Former Zune exec: music biz was “hooked on the drug” Apple was supplying

Robbie Bach, a former Microsoft executive who led the company’s devices and entertainment division, yesterday shared some surprisingly frank observations on Apple, the iPod business and Apple’s “incredible” execution that, under the guidance of late co-founder Steve Jobs, saw it rise to become the world’s most-valued corporation…
Robbie Bach was in charge of Microsoft’s entertainment division and had overseen the launch of the original Xbox that put the Windows maker on the gaming console map. He also led the division through the launch of the Zune music player.

In an interview with Geekwire, Bach shared some interesting observations regarding the iPod vs. Zune rivalry and the way Apple goes about its business.

In retrospect, he said, Microsoft’s Zune strategy wasn’t a match for Apple’s aggressive approach to the music industry. He would “skip portable media players completely” if he could do Zune over again and instead would charge the Windows Mobile team with the creation of “the coolest music service for your phones ever”.

He admitted:

The portable music market is gone and it was already leaving when we started. We just weren’t brave enough, honestly, and we ended up chasing Apple with a product that actually wasn’t a bad product, but it was still a chasing product, and there wasn’t a reason for somebody to say, oh, I have to go out and get that thing.

Rumor: iOS 6 code-named Sundance, could bring third-party Siri support

Rumors regarding the next major version of Apple’s mobile operating system have really picked up over the past few days. And considering that WWDC is now less than a month away, that’s really not surprising.

You see, Apple is expected to show off iOS 6 (or at least a preview of it) during its Developer Conference next month. And everyone in the tech world is trying to guess what new features it will bring…
As most of you probably know by now, a redesigned Maps application certainly seems to be on the menu. 9to5Mac broke the news yesterday morning, and AllThingsD was able to later confirm it.

Then late last night, TechCrunch‘s MG Siegler added to the report. And not only was he too able to verify with a source that a revamped Maps app was on the way, but he’s also learned a few other details:

“First of all, iOS 6, which is expected to be shown off in developer preview form at WWDC in June, is internally codenamed “Sundance.”

We have no reason to believe this is incorrect given that one, it falls in line with previous iOS code-names, and two, MG has a fairly accurate track record with Apple information. He continues:

…there have been whispers backing up Gruber’s assertion that Siri APIs are another possibility [for iOS 6]. There have also been whispers about Siri for iPad finally coming. Specifically, I’ve been lead to believe it’s more of a UI issue than anything else.”

Nothing too crazy here. Jailbreakers have been integrating Siri into apps and tweaks for several months now. And the new iPad already has Dictation. But Siegler doesn’t stop with iOS 6 intel.

“There is also some chatter about iTunes 11. It has been a not-so-well-kept secret that Apple has been trying to completely re-write the software for a long time. There have been several false starts and scrapping of projects. It’s believed (but far from confirmed) that Apple may be zeroing in on the major revamp they’re after. And a part of that may be both Apple and the labels warming to a full-on Spotify competitor…”

We’ve been hearing iTunes 11 talk for almost a year now, so we’ll believe it when we see it. But the Spotify aspect does sound intriguing, especially since it jives with our report from last summer regarding the software.

It looks like, however, that iOS will be the star of WWDC 2012. And after adding more than 200 features last year, it’ll certainly be interesting to see what Apple has cooked up for its mobile platform this time around.

iOS 6 said to replace Google Maps with Apple’s own cutting-edge 3D Maps

If a new rumor is to be believed, iOS 6 – the next major release of Apple’s iOS operating system powering the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad - will forgo Google Maps in favor of Apple’s in-house mapping service based on incredible 3D maps. The headline new feature will still be called Maps, but this is where all similarities end.

The iPhone maker is rumored to innovate Google-backed maps in iOS with an awesome 3D technology based on a declassified missile targeting technology. This in-house solution is said to offer “a much cleaner, faster and more reliable experience”. More importantly, Apple’s own mapping service will reduce their dependency on Google.

Moving from a Google Maps backend to an Apple backend is also important given that the two companies have been at odds ever since the search Goliath decided to challenge the iPhone with its Android platform…
Mark Gurman, writing for 9to5Mac, has the story, based on “trusted sources”:

Apple has an incredible headline feature in development for iOS 6: a completely in-house maps application. Apple will drop the Google Maps program running on iOS since 2007 in favor for a new Maps app with an Apple backend.

As for a new 3D mode, it’s said to be enabled by clicking a 3D button inside the reworked Maps app. The app itself is said to be designed in a similar manner to the current iOS Maps program on the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch which takes advantage of the Google Maps backend.

Pocket 4.1 is out with new features and UI enhancements

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Pocket, it’s essentially the reincarnation of Read It Later. The service allows you to bookmark and organize your favorite articles, videos and other web content for later viewing.

About a month ago, the Read It Later team released Pocket 4.0 for the iPhone and iPad — the first app released under the new brand. And while the client was great before, it just got a whole lot better…
What’s new in Pocket version 4.1:

■Swipe left or right to enable Page Flipping to read one page at a time
■Improved Dark theme and new Sepia theme with a focus on contrast and readability
■Increased maximum font size
■Dark Theme throughout the app so you can use it comfortably at night
■Automatic detection of URLs copied to the clipboard so they can be added directly to Pocket
■Support for additional video sites, including TED and Devour
If you use any ‘read later’ service, and haven’t tried Pocket yet, I strongly urge you to check it out. The app, for both the iPhone and iPad, is extremely sharp. And the price is right too. You can download Pocket from the App Store, for free.

What do you think of Pocket?

FTC to fine Google millions of dollars over Safari breach

Last month, the Federal Trade Commission was said to be investigating claims that Google was illegally bypassing privacy settings in Safari. The Mountain View company was caught using a loophole in the browser to allow it to track users’ online activities without their consent.

If confirmed, the FTC was expected to slap Google with a hefty fine. And it certainly looks like that will hold true, as Bloomberg is out with a new report claiming that the Trade Commission is about to slap the company with reparations worth millions of dollars…
“Google Inc. (GOOG) is negotiating with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission over how big a fine it will have to pay for its breach of Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s Safari Internet browser, a person familiar with the matter said.

The fine could amount to more than $10 million dollars, said the person, who declined to be identified because the talks are confidential. The fine would be the first by the FTC for a violation of Internet privacy as the agency steps up enforcement of consumers’ online rights. “

Google’s Safari circumvention was first discovered by Jonathan Mayer, a Stanford research, who published his findings on his blog back on February 16.

Is Verizon intentionally talking customers out of iPhones?

Of the 6.3 million smartphones Verizon sold last quarter, 3.2 million of them were iPhones. This means it sold more Apple-branded handsets than it did all other smartphones combined. So the carrier must really be pushing these things, right?

Well as it turns out, that doesn’t seem to be the case. CNET’s Chris Matyszczyk recently went to his local Verizon store to investigate a rumor that Big Red reps were actually purposely diverting iPhone sales. And judging by the account, they are…
“First, I noticed that the iPhones at this Verizon store weren’t displayed near any of the other smartphones. They had their own little home, tucked away against a wall. The majority of this store was given over to rivals”

Ok, so the iPhones are in the back corner. Surely handset locations vary from store to store. But what about sales pitches? Check out what happened when Matyszczyk told the Verizon rep that he was looking for a new smartphone:

He darted immediately toward the Motorola Droid Razr. He explained that this would download anything 10 times faster than the iPhone… …Phil explained that this was what 4G could do for you and the iPhone just isn’t 4G. He added that the Marketplace is so much less expensive than Apple’s. “And a lot more apps are free.”

He could still feel my doubt. I have that kind of face. So he added: “And the battery lasts a lot longer than the iPhone…” …that’s when I interjected with my questions as to why Verizon sells iPhones at all. “Verizon doesn’t push iPhones,” he explained. “Apple pushes iPhones.”

Sure, this is only one man’s account. But it didn’t exactly prove the theory wrong either. So let’s pretend for a second that Verizon really is deflecting iPhone sales. Why?

There’s a couple of reasons I can think of off the top of my head. For starters, Verizon and Apple haven’t always been the best of friends. There’s a history there, and it goes all the way back to rumors of Verizon turning down Steve Jobs’ offer of carrying the original iPhone. Then there’s that time that the carrier backed Samsung in a lawsuit, asking a US district judge to deny Apple’s request for an injunction on Samsung’s products. Ouch.

But the real answer here is probably much simpler. Think about it: Verizon has been a major catalyst in the growth of Android here in the US thanks to its popular Droid campaigns. And not only that, but the Android platform is currently the only one churning out LTE-compatible devices. And what company is pushing LTE more than any other carrier in the world? Verizon.

Now, don’t underestimate the power of that last fact. It’s become fairly common knowledge that it’s much cheaper for a carrier to operate LTE than it is 3G (after the initial investment). So if you’re Verizon, and you’re trying to lower operating costs, and at the same time pad your LTE numbers, why would you push a 3G device?

So to answer the question at the top of this post: is Verizon intentionally talking customers out of the iPhone? Probably. Reps are more than likely being told to push 4G phones over iPhones. And I wouldn’t even be surprised if they were getting incentives to do it.

It’ll be interesting to see how Verizon’s relationship with Apple progresses after the company releases its LTE handset, which is rumored to happen sometime this fall.