common stock representing a significant majority of the combined voting power” of Blackhawk’s outstanding shares after the offering. The lead underwriters for the offering are Goldman Sachs, BofA/Merrill Lynch, Citigroup and Deutsche Bank Securities.
According to the filing, Blackhawk currently counts among its gift-card customers such high-profile companies as Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), Lowe’s Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW), Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M), Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX) and Apple Inc.’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) iTunes. The company also serves the three large payment networks: American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP), Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) and Mastercard Inc. (NYSE: MA). Blackhawk also issues reloadable cards for Green Dot Corp. (NYSE: GDOT) among others, including its own PayPower brand.
Blackhawk’s filing indicates that the company will receive none of the net proceeds from the offering. Class A shares will have one vote and Class B shares will have 10 votes on all matters that are put to a shareholder vote.
According to the filing, Blackhawk posted net income of $48.165 million in 2012 on operating revenues of $959.07 million, up from $362 million in revenues and $22.7 million in operating profits in 2001, the year the company was founded.
Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Business Services, Financial Stocks, IPOs, Retail Tagged: AAPL, AMZN, AXP, GDOT, LOW, M, MA, SBUX, SWY, V
Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
By Tim Worstall, Contributor At first this looks like just one of those things. Apple makes the iPhone, this we all know, but in Mexico, as in Brazil, another company has a very similar trademark. Usually something can be worked out in such cases. It’s not exactly unusual that a would be global trademark finds there are other local uses for it: Microsoft dropped “Metro” as a description of the tiles in Windows 8 after pushback from the German retail chain, “Metro” for example. Apple’s already lost hope for exclusive rights to the name “iPhone” in Brazil, and now it’s been defeated in another battle south of the border. Cupertino and Mexican company iFone S.A. have a long history, stretching back to 2009 when Apple tried to have the firm’s “iFone” trademark revoked. Oh well, as I say, it’s always a little unlikely that any word is going to be unique in 190 countries or more, isn’t it? However, it’s going a little further than that in Mexico. A Mexican technology services company is hoping to reap compensation from Apple Inc. and local mobile operators for the use of its brand name—Ifone—after Mexico‘s Supreme Court upheld a ruling that the local firm owns and makes proper use of the brand in the country. Ah, it’s going to get worse for Apple. Not only are they not allowed to use iPhone they’ve got to pay damages for having done so. And those damages could be substantial: It’s unknown how much money the Mexican company is looking for, but its corporate lawyer told The Wall Street Journal that the law provides for an award of at least 40 percent of infringing sales. Lucky that Apple’s net margins on iPhones are up at around that 40% level really. At least they’ll not be losing money after paying the damages. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
By The Huffington Post News Editors
NEW YORK (AP) — Shares of Apple Inc. climbed Friday after its chief competitor, Samsung Electronics Co., revealed a new top-of-the-line smartphone model.
THE SPARK: Late Thursday, Samsung revealed the Galaxy S 4 at an event in New York. It features a slightly larger screen in a slightly smaller body than predecessor S III and includes several new ways of controlling the phone without touching it. The global roll-out will start at the end of April. The four largest U.S. cell phone carriers have committed to selling it in, in addition to two smaller ones.
THE ANALYSIS: Most analysts see the S 4 as an incremental advance for Samsung, but not a game-changer that’s likely to deal a big blow to Apple. The main weakness of the iPhone 5 is that it has a small screen relative to high-end Android phones; the S 4 is 56 percent larger.
Filed under: Industry News
Internet jobs site Glassdoor has released its list of the top 50 U.S. CEOs, based on employee feedback, for the past 12 months through February 27. The company asked the question, “Do you approve of the way your CEO is leading the company?” and received more than half a million responses.
The top-ranked chief executive officer this year is Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB). Others in the top five are SAP A.G. (NYSE: SAP) co-CEOs Bill McDermott and Jim Hagemann Snabe, McKinsey & Co. CEO Dominic Barton, Ernst & Young’s Jim Turley and Northwestern Mutual’s John Schlifske. Turley is the only repeater in the top five.
Last year’s top-rated CEO, Tim Cook of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), fell to 18th this year, although the decrease in his score was relatively small, from 97 to 93. Larry Page, CEO at Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), fell from fifth place a year ago to 11th place, but improved his score from 94 to 95.
Glassdoor’s CEO noted:
The CEOs who are most successful in gaining employee approval are those who paint a clear vision of what the company is setting out to achieve and how it’s going to get there. To be recognized by your employees as a strong leader also comes as a result of having a solid company culture that helps employees foster the skills necessary to move business forward and meet the needs of customers.
Glassdoor’s top 50 list is available here.
Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Corporate Governance, Research Tagged: AAPL, FB, GOOG, SAP
Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Filed under: Investing
In what could be another bad sign for the demand for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) products, the company has begun to sell some refurbished iPads and iPad minis.
Several of these products have only been in the market for few months. Either Apple has found that people have dropped the products because they do not like themo or perhaps these customers anticipate another iPad launch soon and just want to clear their desks, homes and offices of old inventory.
According to Apple Insider:
The refurbished mini and fourth-gen iPad are now available in Apple’s online store. Customers can pick up a black 16GB iPad mini with Wi-Fi + Cellular for $429 or a White 32GB Wi-Fi only model for $389.
Customers looking for a full-size iPad can pick up the fourth-generation iPad, which features an improved processor and compatibility with Apple’s new Lightning connector standard. Refurbished fourth-generation models run from $449 for a white 16GB Wi-Fi only model to $679 for a black 32GB Wi-Fi + Cellular model.
Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Consumer Electronics Tagged: AAPL
Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Filed under: Investing
Boeing 787 Ready to Fly?
Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) has said, once again, that its deeply trouble 787 will take to the air again soon. Battery problems with the plane have kept it grounded for two months. Regulators in Japan, and particularly the United States, have combed through the mechanics of the plane but have not found root causes. Boeing recently was cleared to make test flights. While Boeing expects a quick resolution, the FAA has said more than once that there may be no quick resolution. According to Reuters:
Boeing, which has Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval to test its new battery for certification, said Friday it will encase the redesigned power pack in a steel box, pack it with added insulation, heat-resistant material and spacers, drill drain holes to remove moisture, and vent any gases from overheating directly to the atmosphere outside the aircraft.
“If we look at the normal process and the way in which we work with the FAA, and we look at the testing that’s ahead of us, it is reasonable to expect we could be back up and going in weeks, not months,” the 787′s chief engineer, Mike Sinnett, said at a briefing in Tokyo.
Refurbished iPads
In what could be another bad sign for the demand for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) products, the company has begun to sell some refurbished iPads and iPad minis. Several of these products have only been in the market for few months. Either Apple has found that people have dropped the products because they do not like themo or perhaps these customers anticipate another iPad launch soon and just want to clear their desks, homes and offices of old inventory. According to Apple Insider:
The refurbished mini and fourth-gen iPad are now available in Apple’s online store. Customers can pick up a black 16GB iPad mini with Wi-Fi + Cellular for $429 or a White 32GB Wi-Fi only model for $389.
Customers looking for a full-size iPad can pick up the fourth-generation iPad, which features an improved processor and compatibility with Apple’s new Lightning connector standard. Refurbished fourth-generation models run from $449 for a white 16GB Wi-Fi only model to $679 for a black 32GB Wi-Fi + Cellular model.
More Video Game Headwinds
Research firm NPD has released its monthly data for video game sales. The industry continues to face consumer preferences for using tablets and smartphones instead of consoles as platforms. And the number of inexpensive games that can be download from app stores has risen. Some of the most popular sources of these games are free. This movement has pressured both console makers Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) and has eroded revenue at game creators and marketers, particularly Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: EA). According to Edge Online:
The software charts saw an overall year-on-year decline in unit sales of 30% compared to February 2012, though there were a similar number of new releases. Total video game software sales at retail amounted to $352 million in February 2013, compared to $484 million …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance
