Tim Cook

In an interview with TIME, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has described Tim Cook’s comments on ad-supported businesses as “ridiculous,” and suggested that Apple’s products are over-priced.

Zuckerberg was referring to comments Cook made back in September about Apple’s approach to security and privacy, when Cook said:

A few years ago, users of Internet services began to realize that when an online service is free, you’re not the customer. You’re the product. 

While Cook was taking a shot at Google without specifically naming the company, the comment could apply equally well to Facebook, which has the same need to monetize its subscribers … 
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Apple CEO Tim Cook today announced via his Twitter account that Apple has received a 100% score on HRC’s Corporate Equality Index for the 13th year in a row. Apple once again makes the list put together by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, which rates U.S. workplaces based on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality:
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Fortune has somehow named Google CEO Larry Page its 2014 Business person of the Year beating out rival Apple CEO Tim Cook who earns the number 2 spot (despite stock prices) on Fortune’s list of 50 executives.
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The Wall Street Journal has posted the full-length video of its recent interview with Apple CEO Tim Cook, in which he discusses about a wide range of topics including the Apple Watch, Apple Pay, doing a TV the right way and more. The roughly half-hour interview took place at the WSJ.D Live global technology conference in October.
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Apple is seeking to cement its business position in China for the long-term with an expansion of its Cupertino-based Apple University program to the region, according to a person with knowledge of the plans. Apple Vice President and Dean of Apple University Joel Podolny is currently interviewing candidates for a new Dean of Apple University position for China, according to the source.

Started in 2008, Apple University is an extensive and growing program within corporate Apple that trains mid-level employees and managers on the decisions made by Steve Jobs and other key executives throughout the company’s resurgence. Jobs created the program alongside former Yale School of Business Dean Podolny in order to keep the culture of Apple alive well beyond the lifetime of executives key to Apple’s early success.

The expansion of Apple University to China will mark a key step in Apple’s history as a global company. It will be the first time Apple has fully expanded the exclusive program to another region, indicating that it wants to extend its presence in China beyond mostly just sales and operations, like it has done in the United States. Apple has previously offered a minimal amount of courses in other regions and has flown-in professors. With many Apple suppliers headquartered in China, it is likely that a notable portion of the Apple University classes in China will be geared toward product engineering and manufacturing matters…

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Apple is gearing up to issue another bond offering this week, with a conference call with investors reportedly scheduled today, according to reports this morning from Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal. Apple hasn’t announced that it is holding an investor call today as of yet, but the announcement will likely be posted to Apple’s Investor Relations website if it is indeed happening. According to the WSJ, this bond offering will be the first from Apple to involve the euro currency:

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The Apple Watch’s launch is scheduled to occur in the “spring,” according to Apple Senior Vice President of Retail and Online Stores Angela Ahrendts, later in 2015 than some had originally anticipated. Ahrendts stated the timeframe to retail employees in a video message, a transcript of which was provided by a source. While explaining that employees need to conserve energy for upcoming shopping seasons, Ahrendts stated, “we’re going into the holidays, we’ll go into Chinese New Year, and then we’ve got a new watch launch coming in the spring:”

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In an essay published on Bloomberg’s website, Apple CEO Tim Cook has publicly come out as gay. Although his sexuality wasn’t really a secret, this is the first time he has officially confirmed his sexual orientation. Cook says he has relaxed this aspect of privacy to help others as part of Apple’s efforts against discrimination. The essay can be read in full at Bloomberg Businessweek.

At the same time, I believe deeply in the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, who said: “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’ ” I often challenge myself with that question, and I’ve come to realize that my desire for personal privacy has been holding me back from doing something more important. That’s what has led me to today.

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Apple CEO Tim Cook clarified the recent decision to quietly remove the iPod classic from sale earlier this year during a talk tonight at Wall Street Journal’s WSJD Live conference. According to the executive, some parts needed to manufacture the device were no longer available, and the cost of engineering a new version that didn’t require those parts wasn’t worth the effort due to low user demand.

The device vanished without a mention from Apple’s website last month following a redesign of the company’s website immediately after the iPhone 6 debut. It was the last device Apple still sold that used the “legacy” 30-pin connector, while all other iPod models have moved onto the Lightning connector.

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Apple chief executive Tim Cook confirmed just moments ago in a live interview at The Wall Street Journal: Digital conference that Apple Pay received over 1 million activations in the first 72 hours following its launch last week. Cook added that the mobile payments platform is bigger than all contactless competitors combined, presumably including rival service Google Wallet.
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On the final day of Tim Cook’s four-day visit to China, he told state news agency Xinhuanet that Apple Pay was top of the list of things the company wanted to take to China.

“China is a really key market for us,” said the CEO. “Everything we do, we are going to work it here. Apple Pay is on the top of the list.”

Cook said that Apple would be working to understand the steps needed to bring the new service to China before meeting with local carriers, banks and merchants …

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Tim Cook noted during Monday’s earnings call that Apple was “investing like crazy” in China, but he took the opportunity of his current visit to the country to put a specific number on the company’s retail expansion plans: it will open 25 new Apple Stores in Greater China within the next two years. Greater China includes both Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Speaking to local media, Cook also said that China would in time become Apple’s biggest market, reports the WSJ … 
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Two days after evidence emerged of a phishing attack on iCloud, allegedly due to the Chinese government firewall redirecting traffic to a fake login page, the Chinese state news agency Xinhuanet is reporting a meeting in Beijing between Tim Cook and Chinese vice premier Ma Kai.

Chinese Vice Premier Ma Kai and Apple Inc. CEO Tim Cook on Wednesday exchanged views on protection of users’ information during their meeting in Zhongnanhai, the central authority’s seat. They also exchanged views on strengthening cooperation in information and communication fields.

The Chinese government censors access to the Internet by deploying a country-wide firewall which blocks certain sites and which can redirect traffic from sites the government dislikes to officially-sanctioned ones …

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While yesterday’s iPad numbers don’t look great – down 12.5% year-on-year, the third successive quarter in which sales have fallen – Tim Cook remains upbeat about the product, stating that it “has a great future” and that its long-term prospects are more important than “individual 90-day clicks.”

Quartz‘s Dan Frommer pulled together some of the things Cook has to say about the device, and while you’d clearly expect Apple’s CEO to put the best possible spin on things, he makes some reasonable arguments … 
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Following today’s release of Apple’s quarterly earnings report, Tim Cook has sent a letter to employees praising the company’s growth and the dedication of Apple employees to the development of new iPhones, iPads, and Retina iMac. Cook calls the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus launch the “most successful” in the history of the device.

Cook also talks about the Apple Pay launch and reiterates the points made during today’s earnings call, saying that the purpose of introducing a payment system was to ensure that customers have a “simple, secure and private way to pay.” He also commends the software development teams on the consistent cross-platform experience introduced in iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite.

Cook closes by saying that he will be traveling to Beijing to talk to employees in a meeting that will be recorded and posted the company’s internal website. Employees from across Apple will be able to submit questions beforehand to be asked during the Q&A session.

You can read the full letter below:

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