$19 billion: the ‘worst-case’ bill Apple could face in long-running European tax investigation
JP Morgan, an investment banker for Apple, has said that the worst-case outcome of a long-running European Commission investigation into the legality of Apple’s European tax arrangements could be a back-tax bill of $19B. It had previously been estimated that the bill might amount to $8B.
The estimate was made as the US Treasury Department warned the European Commission about taking action against US companies over tax avoidance allegations, reports the BBC …
Filed under: Apple
Future iPhones & iPads could video thieves and capture their fingerprints
An Apple patent noted by Patently Apple describes how iOS devices could make it very easy to police to identify thieves by automatically taking photos and video of them, and capturing their fingerprint data via the Touch ID sensor.
Filed under: Apple
Tim Cook hosts fundraiser for Hillary Clinton alongside environmental head Lisa Jackson
We reported last month that Apple CEO Tim Cook was to host a political fundraiser for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, and the event took place last night. Apple’s environmental initiatives VP Lisa Jackson – a board member of the Clinton Foundation charity – was also in attendance.
Attendees had to hand over anything from $2,700 to $50,000 to attend the event, which took place at a private residence in Los Altos, and a couple of them shared some photos and a short video clip …
Filed under: Apple
Apple working on its own Snapchat-style video-sharing app & other social features for 2017
Bloomberg reports that Apple is to go head-to-head with Snapchat and Instagram by developing its own video-sharing app as part of a push to target younger users. The company is said to said to be motivated by the fact that social apps generate the greatest level of engagement on the iPhone, Facebook users averaging 50 minutes a day, Snapchat users 30 minutes.
The goal behind the project’s development is to offer simple video editing with tools that appeal to the generation of users growing up with Snapchat and Instagram, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the plans are private […]
Apple’s current plan calls for its project to become a stand-alone app, presumably as a download via the App Store, but the company may decide to package the functionality into the iPhone’s existing camera application, the people said.
The focus will be on short, fun videos that are super-quick to create …
Filed under: Apple
Apple Music Festival London lineup announced: Alicia Keys, Bastille, Britney Spears, Calvin Harris, Chance The Rapper, Elton John, more
The Apple Music festival in London has been always been a staple of the fall pop music scene but never has it been more integral to Apple’s operations than this year where Apple Music is locked in a battle for supremacy among streaming services and Tim Cook is pushing services revenue as a replacement for Apple’s sagging hardware unit sales. This year’s event will not only be available on Apple’s product lineup but also PCs and for the first time through the Apple Music App on Android which launched in November of last year. That means a much wider audience. Today Apple announced the headlining lineup:
Alicia Keys, Bastille, Britney Spears, Calvin Harris, Chance The Rapper, Elton John, Michael Bublé, OneRepublic, Robbie Williams and The 1975 Headline Festival’s 10th Anniversary
The festival, which marks its 10 year anniversary this year, dates were announced 3 days ago. There could be more artists added to the lineup however. Last year, the festival was headlined by Pharrell and One Direction but several other artists were announced including The Weeknd before it kicked off. Last fall, Apple renovated the Roundhouse venue where the festival is held to make it more environmentally friendly. Apple also hopes to avoid the ticketing issues that have caused issues in years past.
Apple Music Festival 2016 runs from September 18 to September 30. Fans based in the UK can apply to win tickets by entering prize draws on Apple Music, as well as through select media partners.
Apple’s has published artwork for the artists listed above as well as quotes from many of them in the press release below:
Filed under: Apple
Google app on iOS updated with expanded 3D Touch support
Report: Universal Music to no longer agree to any exclusive streaming deals
Following iOS 9.3.4 security release, Apple no longer signing iOS 9.3.3
Apple today stopped signing iOS 9.3.3, effectively ending user’s ability to either upgrade or downgrade to that version of iOS. Apple also today stopped signing iOS 9.3.2.
In most circumstances, such a signing closure wouldn’t be noteworthy, but since a jailbreak was released for iOS 9.3.3, it’s worth noting. more…
Filed under: Apple
Apple asks Unicode Consortium to add 5 new emoji, including an astronaut & pilot
Following the emoji redesign with iOS 10, Apple has recently asked the Unicode Consortium to add 5 new emoji to the existing catalog of options. Apple’s Peter Edberg, who has been a software engineer at the company for 28 years, reached out to the Unicode Technical Committee recently, sharing mockups of the five new emoji.
Filed under: Apple
Microsoft updates Word Flow keyboard on iOS w/ new search & prediction features, 3D Touch
Microsoft officially launched its Word Flow keyboard on iOS earlier this year, and today the app has received a significant update, bringing its version number to 2.0. The update includes a host of new features, including some that rival what Apple is bringing to the Messages app keyboard with iOS 10.
Filed under: Apple