Cannes Lions festival

Two 'Cannes Lions festival' stories June 2014

Product Red thanks Apple for partnership, clarifies Bono’s comments at Cannes Lions appearance

Bono, Shane Smith, and Jony Ive at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Cannes.Lions.Festival.of.Creativity/photos/a.10153429012248539.1073741859.62629358538/10153445276373539/?type=3&permPage=1" target="_blank">Cannes Lions Festival</a>

Earlier this week, we noted Apple SVP of Design Jony Ive and U2 pop star Bono made a joint appearance at the Cannes Lions Festival to discuss Apple and Product Red’s partnership in raising funds for AIDS/HIV programs in Africa. During that appearance, Bono pointed out with Jony Ive on stage that Apple does not prominently display the Product Red logo on the products that support the effort, according to AdWeek’s account of the event (the full video has not been made available and the clip showing Bono relaying another story on Steve Jobs has since been made private):

“Where’s the (Red) branding?” he asked Ive. “Nobody can see that. This is modesty run amok. This is the Apple way. They’re like a religious cult.”

Bono began that bit saying that Apple is “f*cking annoyingly quiet about the fact they’ve raised $75 million.” Product Red followed up today on Bono’s position, though, toning down the nature of Bono’s comments in a blog post thanking Apple for its partnership and the success of Product Red:
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Cannes Lions Festival app will use iBeacons to let attendees network

Like it did for SXSW, Tribeca Film Festival, and the Olympic Games, event app platform Eventbase will be in charge of rolling out iBeacons at the upcoming Cannes Lions 2014 Festival that will provide attendees with unique features via the event’s official iOS app. This time around, rather than speeding up check-ins or interactive audience features, the company is allowing attendees to network with an “Around Me” feature in the event’s app that displays nearby attendees using iBeacons. The festival is the same one that Apple’s Jony Ive and Bono will appear at on June 21 for a rare interview about the (RED) charity organization.

The feature will integrate with LinkedIn profiles and allow attendees to send messages and connect instantly if they’ve opted in. The app will also be sending out other targeted notifications using iBeacons:

Eventbase co-founder Jeff Sinclair says the Cannes Lions app combines the power of iBeacon technology with tight LinkedIn integration to allow attendees to see who is around them, read their profile and immediately reach out to them through the app… “We’re excited to be pioneering the use of iBeacon technology for attendee-to-attendee networking,” says Sinclair. “The ability to find out more about the people around you and instantly connect has the potential to transform the event experience entirely.” Eventbase is partnering with mobile relationship management platform Urban Airship to deliver highly targeted and relevant messages via iBeacon-triggered push notifications to attendees during the event, including those visiting the festival’s Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) Tent — a showcase for mobile, creativity and marketing innovation.

Last week Apple introduced some new features that it hopes will improve the iBeacon experience including indoor mapping features coming for developers in iOS 8. The company explained the new indoor navigation and indoor positioning features will make for an even richer iBeacon experience by allowing, for example, event spaces to guide users to iBeacon-powered exhibits using the indoor location features.