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769 'Android' stories August 2010 - July 2012

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Nielsen: Android and iOS are over 90 percent of US smartphone market, and growing

Seth Weintraub Jul 12 2012 - 3:36 pm PT

…For the first time ever, two-thirds of new phone acquirers are buying smartphones.

Smartphone use is exploding in the United States, while PC sales are dropping. If 66 percent of mobile phone buyers purchase smartphones, and 36.3-percent of them get the iPhone, then that means almost a quarter of all phones bought in the U.S. are iPhones. That also means 36 percent of the purchased phones run Android OS.

More from Nielsen, including the incredibly skewed graphic, is below—which gives Symbian, Palm and Windows 7 devices almost the same amount of “fill” at 2.8-percent as Apple’s 34 percent.

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IMDb iOS app eyes 20M+ downloads, celebrates with massive update

Élyse Betters Jul 12 2012 - 8:10 am PT

IMDb, the unofficial resume for everyone and everything Hollywood, just announced its iOS and Android apps have experienced more than 40 million total downloads. The iOS counterpart claimed half of those downloads, and IMDb is celebrating with today’s launch of “highly anticipated discovery, personalization and social features.”

Version 2.7 now includes:

– Movies & TV shows: check in and share what you are watching to Facebook and Twitter
– Message Boards: access general boards, or dive into discussions about your favorite people, movies, and shows
– Filming Locations & Soundtracks: find even more IMDb data to satisfy your curiosity
– More Like This: discover new movies and shows while you browse
– Watchlist: tap the plus sign on posters to build your Watchlist
– TV shows: easily dive into each season, and tap ‘previous’ and ‘next’ to browse through episodes
– Your History: long-press on the Back button from any page to access pages you’ve recently viewed
– Various bug fixes and performance improvements

The IMDb Movies & TV app is a free app at the App Store. It rates 4 stars, based on more than 112,000 reviews, as of press time.

The press release is below.

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Amazon combats Apple’s Game Center with its own GameCircle [Video]

Élyse Betters Jul 11 2012 - 7:15 am PT

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdoxX0XGros&feature=player_embedded]

Amazon just announced a new gaming experience for developers and the Kindle Fire: GameCircle.

According to the Amazon Mobile App Distribution blog, GameCircle is a “new set of services designed to make it easier for you to create more engaging gaming experiences and grow your business on Kindle Fire,” by making “achievements, leaderboards and sync APIs accessible, simple and quick for you to integrate, and will give gamers a more seamless and entertaining in-game experience.”

Amazon offers a growing suite of developer services. Its new GameCircle is geared specifically for game developers too, which is great news for the Kindle Fire since it is facing a firestorm of Android-based content competition from the new Nexus 7. Game Circle also helps players to better experience their games through three key features —achievements, leaderboards, and sync—that will surely continue to entice folks to the dominating Android-based eReader.

Amazon’s new gaming experience clearly draws cues from Apple’s Game Center, which is an online multiplayer social gaming network. It launched in 2010 to allow iOS app users the ability to invite friends, start multiplayer games, track achievements, and compare scores on a leaderboard.

Google was looking to develop a similar system for Android, according to reports in May, but it looks like Amazon beat the gurus in Mountain View to the punch. The launch of GameCircle is timely due to rumors of a Kindle Fire 2 launch allegedly set for this summer.

Visit 9to5Google for the full story.

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Next Issue for iPad launches, offers bevy of popular magazines for just $10/month [Video]

Élyse Betters Jul 10 2012 - 1:11 pm PT

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sk079o_2FHo&feature=player_embedded]

Next Issue, a subscription-based iPad app for magazines, finally hit the App Store today after first having launched as an Android app on the Google Play store.

The sales pitch is simple: “All the magazines you love. All in one app. All yours for one low price.”

Folks need to visit NextIssue.com to create an account and start a 30-day free trial, and then they can download the app to access a bevy of titles from Conde Nast, News Corp, Hearst, Meredith, Time, and more major publishers. A few of the more enticing magazine titles include: Allure, Better Homes and Gardens, Bon Appétit, ELLE, Entertainment Weekly, Esquire, Fitness, Fortune, Glamour, GQ, InStyle, People, Popular Mechanics, Real Simple, Self, Southern Living, Sports Illustrated, The New Yorker, TIME, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and Wired.

Next Issue offers two subscription types: the $10 monthly plan only provides the top magazines, while the $15 monthly plan boasts the entire catalog with weekly selections. A quick gander through the catalog shows enhanced digital magazines, which are tablet-optimized and feature bonus videos, photography and interactive elements.

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BlueStacks now lets Android apps run on Macs

Élyse Betters Jun 28 2012 - 8:53 am PT

BlueStacks, the tool that allows Android apps to run on Windows, is now available for Macs.

The software, which is often touted as the “Parallels for Android”, now supports 17 Android apps on OS X. Pulse and Words With Friends are two of the more notable apps packaged in the launch, while high-resolution support for Retina Macs and additional apps are on the horizon.

The company attempted to court more developers—and celebrate the launch of its Mac Alpha —with a mock wedding for Android and Apple at Google I/O yesterday. The free download is available on the BlueStack’s website.

This aside is cross-posted on 9to5Google.

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iPad version of Google+ unveiled at Google I/O, coming ‘very soon’

Jordan Kahn Jun 27 2012 - 10:59 am PT

Google I/O is happening right now, and execs just showed off a new version of Google+ for tablets that will come to the iPad “very soon.”

Of course, our tablet app isn’t just bigger, like our mobile app isn’t just smaller. It’s designed with the device in mind, and it includes:

-A beautiful stream that styles content based on popularity, type and orientation

-A “lean back” Hangouts experience that’s great for the couch or common room

-Crisper text, fuller photos and easily-tappable actions like +1 and comment

You can get full coverage of the event on 9to5Google.

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Google I/O 2012 Liveblog

Élyse Betters Jun 27 2012 - 9:19 am PT

The 2012 Google I/O Developers Conference starts today at the Moscone Center West in San Francisco, Calif., with events continuing until June 29 at 4:30 p.m. PST.

For those interested in what the folks at Mountain View are announcing this morning, check out 9to5Google. Seth Weintraub is live-blogging from the event now:

Google I/O 2012 Liveblog

Here are a few vids for some of the key announcements:

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Brightcove’s App Cloud eyes dual-screen apps for Apple TV [Video]

Élyse Betters Jun 26 2012 - 7:25 am PT

[brightcove vid=1702770931001&exp3=1167390947001&surl=http://c.brightcove.com/services&pubid=1160438696001&pk=AQ~~,AAABDi-JSEE~,gimkI1WDEZt9UUqw6AtrLdMF6jk1qhL5&w=580&h=370]

Brightcove announced today that it is moving at full steam to help developers create dual-screen television apps for Apple TV using its HTML app platform.

Chief Executive Jeremy Allaire is quite outspoken about Apple’s elusive television set (which jibes with our take), but aside from sounding off about the rumored product not being an actual HDTV, he showcased how streaming high-definition content from an iOS device through Apple TV is an ideal range of interactivity for app developers to tackle.

Brightcove launched its cloud-based App Cloud platform for painlessly building mobile apps just over a year ago, but now the company is making available a free version equipped with an open source SDK and a toolkit for the dual-screen applications market.

According to TechCrunch:

It’s more or less a freemium model for app building. With App Cloud Core you can build and release as many apps as you want. But if you want features like real-time analytics, push notifications, and native ads, you can upgrade to App Cloud Pro for $99 a month. And for those who need an even more robust feature set, there’s an enterprise version for high-volume apps with custom pricing plans based upon usage.

In addition to open sourcing App Cloud, it’s also pushing one particular feature set, which could change the way we watch TV. Its App Cloud Dual-Screen Solution for Apple TV uses a set of APIs that will allow tablet and mobile users to have a truly integrated second screen experience. By leveraging Apple’s AirPlay technology, App Cloud users can create applications that use the mobile device as the search and navigation, while the Apple TV plays back video.

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Google attempts to block US iPhone & iPad shipments over 3G patents

Jordan Kahn Jun 25 2012 - 2:22 pm PT

[tweet https://twitter.com/zerohedge/status/217362407469748224]

Update: A report from Bloomberg Businessweek confirmed with some clarification. As we reported in April, the ITC will have to review Judge Pender’s previous ruling that Apple infringed on one Motorola patent related to industry standard 3G and wireless technologies. The date for that hearing is now scheduled for August 24 and could result on a block of iOS devices from Asia to the United States:

The U.S. International Trade Commission said it will review ITC Judge Thomas Pender’s findings that Apple was violating one of four Motorola Mobility patents. The commission is scheduled to issue a final decision on Aug. 24, and has the power to block devices made in Asia from entering the U.S.

According to several tweets from financial analyst @zerohedge, Google is apparently attempting to block shipments of the iPhone and iPad in the U.S. related to 3G patents. We do not have any more information at the moment, but we will keep you updated as the story unfolds…

[tweet https://twitter.com/zerohedge/status/217362478374457345]

CNBC reported a Reuters story of the same nature.

[tweet https://twitter.com/CNBC/status/217364425290686464]

(Developing)
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Samsung opens ‘Easy Phone Sync’ app to help iOS users move to Galaxy products

Élyse Betters Jun 22 2012 - 9:47 am PT

Samsung wants you.

The South Korea-based Company is making it easier than ever to jump ship from iOS to its Galaxy line with the Easy Phone Sync app. The software is free to anyone purchasing a Samsung Galaxy device, and it quickly installs on any Galaxy product, PC, or Mac.

In the most straightforward manner, it transfers media, contacts, content—and all that other stuff packed into handhelds—from iTunes to an Android-powered tablet or phone by Samsung. Users can also manage their content through iTunes to maintain preferences during the sync process.

For more information on Samsung’s plan to pilfer iPhone users from Apple, check out its newest marketing strategy that 9to5Google detailed earlier this week.

The press release is below.

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Google accelerating development of Siri competitor for Android

Jordan Kahn Jun 19 2012 - 7:14 am PT

The Wall Street Journal reported that Google is accelerating its plans to launch a competitor to Siri. 9to5Google has the full story:

We have heard several reports in the past that Google was working on various evolutions of its Voice Actions platform for Android. Back in December we heard of “Project Majel”, which according to reports is the codename for a new voice-controlled assistant app similar to Siri. In March TechCrunch reported on a similar project dubbed Google Assistant. According to a new report from the Wall Street Journal, Google is accelerating its plans to launch a competitor to Apple’s Siri…

Ex-AT&T employee leaked Apple (and RIM) sales numbers to traders

Seth Weintraub Jun 18 2012 - 2:02 pm PT

In case you ever thought the U.S. stock market is an even playing field:

“I provided insider information concerning AT&T’s sales of Apple’s iPhone and RIM’s (Research In Motion Ltd) Blackberry products, as well as other handset set devices sold through AT&T distribution channels,” Ebrahim told U.S. District Judge Paul Oetken in Manhattan.

AT&T’s Marty Richter said:

“We took this matter very seriously and cooperated fully with the authorities,” said AT&T spokesman Marty Richtman. “The conduct alleged was clearly against our code of business conduct, and Mr. Ebrahim is no longer an AT&T employee.”

Apple to grab portion of Baidu ad sales in iPhone

Élyse Betters Jun 14 2012 - 6:37 am PT

Apple announced earlier this week at the Worldwide Developers Conference that Baidu will come to the iPhone in the iOS 6 software update, but it just came to light that the Cupertino, Calif.-based Company plans to seize a portion of the China-based search engine’s advertising sales as part of the deal.

According to Bloomberg:

The revenue-sharing agreement with Apple follows similar accords between Baidu and manufacturers of handsets that use Google Inc. (GOOG)’s Android operating system, Wang Jing, vice president at Beijing-based Baidu, said in a phone interview today. He declined to disclose the commercial terms.

Apple said this week it will offer Baidu’s search-engine as an option for iPhone and iPad customers, and add Chinese- language support for its Siri voice technology, as the world’s most valuable company tailors its products for Chinese consumers. Baidu, which fields about 80 percent of China’s Web searches, is prepared to incur costs to add smartphone users by offering services such as music streaming for free, Wang said.

Eric Wen, who rates Baidu buy at Mirae Asset Securities, told Bloomberg that Baidu previously shared revenue with websites to encourage traffic for the search engine, while it now has a focus on sharing with smartphone manufacturers. He further estimated that Baidu distributed less than 10 percent of its generated smartphone revenue to those manufacturers.

The deal reflects Baidu’s need to invest in the mobile industry instead of computers, because more people in China are accessing the Internet through smartphones. It is worth noting that Baidu is already baked into 80 percent of Android devices.

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‘Rage of Bahamut’ game reaches No. 1 on iOS and Android, pulls similar revenue from both platforms

Élyse Betters Jun 13 2012 - 10:31 am PT

Japan-based DeNA announced that its “Rage of Bahamut” app became the No. 1 grossing game on both iOS and Android yesterday, while earning roughly the same revenue per day from each mobile platform.

The game’s success pokes holes in recent findings from Flurry, which claimed revenue generated per active user is four times greater on iOS than Android. The analytics firm noted that for every $1 earned on iOS, a developer could expect to earn about 24-cents on Android.

“Contrary to what we read, we’ve been very happy with Android monetization. There is not a big discrepancy between the two now,” said DeNa Director Neil Young to TechCrunch.

Rage of Bahamut is a free trading card game that lets users battle either through a live single or multiplayer action mode against a “database of battle hungry foes.” It is on Apple’s App Store and boasts a 4.5-star rating on nearly 4,000 reviews as of press time.

TechCrunch further elaborated:

The game had the top slot on both platforms yesterday, but Kabam’s Kingdoms of Camelot took back the #1 iOS slot in the U.S. this morning. […]Young says Rage of Bahamut is seeing some impressive revenue numbers per day per user. In casual games, you usually see an average revenue per daily active user of a couple cents to 10 cents per day on mobile. The better games can get to 15 to 25 cents per day per daily active user. But Young says Rage of Bahamut has been able to do 4 or 5 times that. He didn’t say how much revenue overall the title is earning, but we’ve seen dual platform hits like Draw Something earn anywhere between $5 and 10 million per month through in-app purchases and advertising.

Those numbers are welcomed news for developers with growing concerns about mobile platforms lacking solid business models that encourage monetization.

This article is cross-posted on 9to5Google.

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Apple won’t stop June 21 Galaxy S III launch

Jordan Kahn Jun 13 2012 - 8:34 am PT

When we checked in last Friday on the ongoing Apple vs. Samsung cases in the United States, Apple’s lawyers were threatening Samsung with a temporary restraining order on the Galaxy S III to stop sales of the device before its June 21 release date. Apple was hoping Judge Lucy Koh would add the Galaxy S III to existing preliminary injunction requests that Apple previously made on other Galaxy products. However, according to a report from Reuters, Judge Koh ruled this week that Apple’s requests would “overload her calendar” given a July 30 trial date in the previous Galaxy cases is already set.

Apple can still request a ban on the Galaxy S III with a separate hearing date, but it likely will not be able to do so in enough time to block the device from launching later this month:

U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California, effectively dashed Apple’s hopes of stopping the launch of Samsung Electronics Co Ltd’s new Galaxy S III smartphone, which also runs on Android. Koh had said Apple’s push to get a court order blocking the June 21 launch would overload her calendar… Koh last week said Apple could ask for a temporary restraining order against the Galaxy S III phone, but that would likely delay the trial over a Galaxy tablet and other smartphones. In her order on Monday, the judge said Apple would have to request a new hearing date if it wanted to stop sales of the Galaxy S III phone. That likely would not take place before the phone’s scheduled launch. Apple has not said what its next move will be.

Apple’s lawyers threaten Samsung with temporary restraining order to stop Galaxy S III sales (9to5mac.com)

Facebook’s iOS App Center going live tonight?

Jordan Kahn Jun 7 2012 - 10:28 am PT

[tweet https://twitter.com/sondheim4dinner/status/210812155879096320]

Update: Facebook confirmed to TechCrunch it has been “testing it with a small percentage of users” since it launched last month, but the social network has “no further details to announce at this time.”

The image above is a screenshot just posted by TechCrunch. A reader who claims to be seeing the Facebook App Center already live in the iOS app sent it. As noted in the report, Facebook has an “app-themed” event in San Francisco tonight where we could see more of the App Center. The company announced the new HTML5-based App Center last month and said the iOS and Android Facebook apps would have access to the app marketplace in the coming weeks.

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Report: For every 7 iOS apps built, there are 3 for Android

Élyse Betters Jun 7 2012 - 9:29 am PT

Analytics firm Flurry has dissected developer ratios for Apple and Google’s mobile platforms as their respective annual conferences are on the horizon, and research findings show the two companies boast a joint market cap of about $750 billion.

The study compared developer support for iOS versus Android by examining data collected from more than 70,000 companies across more than 185,000 mobile apps. The bar graph below illustrates developers’ loyalty to Apple: For every 10 apps that developers build, seven are for the iOS operating system.

“While Google made some gains in Q1 2012, edging up to over 30% for the first time in a year, we believe this is largely due to seasonality, as Apple traditionally experiences a spike in developer support leading up to the holiday season. Apple’s business has more observable seasonality,” explained Flurry in a blog post.

Flurry further cited iOS as the more attractive platform to developers due to its stronghold on the tablet market share. The pie chart below represents a sample size exceeding 5 billion total user sessions. It reveals the Galaxy Tab and Amazon Kindle Fire “hold very distant second and third places in terms of consumer usage.”

Another comparison on revenue generated by top apps for both Android and iOS uncovered the difference in revenue generated per active user is four times greater on iOS than Android. Flurry noted that for every $1 earned on iOS, a developer could expect to earn about 24-cents on Android.

Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference is June 11 to June 15 in San Francisco, while Google’s I/O conference is June 27 to June 29 in the same California tech-hub city.

Visit Flurry for the full run-down and more graphs.

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Apple seeks US preliminary injunction against Samsung’s Galaxy S III

Élyse Betters Jun 6 2012 - 1:31 pm PT

Apple put forward a second California litigation against South Korea-based Samsung earlier this week when it sought the court’s consent to add the Android-powered Galaxy S III smartphone to its motion for a preliminary injunction against the Galaxy Nexus.

According to FOSS Patents:

Apple made this move approximately 20 hours after I wrote about the Galaxy S III being “the obvious next target”. In my blog post I speculated that Apple might bring a preliminary injunction motion against it, possibly after awaiting tomorrow’s preliminary injunction hearing. Apple decided to forge ahead now. Apple is on the offensive against Android. Earlier this week it filed an ITC complaint requesting an immediate import ban of 29 allegedly-infringing HTC devices. There’s an important overlap: the “data tapping” patent that Apple is seeking to enforce against HTC’s current generation of products is one of two patents Apple is using against the S III.

Apple purchased the S III in the United Kingdom, where Samsung launched it on May 29. The U.S. launch date is June 21 — precisely two weeks after the preliminary injunction hearing.

Apple’s motion notes that “[a]ccording to press reports, Samsung has already sold over nine million preorders of the Galaxy S III; indeed, the Galaxy S III has been reported to be the most extensively preordered piece of consumer electronics in history.”

Apple filed the first preliminary injunction motion against the Galaxy Nexus in February over four disputed patents. The Cupertino, Calif.-based Company’s requested in its latest motion that Samsung withhold the launch of the device’s successor in the United States until the court rules on the preliminary injunction request.

Samsung replied to the motion this afternoon, contending Apple cannot continue to add to its record for the Galaxy Nexus:

“If Apple wishes to seek an injunction against the Galaxy S III, the Court should require Apple to file a new motion and allow the parties to develop a full factual record on all four factors. Accordingly, the Court should reject Apple’s motion to amend its current notice of motion for a preliminary injunction.”

This article is cross-posted at 9to5Google.

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Oracle sues Lodsys, attempts to invalidate patents

Jordan Kahn Jun 5 2012 - 8:49 am PT

Texas-based shell company Lodsys has often been accused of being a patent troll for its various attempts to take legal action against app developers and companies that it claims uses its technologies. Most notably, the company last year attempted to get iOS and Android developers to pay royalties over in-app purchasing before Apple’s legal team eventually intervened on behalf of developers. Now, after recent threats from Lodsys to Oracle customers such as Walgreens over a web-chat technology, Oracle is suing Lodsys in an attempt to invalidate its patents. GigaOM reported:

Oracle has decided to weigh in because Lodsys “has repeatedly threatened numerous Oracle customers” such as Walgreens over the use of a web-chat feature Lodsys claims to own. Oracle is asking the court to declare that the four patents Lodsys is using to bully its customers are not new inventions. The patents, including US Patent 5,999,908 (“customer based design module”), came to prominence last year when Lodsys used them to sue Best Buy, Adidas and others.

Judge rules Steve Jobs’ thermonuclear comments can be used in Motorola trial

Jake Smith Jun 2 2012 - 3:49 pm PT

Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs was known for being vocal when it came to talking about Google’s Android. Comments from Jobs referring to Android as a stolen product and vowing to destroy it even made it into Walter Isaacson’s official biography about the chief. Now, a judge presiding in a patent case with Motorola ruled that he would allow the comments to be referenced in trial, which goes against requests from Apple’s lawyers. Reuters reported (via GigaOM):

Steve Jobs gave a lot of juicy quotes before he died, and Apple Inc has failed to keep some of them out of an upcoming patent trial against Google’s Motorola Mobility unit, according to a court ruling.

A couple of examples:

“I will spend my last dying breath if I need to, and I will spend every penny of Apple’s $40 billion in the bank, to right this wrong.”
“I’m going to destroy Android, because it’s a stolen product. I’m willing to go thermonuclear war on this.”

Twig: the most versatile iPhone charging cord/tripod hits Kickstarter

Élyse Betters May 29 2012 - 2:57 pm PT

Apple’s medium-length, white docking cable is widely known for its, how would one say, cumbersome functionality when attached to iDevices.

It comes in every iPhone, iPad, iWhatever box, and it is in desperate need of an update. Sure, reports show the next iPhone will sport a mini-dock connector, so maybe a new charging solution is already around the corner. But, in the meantime, third-party firms are thankfully developing interesting alternatives. Twig, for instance, is a newly launched Kickstarter project that certainly caught our eye.

Jason Hilbourne created a docking cable—err thing—that lacks a cord, can fit into a pocket, bends like Gumby, and sports a variety of color options. No tangle, no mess, and no headache. Oh, and the best part is that this little doohickey also doubles as a tripod. Go watch the video on the Kickstarter page to see how Hilbourne developed the product before deciding upon the last iteration. Those who are interested can get Twig at the $18 contribution level.

In related Kickstarter/docking cable news, Dave Hakkens has developed the Plugbook. Yes, it is in the shape of a book, so it can hide between other books. However, 10 feet of cable hides inside. Interesting, eh?

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PhotoBeamer: Imaging tech company Scalado introduces first iOS app; beam photos to any browser

Jordan Kahn May 29 2012 - 5:19 am PT

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_dJOvJQv8o&feature=youtu.be]

You may not be familiar with the name Scalado, but there is a good chance you have used one of its imagining technologies without even knowing it. The company’s photo applications helped power camera and image apps for over 10 years, and they are currently baked in to 1.5 billion phones (adding about 500 million mobile phones every year). Most recently, we revealed Scalado’s Rewind technology is integrated into BB10’s camera app, and Scalado is introducing its first iOS app today called “PhotoBeamer“, which we have tested over the past month.

While it usually works directly with OEMs, the company recently released its first app directly to users late last month as an Android-only photo viewer called “Scalado Album“. The new iOS app, PhotoBeamer, serves to quickly and wirelessly display photos stored on your iOS device to any display with a web browser.

We already have a ton of third-party apps for transferring and viewing photos from iOS devices to a bigger screen. Even Apple’s own Photo Stream feature makes things easy for accessing photos on your other iOS devices and almost as easy on your Mac, and iPhoto’s beam feature allows for wireless sharing of images between iOS devices. Getting images to our other devices is not a problem, but PhotoBeamer’s zero-configuration, no registration, and extremely snappy, patented imaging tech might make it your go-to app.

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NYTimes: Facebook is hiring Apple iPhone hardware and software engineers to build its own phone

9to5 Staff May 27 2012 - 12:36 pm PT

Stop us if you have heard this one before: Facebook is building its own smartphone, claim “employees of Facebook and several engineers who have been sought out by recruiters there, as well as people briefed on Facebook’s plans,” according to the New York Times.

The company has already hired more than half a dozen former Apple software and hardware engineers who worked on the iPhone, and one who worked on the iPad, the employees and those briefed on the plans said.

This is the third effort for Facebook, according to the report, with a HTC joint venture codenamed “Buffy” still in progress. HTC released a set of Android phones last year named “Salsa” and “Status” with deep Facebook integration on the way to hugely disappointing sales and earnings.

One engineer who formerly worked at Apple and worked on the iPhone said he met with Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s chief executive, who then peppered him with questions about the inner workings of smartphones. It did not sound like idle intellectual curiosity, the engineer said; Mr. Zuckerberg asked about intricate details, including the types of chips used, he said. Another former Apple hardware engineer was recruited by a Facebook executive and was told about the company’s hardware explorations.

Apple was mere betas away from releasing iOS 4 with Facebook integration—the way Twitter is currently built into iOS. Something at the last minute, perhaps related to Facebook pulling support for Ping, made Apple pull the plug. Apple then integrated with Twitter a year later.

Facebook recently announced a cross-platform web App Center for mobile device application distribution that is aimed at building a smartphone platform, an updated Messenger app with read receipts, a Pages Manager, as well as a specialized photo application that replicated features of Instagram (which it purchased just weeks before).

Facebook is approaching 1 billion users globally with more than half of them being mobile. Apple CEO Tim Cook expressed appreciation for Facebook and its founder Mark Zuckerberg.

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iPad claims another victim: Cisco kills Cius Android tablet due to BYOD (read: i-P-a-d)

Jordan Kahn May 25 2012 - 10:01 am PT

From 9to5Google: Cisco is killing off its Android-based Cius business tablet less than a year after launching due to the “BYOD trend.” Translation: iPad:

There’s no denying iOS devices and cheaper Android solutions are taking the place of Cius. Recent studies show Apple with 97 percent of tablets in the enterprise, while 94 percent of the Fortune 500 arecurrently testing or deploying iPad. The result is no further investment in the Cius tablet line and only limited support for what is currently available. The company will instead “double down” on Jabber and WebEx

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