Jordan Kahn

• AAPL Company

Carl Icahn buys another 2.8M AAPL shares bringing his stake in Apple to approx. $4.5B

Jordan Kahn May 15 2014 - 4:25 pm PT

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Photo: Huffington Post

Investor Carl Icahn revealed today that he has purchased another 2.8 million Apple shares bringing his total up to more than 7.5 million. That brings his stake in Apple up to approximately $4.5 billion from the $1 billion worth of Apple stock he reportedly owned last summer.

The news comes following Apple’s introduction of a $90 billion share buyback and a 7-to-1 stock split announced last month. Icahn, who had been pressuring Apple to increase value for shareholders in a number of open letters, meetings with CEO Tim Cook, and media interviews since first announcing his purchase of AAPL last year, said he was “extremely pleased” with Apple’s recent announcements.

Back in February, Icahn withdrew his proposal that would have seen shareholders vote on Apple increasing its buyback program by $50 billion. Apple’s new $90 billion share buyback is up from the $60 billion it announced in 2013.

• Apps
• iOS
• iPad
• iPhone
• App Store

Flappy Bird creator teases new game in screenshot

Jordan Kahn May 15 2014 - 1:54 pm PT

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Just a day after Flappy Bird creator Dong Nguyen told CNBC his hit iOS game would return to the App Store in August, today the developer is teasing a new game currently in development.

Despite reportedly confirming Flappy Bird would make a return, Nguyen’s tweet about his new game reads, “I am making a new game. So people can forget about Flappy Bird for a while.” 

There aren’t any other details on the game or a timeframe for release, but Nguyen did provide the screenshot above which appears to show similar gameplay to Flappy Bird.

• Apps & Updates
• Apps

Apple likely allowing promo codes for in-app purchases through App Store Code Program

Jordan Kahn May 15 2014 - 1:27 pm PT

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Up until now, Apple has limited promo codes on the App Store to app downloads and hasn’t allowed developers to offer codes for in-app purchases and Newsstand issues. However, as noted by 148apps, EA is currently offering promo codes that allow users of its Real Racing 3 iOS app to get an in-app purchase normally valued at $1.99.

While users aren’t forced to enter a promo code manually in the App Store, visiting an EA website sends users to the App Store and automatically redeems the code for the in-app content. iOS also prompts users that have not yet installed the free Real Racing 3 app to do so in order to claim the in-app purchase code.

Apple’s developer documentation for promo codes currently states “Promo codes don’t work for In-App Purchase products, including Newsstand issues,” but it has unofficially supported workarounds in the past that developers have used to offer free in-app content for promotions.

It’s also a possibility that Apple is allowing the in-app purchase codes through its App Store Code Program that offers developers the ability to run special promotions. Apple recently detailed the program in a TechTalk:

Apple uses the program to let developers offer, for example, more than the usual 100 promo codes per app version and EA has used the program for several promotions in the past.

• Apps & Updates
• Apps

Hitman Absolution – Elite Edition now available for Mac

Jordan Kahn May 15 2014 - 11:06 am PT

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[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-0yI9ch0kw]

Hitman Absolution, the latest full-length installment in IO Interactive’s popular Hitman franchise, is today arriving for Mac users as a download on the Mac App Store and elsewhere.

Become Agent 47, a genetically-engineered killer, and use your skill and ingenuity to turn assassination into an art. With extraordinary reflexes, creative stealth techniques and a powerful arsenal of weapons at your fingertips, pulling off the perfect hit has never been so much fun.

The release is the “Elite Edition,” which means you’ll also get all previously released add-on content that has been released since the game first hit game consoles in 2012.

The game is available to download on the Mac App Store now for $28.99. A Steam Play compatible version of the game is also available for $25 from Feral Interactive’s website and Steam.

Earlier this year Square Enix released a turn-based strategy version of Hitman for the iOS devices.

More Mac and iOS game deals over at 9to5Toys

• Apps & Updates
• Apps

Shazam app launches second-screen experience for 20k AMC, Regal, & Cinemark theatres

Jordan Kahn May 15 2014 - 6:57 am PT

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NCM Media Networks, owners of the largest cinema network in the U.S., is about to roll out a new preshow program to its 20,000 theatres that will integrate with the Shazam iOS app for a unique second screen experience. That means all preview content played before films at the company’s Regal, AMC, and Cinemark theatres will now be recognized by the audio detection/discovery app and in return Shazam will display info, bonus content, and links to purchase content related to what’s on screen:

The new FirstLook show will also be Shazamable, giving advertisers a way to literally put a brand in the hands of moviegoers using mobile devices. Shazam is one of the world’s most popular apps that connects people to the world around them through their mobile device, and is now working with NCM exclusively as its U.S. cinema partner. This partnership will give its 120+ million users in the U.S. the fastest, easiest way to engage with the cinema pre-show experience. When a moviegoer Shazams content in NCM’s FirstLook, they will be able to identify, explore, purchase and share that content.

Shazam is also updating its iOS app today with a few notable new features including improved TV show recognition in the US:

Shazam is the fastest way to find out more about the show, the cast, and the music featured in the show. With today’s update, users will see a new look that makes it easier to get all the content they want around their favorite dramas, comedies, reality shows and more.  Shazam users can Shazam any show on the 160 channels that Shazam supports in the U.S…. Shazaming your favorite TV show is better than ever with a new result page and easier access to music from the show. You’ll also be able to see a full cast list, read about the show and catch up on all the latest celebrity gossip.

In addition, the updated Shazam app is testing out Facebook’s new Audience Network that will see “customised ad results in a native module within the Shazam results” for users with the Facebook app installed.

• Apps & Updates
• Apps

Facebook iOS app adds post previews & drafts, tests related content cards

Jordan Kahn May 14 2014 - 2:52 pm PT

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First available for Android users, Facebook has just released an update to its iOS app that introduces the ability to create drafts of posts, preview posts before publishing and more.

With version 10.0, Facebook users can now create posts even when not connected to the internet or in airplane mode and save the drafts for posting later. As for previews of posts, Facebook notes that you can now “Review what your post will look like and choose whether to remove any suggested links before sharing what you’re reading, watching or listening to.”

The updated app also gets “Improvements to make News Feed load faster, especially on older phones and tablets.”

In addition to the updated Facebook iOS app, TechCrunch reports that Facebook is currently testing Google Now-like related info cards with a select group of users. The cards (pictured below) would be presented to users after posting (pictured below). Facebook described the feature:

“These cards can help you discover information about where you are or what to do next, or inspire conversations with your friends around you.  This feature respects all existing privacy settings, and the card will only show you information that you could already see elsewhere on Facebook. We wanted to make it easier for you to interact with your friends about the things you’re doing and the places you are visiting.”

The updated Facebook app for iPhone and iPad is available on the App Store now.

• Apps & Updates
• Apps
• App Store
• Flappy Bird
• multiplayer
• addictive

Flappy Bird will return to App Store in August w/ multiplayer, won’t be as fun

Jordan Kahn May 14 2014 - 2:31 pm PT

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After removing the hit iOS game Flappy Bird from the App Store back in February, the developer confirmed today that the game will make a return in August.

Developer Dong Nguygen confirmed the return date today to CNBC’s Kelly Evans and also claimed that the game would be less addictive, which was originally the main reason he cited for removing the app earlier this year. In addition, the game will also apparently include a multiplayer when making its return to the store.

At its most popular, the original Flappy Bird game was reportedly making as much as $50,000 a day revenue. It didn’t take long for other developers to make clones of the game in order to capitalize on the game’s popularity and many of them remain in the App Store’s top charts for gaming.

• Apps & Updates
• Apps

Latest Chrome build lets Mac users launch files in Chrome Web apps

Jordan Kahn May 9 2014 - 10:30 am PT

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Google is experimenting with a new feature in the latest Canary build of Chrome that will allow Mac OS X users to open files from Finder directly in Chrome web apps running in the browser. As highlighted in the image above from Googler Francois Beaufort, that means you’ll be able to launch, for example, a text document in a Chrome web app like Text instead of using TextEdit, Word or another application installed natively on your Mac. Google is presumably hoping the feature will make using Chrome web apps a smoother experience when transitioning from the browser and back to local file management and native apps.

For now the feature is only available if specifically enabled (details here) in the Chrome Canary build, but there’s a good chance this will eventually make its way to the beta and public releases of Chrome for all Mac users.