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WSJ: Hundreds of thousands of iPads sold, Apple scrambling for content deals
The Wall Street Journal has written that Apple is scrambling to get everything ready for the iPad's release on April 3rd -- not only has it already "sold hundreds of thousands of the device, [according to] people familiar with the matter," but Apple is also working hard to try and "nail down" several big content deals with television companies, having put their original drive for print media on hold for the moment. Not really news in and of itself, as almost everyone expects content to be a big part of the iPad's revenue, but it is a little surprising to hear that Apple is still fighting to get deals done. The WSJ says that some content owners feel that the iPad is a threat to their current revenue streams -- the same old story that we've always heard about iTunes content delivery. Of course, none of this comes directly from Apple, but they obviously wouldn't confirm if they didn't have all of the deals they wanted squared away before the device's release. The shift from print to multimedia may have something to do with it -- the iPad was originally introduced, along with iBooks, as a reader device, with the additional bonus of being able to play movies. But now that the ad has been premiered on the Oscars and a little more buzz has grown up around the multimedia possibilities, Apple may be more pressured to deliver on release day. We'll have to see -- I doubt that all of those iPad preorders will want to return their device if they can't watch all of their favorite shows on it, but obviously Apple wants to have the biggest library they can at launch.
WSJ: Apple still 'racing' to complete iPad content deals before launch
The iPad launch may finally be right around the corner, but it looks like Apple might still have some considerable work cut out for itself before the big day. According to The Wall Street Journal, Apple is still negotiating with various media companies in an effort to drop the price on TV shows offered on the device, and it's even reportedly put some potential deals with newspaper, magazine and textbook publishers on the backburner as it focuses on other content. That word comes from the usual, unnamed "people with the matter," who go on to say that it's proven to be difficult to convince potential content partners of the advantages of working with Apple on the iPad versus the possible threats to their current sources of revenue. It's hardly all bad news for the magical device though, as some other people familiar with the matter say that Apple has already sold "hundreds of thousands" of iPads. For its part, Apple is naturally staying mum on both counts.
NPR, WSJ prep Flash-free sites for iPad
Both National Public Radio and the Wall Street Journal are preparing Flash-free iPad sites in time for the device's April 3rd debut. MediaMemo cites a blog post over at NPR, letting us know that NPR fans can either download an updated app for NPR (once the iPad ships and the app is ready), or visit an iPad-optimized version of NPR.org that contains no Flash. The Wall Street Journal is also going with a Flash-free site, although visitors can expect to hunt through the site and find some pages which still have Flash. Having non-Flash sites exist alongside their Flash siblings will probably be the solution for many publications in the near future. However, we know that Steve Jobs hopes that Flash will go the way of the PowerPC and the floppy disk, and developers will turn to alternatives such as HTML5. [Via MacDailyNews]
Murdoch confirms WSJ coming to iPad, device kept 'under padlock and key'
It only came at the tail end of an announcement of a new New York metro section for The Wall Street Journal, but Rupert Murdoch has finally confirmed that the paper will indeed be heading to the iPad. The really interesting bit, however, is that not only is the company now being allowed to work on an iPad, but that Murdoch says it's kept "under padlock and key," and that "the key is turned by Apple every night" -- a bit of hyperbole, maybe, but then again, maybe not. In other newspapers-going-digital news, Murdoch also said that the WSJ would be heading to half a dozen or more other devices within a year, although he didn't name any specific devices.
Major textbook pubs partner with ScrollMotion for iPad development
Putting traditional print publication on an iPhone screen is old hat for ScrollMotion, and now it's taking that know-how to a larger screen. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Kaplan, Pearson Education, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt K-12, and the educational sector of McGraw-Hill have all made deals with the company to develop textbook apps and test-prep / study guide apps for the Apple iPad. No other details are given and we unfortunately lack any timeline. It certainly makes the machine more classroom-viable, but we'll hold judgment until we see what actually comes of this partnership -- your move, Kindle.
WSJ: Apple wants e-books to be $12.99 or $14.99 for hardcover best sellers
Here's a little price snippet on Apple's e-book plans, care of an eleventh hour Wall Street Journal piece. According to the article, the gang in Cupertino is asking book publishers (HarperCollins was specifically cited) to set the price point for digital versions of hardcover bestsellers at either $12.99 or $14.00, "with fewer titles offered at $9.99." The publisher apparently has the option to set its own price, but at any rate, Apple's taking the usual 30% cut from each sale -- a $14.99 novel would thus leave about $10.49 for the publisher. Nothing else to glean from this other than a rather strongly-phrased assertion that tomorrow's tablet has a 10-inch touchscreen, but no indication on where that's coming from. These prices would put Apple's selection at a premium compared with Amazon and its Kindle store, but perhaps it'll also be bypassing any rumored digital delay on new works -- question is, if Apple really is entering the e-book business and bringing with it higher prices, will it let us import our digital books purchased from other stores? What say you, Mr. McGraw?
WSJ: Apple working with EA on 'tablet's game capabilities'
When a handful of video game outlets (including Joystiq) got invites to Apple's much-hyped January 27th media event to unveil its 'latest creation' – rumored to be a tablet of some sort – it became rather obvious that whatever this creation is, it would have something to do with gaming. If a Wall Street Journal report this morning – detailing everything from book, magazine and newspaper partnerships to a TV subscription service – is to be believed, "Apple is also working with videogame publisher Electronic Arts Inc. to show off the tablet's game capabilities, according to one person familiar with the matter." Insomuch as this rumored tablet is a big-sized iPod Touch, and insomuch as the iPod Touch is totally the 'best portable device for gaming,' games are an obvious component of this mystery device, and the iPhone-friendly devs at EA are an obvious partner for Apple. Whether this has anything to do with EA Mobile's announced support for suspected Apple Tablet-competitor, the Amazon Kindle, remains to be seen, but we've reached out to EA for comment. Knowing Apple's "loose lips" policy, we don't expect much. [Update: "EA refuses any comment on this topic," we've been told. We'll just need to wait until next Wednesday then!]
WSJ: Tablet confirmed, Apple to reinvent old media
All of their information is centered on the alleged mystery device that will allegedly be announced at a now official event next week. Here are some of the juicier tidbits they passed on from those mysterious people "familiar with" what's happening on Inifinite Loop: Always partial to the education market, one thing this device might be used for is e-textbooks, presumably including the sort of multimedia content that goes beyond the printed page. Textbook publishers aren't the only publishers Apple has been talking to. They're chatting up Conde Nast, Harper Collins, The New York Times, and even CBS, Walt Disney Co, and Electronic Arts (for games). A "Best of TV" service is possible, with a subscription to a set of on demand programs chosen by the consumer. Those same people are also reporting there is a revamp of iTunes coming, which would separate the purchase of iTunes content from the iTunes application. The device will have a 10 or 11 inch screen, a virtual keyboard, and "sharing" is mentioned -- two ideas being thrown around are the ability to leave sticky notes on the device or even have the camera recognize faces of those using it. Price is expected to be around $1000, and they'll be selling it to people who already have iPhones and laptops as well. Of course the piece itself doesn't have a full confirmation from Jobs, so we'll have to wait until next Wednesday for that: Apple's invitation to the media event on January 27th is titled "Come see our latest creation", and is generally considered to be the public debut of a tablet-style device. But when the Wall Street Journal says there's a tablet coming, there's very likely a tablet coming, and if everything they're saying about this device is true (which would make sense -- we've heard most of it before in rumor form), look out world.
Apple's "controlled leaks" and how they spin them
Here's an interesting story that popped up this week, made even more relevant by all of the tablet rumors flying around lately. John Martellaro at the Mac Observer has called out the Wall Street Journal piece earlier this week as a controlled leak from Apple. What he says makes sense: the news came from an unnamed source and was published by two different authors, the WSJ's Apple beat writers, to keep the responsibility divided (and keep Walt Mossberg above the fray, perhaps). If Apple does want to leak information, it seems easy enough -- as Martellaro says, an executive phones a friend, asks to keep their name out of the story, and then a rumor is out there. Of course, there's the question of how often (if ever) this actually happens; most Mac media folk have never been on the receiving end of such a leak. The other real question is: why? Apple could merely be sending ideas out there to see how they'll play -- the WSJ post specifically mentioned a 10 or 11" display, so it's possible they wanted to pre-test that idea. Martellaro also reckons that Apple's message could have been directed at another company, either a competitor or a partner who needed to be reminded that the tablet release was approaching quickly. And finally, it could have been directed at us press -- rumors build more rumors, which build hype, which, as Martellaro says, put butts in seats at the event later this month. Of course, there's always the question of stock manipulation, and it could be argued that leaks like this might cause problems there. But otherwise, leaks by Apple are more or less harmless to everyone besides the company itself. If Apple did leak something it doesn't end up delivering on (i.e. promises of one product and another one ends up getting released), it's the companys own reputation that will be on the line. Apple can say that it doesn't respond to or support rumors, but when the company's own executives are allegedly telling the WSJ what the tablet is like, the onus falls on the company's reputation as a whole. [via Apple Insider]
WSJ: Apple likely to push TV subscription option in 2010
The WSJ and the New York Times, among other outlets, are reporting that Apple is in preliminary discussions with ABC and CBS (at a minimum) about a possible subscription plan arrangement for broadcast and cable TV channels. This idea was noted by All Things D in November, which cited a target price of $30 a month for subscription access via iTunes. If the company can get content providers signed up, the service would be likely to launch next year, say both papers. It's also possible that Apple's Lala purchase could play into this new model, with 'shows in the cloud' and micropayment options that would improve the user experience for TV-watching. Meanwhile, the NBC-Comcast deal might throw a wrench into the works for Apple, and it's not clear that the other broadcast and cable networks are inclined to make a deal at this point; while CBS has few cable assets to protect, and ABC/Disney have a powerful vote in favor of collaboration with Apple, the other companies may have more to lose by throwing in their lot with the iTunes juggernaut. NBC, in particular, has a hit on its hands with the ad-supported Hulu site, now the second-biggest programming provider according to comScore. If only there were some kind of portable viewing device that could play back your videos...
Major media giants to form joint venture for digital future, says WSJ
News Corp, Time Inc., Condé Nast Publications Inc., Hearst Corp., and Meredith Corp. If this Wall Street Journal report is to be believed here, these five major media firms are preparing to announce a new joint venture tomorrow to "prepare print publications for a new generation of electronic readers and other digital devices." Details are a bit sketchy here, and what makes it more interesting / confounding is that many of these companies already have or have showcased separate initiatives, such as Hearst's Skiff and tablet demos from both Time and Condé Nast. We'll be eager to find out if there are any devices the group rallies behind (or even produces itself), but one thing's for sure: good old Rupert Murdoch will have something fun to say on the matter.
Why you shouldn't get your video game news from The Wall Street Journal
When you want the very latest on old guys, money and old guys' money, you turn to The Wall Street Journal. When you want news about video games, you could probably do better, as evidenced by this quote from a Dow Jones Newswire piece the publication ran today about that THQ takeover speculation:"Take-Two has a number of strong franchises and a number of wholly owned Internet Protocols. Wholly owned IPs not only carry higher profitability, but also are more valuable to media companies because they could be adapted into movies, TV serials and online destinations."We'd make a joke here, but there's literally nothing we could say that would be funnier than that quote.[Thanks Leigh!]
YouTube looking to enter rental movies on demand business, says WSJ
Sounds like Google has found the best way to monetize YouTube yet, and it puts itself in a pretty competitive spot versus the likes of Netflix, Amazon VOD, and Apple's iTunes movie store. According to Wall Street Journal, the company's currently in talks with Lions Gate, Sony, and Warner Bros. studios over putting their content on YouTube for a rental fee, likely $3.99 -- the same price as Apple's SD movie rentals. Even more interesting is talk of getting some titles online day and date with the DVD releases. Some options could still be free with advertising, but as for paid content, Google's enticing studios over to their way of thinking with a proposed minimum fee of "just under $3 per title viewed." A three-month beta testing is apparently scheduled to begin soon among 10,000 Google employees, and after that? Well, here's hoping the G-Man manages to sign on some more studios and offer us the films in streaming HD.
Sony's big plans for OLED HDTVs may slip to next year
Hope you weren't too attached to the idea of "medium to large" sized OLED HDTVs coming from Sony this year, according to the Wall Street Journal's sources, the company's slipping share of TV sales mean profitability takes precedence over sweet, super slim new displays. Surprised by its inability to sell truckloads of $2,500 11-inch versions CEO Howard Stringer decided to put the project on the back burner, apparently more focused on things like competing in Wal-Mart and implementing cheaper LED technology for its LCDs. With LG also on a timetable that puts us a year or more away from seeing one of these on store shelves in decent sizes, things are up to Samsung to bring it home -- we're waiting.
Dell working on iPod touch-esque Android MID, says WSJ
It's no surprise that Dell's been dipping its toes in Android-infested waters as of late, and now the Wall Street Journal's reasserting a previous claim from early April that the company's hard at work on a MID powered by Google's mobile OS platform. Multiple sources have reportedly likened it to a slightly larger iPod touch, while one went so far as to suggest a very tentative second half 2009 target release window, assuming the project doesn't get 187'd before then. Despite its history with Intel and the chipmaker's penchant for MIDs, the report pegs ARM as the processor of choice. As for how this jibes with rumors of Dell's smartphone plans, that's where things get interesting, as WSJ quotes a source who said Dell's thinking about selling it through cell carriers like it's currently doing with 3G-equipped netbooks. The article repeatedly calls it a MID -- meaning a phone might still be in the cards, but given past whispers, it kind of makes you wonder.
WSJ: Steve Jobs return is on track for end of June
In its sometime role as a broadsheet hybrid of Us magazine and the New England Journal of Medicine, we have an update tonight from The Wall Street Journal on the condition of everyone's favorite iCEO. Steve Jobs, according to the story (subscription required on the web, free to read on your iPhone), is recovered from his health crisis and on track to return by the end of June. While some speculate that he might choose to surprise the audience at WWDC with a One More Thing moment, two sources for the WSJ story say that the plan is to wait a bit longer.Steve's return is likely to be coordinated with a product launch or other public event later in June, say the sources. That event probably won't be the announcement of the next-gen iPhone, which the paper pinpoints for the keynote address on Monday with availability close to the two-year anniversary date for the original iPhone purchasers (pretty sensible; anyone who bought a first-gen for the premium price is a likely candidate to shell out for a replacement). The WSJ cites someone who has seen the new phone in person, reporting a faster processor and the expected video editing capabilities.Equally importantly, the story points out that the long Steveless months with Tim Cook at the helm have shown investors and customers that the Apple train is still on track. AAPL is up 68% since Steve announced his leave of absence in January, vs. a 24% uptick for the NASDAQ index. Granted, Apple stock took a bit of a hit around the announcement of the leave, dipping to a low of 78.20 on 1/20, but it's up at 143.74 as of today's close.[via Macrumors]
Palm Pre retail box and materials leak out
For staying as silent as they are about the product's details, Palm's doing an awfully good job of letting Pre rumors and speculation fly with wild, rampant abandon -- and we've got a new one here that should at least take you through the night. Actually, this one's less of a rumor and more a visual feast of reality: a retail (or near-retail) box complete with pack-ins has been spotted in the wild, where we learn once again that the device will definitely include a pouch among the usual assortment of odds and ends you normally expect to find with a phone (sadly, the Touchstone's still strictly a pricey add-on) -- and yes, the box looks pretty much like the one shown off at CES. Not as interesting as an actual Pre, we admit... but close. Check out a couple more shots after the break.[Via Boy Genius Report and PreCentral]
WSJ: Apple moving into chip design
Papermaster. Drebin. Koduri. A law firm specializing in intellectual property? The backcourt starters for the Toronto Raptors? Three key graphics-chip experts now all on the Apple payroll? If you had option C on your answer card, congratulations: now you get to join the WSJ and Forbes in reading the tea leaves about what Apple's dream team of silicon-savvy engineering talent will be building in the secure labs deep in the dwarven mines under 1 Infinite Loop.Apple's body-snatching spree, particularly focused on veterans of the GPU team at processor maker AMD, aligns with the purchase of PA Semi last year in expanding the company's hardware design capabilities. While there's no Apple product yet on the market featuring chips designed by the new squadron, the expectation is that future iPhones and mobile devices will benefit from Apple-only silicon; graphics capabilities built into these new and exclusive chips would be, presumably, unmatchable by competitors in the mobile space.The WSJ notes that over 100 LinkedIn profiles for chip engineers who recently worked at Samsung, Intel or other hardware companies now indicate they are sporting Apple employee badges (yay for transparency!). With the current economic climate triggering layoffs and shrinkage at many high-tech enterprises, Apple's combination of marketplace strength and Scrooge McDuck-esque giant pile of cash is allowing it to build a brain trust in hardware that rivals its legendary software expertise.What kind of super iPhone or magic Mac do you think will be built around these chips and this team?
News apps for the iPhone span the political spectrum
Building a native app that aggregates and spruces up the content of a single news organ's website is all the rage, although it seems like overkill in some cases -- personally, I enjoy curating my own reading list with good old Instapaper, which also offers the advantage of clearing out most of the graphical cruft and leaving nothing but yummy text. Still, if you like having all the news that's fit to print in the palm of your hand (yes, the 2.0 version of the NY Times app is quite nice), there are two new choices of single-site apps (SSA) for your reading pleasure. In the right corner, weighing in at four sections, it's the Wall Street Journal! Yes, the official newspaper of American business (whatever's left of it) has an iPhone app, and according to Silicon Alley Insider it's pretty good; the app lets you cache content for offline reading (similar to the NYT app), and offers audio and video content from the paper, along with stories and rich media from sister sites like Uncle Walt's hangout AllThingsD. Most notably, using the iPhone version of the WSJ -- which is free -- you can read most or all the content from the daily paper... which, via the WSJ.com website, is not free (most full stories require a subscription). There's no way to know how long this workaround will be in place, but for now it's a great way to get access to the paper's stories. And, in the opposite corner, weighing in at one home page and sporting a killer left hook, it's the Huffington Post! The HuffPo iPhone app has been in soft-launch mode for the past month and was just updated to version 1.1, quashing bugs and improving performance. It's not as polished as some of the other SSAs yet, but it gets the job done. The app is free. If you have a preferred single-site app for news, let us know below.
WSJ: Marvel inks 10-year MMO deal with upstart Gazillion Entertainment [update]
The Wall Street Journal reports this evening that Marvel Entertainment has struck a 10-year exclusivity agreement with upstart Gazillion Entertainment to produce online multiplayer titles based on its comic book properties. The paper's website indicates that the deal will be officially announced tomorrow.Marvel's previous foray into the MMO space, Marvel Universe Online, was eventually canceled by its publisher, Microsoft Game Studios. The title was announced for Xbox 360 and Games for Windows at the 2006 X06 showcase, and was in development at Cryptic Studios, makers of the upcoming Champions Online. Marvel and Gazillion will be going head-to-head with DC Universe Online, a joint venture between Sony Online Entertainment and DC Comics. More details as they hit.[Update: VentureBeat reports that Gazillion Entertainment, which was until today operating under the name "NR2B Research," employs more than 300 staff across four development studios. Its first title utilizing Marvel characters will be Super Hero Squad, an online game slated for 2010 that ties into a kid-friendly Cartoon Network series launching this fall. In big news for the MMO crowd, Gazillion's San Mateo, CA based Gargantuan studio is confirmed as developing a Marvel universe MMO for PC and consoles.][Thanks, J Blackthorn]
