Tim Cook is continuing something of a whirlwind tour of Asia, after beginning the trip in Japan earlier in the week. From there he headed to Singapore and is currently in Thailand…
The Apple Watch, originally launched in nine countries, hits seven more today – with a further rollout on July 17th. Apple has so far added the July 17th date to its websites in the Netherlands, Sweden and Thailand.
The countries going live today include Italy, Mexico, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland and Taiwan …
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Line, best known for its messaging app, has launched its own streaming music service in Japan, ahead of Apple Music’s release. Available on iOS and Android, Line Music offers a two-month free trial, then costs 1,000 yen ($8) per month, with a half-price option offering up to 20 hours per month.
While Line may have beaten Apple to the punch in Japan, it is lagging some way behind on tracks. Although TNW says the company plans to hit 30M tracks by next year, matching Apple, it currently has only around 1.5M – comprising a mix of local and international artists. The service is available only in Japan and Thailand.
A separate report suggests that Apple Music may launch in India at the heavily-discounted price of 120 Indian Rupees – equivalent to just $2/month. Other streaming music services in India charge similar sums, reflecting far lower average incomes in the country.
Apple has announced that it will be rolling out the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus to an additional 36 countries this month, bringing the total number of markets to 69. The latest rollout will begin with India and Monaco alongside China on Friday.
Apple today announced that iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, the biggest advancements in iPhone history, will arrive in 36 additional countries and territories across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America and Africa by the end of October. iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus will be available in a total of 69 countries and territories by the end of the month and are on track to be available in more than 115 countries by the end of the year, making this the fastest iPhone rollout ever …
Ahead of Apple’s new iPhone event on September 9th, Thailand’s National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (that nation’s version of what we know in the U.S. as the FCC) has approved two new iPhone models for sale in the country. The approval was confirmed on Twitter by the country’s Secretary General for these matters, and a local report indicates the model numbers for two new devices: A1524 & A1586. Thailand’s Secretary General spoke about the matter in a video from earlier this week:
Update: Apple says iBooks Textbooks are available in all countries with a paid iBooks store and that a full updated list of countries with access to iTunes U Course Manager can be found on its enrollment website.
Apple just put out a press release announcing that it’s expanding availability of its educational content– iBooks Textbooks and the iTunes U Course Manager– into new international markets. Starting today, both of the services are rolling out to new countries in Asia, Latin America, and Europe, bringing the total number of countries with textbooks up to 51 and the total number with access to the iTunes U Course Manager to 70. Apple also shared some stats on the growth of iBooks Textbooks, which now cover 100 percent of the US high school core curriculum:
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Earlier this week we told you that Apple had announced an upcoming sale in many of its Asian online stores to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year taking place at the end of January. The sales see Apple offering discounts in China, Thailand, Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Malaysia online stores similar to deals on offer for Black Friday in the US and other countries.
This year Apple is offering cash discounts on the usual products— up to $40 off iPads, $100 off Macs, and smaller discounts on iPods and Smart Covers— it’s also offering a rare discount on iPhones at around $50 off both the iPhone 5s and 5c. In addition, a much larger selection of accessories are on sale compared to the company’s Black Friday sale including popular products from Parrot, Apogee, Belkin, LaCie, and Apple.
Earlier this month Apple launched the new iPad in South Korea and 11 other countries, and today the company continues its international launch of the device with an additional nine countries. At Apple’s Q2 2012 earnings call this week, the company reported iPad sales of 11.8 million for the quarter and $6.6 billion in revenue from iPad and accessories. It also reported tremendous growth for iPhone in China, which is one country that is not included in today’s international rollout:
Beginning on Friday, April 27, the new iPad will be available in Colombia, Estonia, India, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, South Africa and Thailand.
Apple just published a press release that confirms the new iPad will launch in 12 additional countries Friday, April 20. Along with the 12 countries listed below, Apple confirmed an April 27 international launch date for nine more countries:
In addition to South Korea, the new iPad also will be available beginning on Friday, April 20 in Brunei, Croatia, Cyprus, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Malaysia, Panama, St Maarten, Uruguay and Venezuela. Beginning on Friday, April 27, the new iPad will be available in Colombia, Estonia, India, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, South Africa and Thailand.
Go past the break for the full press release.
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Update: The stores appear to be back online now, and while the China/Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand stores have access to Red Friday deals, the others don’t. As for discounts, most products, including iPads, MacBooks, and iMacs appear to be on sale for in between 5% and 10% off. For everyone else, 9to5 readers can still get some of the best prices on Macs in the U.S. through our discount code at MacMall.
While we have not confirmed the exact reason, it looks like around 13 Apple online stores worldwide are currently down. Among them: China, Australia, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.
There is a good possibility Apple is updating these websites to reflect the ‘Year of the Dragon’ Jan. 6 Red Friday shopping event that is expected to land in China/Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, and possibly the other countries with online stores currently down. We will keep you posted if we notice any changes when they come back online.
Live from Apple Q4 2011 earnings call, Tim Cook is answering questions from the press and just discussed, among other things, his thoughts on Siri, patents disputes, and the disaster in Thailand.
Of course Cook was asked to comment about Siri and did so using the words “amazing” and “incredible” calling it a “profound innovation” and saying, “over time…many, many people will use it in a substantial way”.
Talking on patent disputes, Cook of course wouldn’t discuss specific cases but did note:
“We spend a lot of time and money and resource on coming up with incredible innovation…we dont like it when someone else takes those”, he continued, “unfortunately we’ve been pushed into the court system as a remedy.”
When asked to talk about the potential unibody enclosure shortage we reported yesterday, he mentioned it’s being treated as a concern and that Apple is “currently investigating”. He also talked about the recent disaster in Thailand and its potential impact (quote via This is my next):
