Apple to announce iAd / AdKit ‘mobile advertising system’ on April 7th?

Since Apple’s acquisition of Quattro Wireless in January, both parties have been keeping mum on plans for Madison Avenue domination, but now MediaPost claims to know a thing or two about the newlyweds. According to the report, Apple will apparently unveil “a new personalized, mobile advertising system” which will go by the underwhelming name of “iAd” on April 7th. The article speculates that the service could be heavily focused on location-aware advertising, though that angle could hit some snags as apparently coffee-partner / arch nemesis Eric Schmidt and a little company called Google hold patents on said functionality. Of course, something that drives a wedge between these two players wouldn’t exactly be a surprise at this point — and we’d be happy if Apple doesn’t cash in on those ad-supported OS ideas it’s recently had.

Really, we’re not surprised to hear this may be coming, as a tipster just pinged us with info that an “AdKit” reference has shown up in a special file on Apple’s public “Phobos” server. This file, which is called StoreBag, provides a public XML interface into iTunes. That interface describes how applications and web browsers can “call home” to either retrieve iTunes information pages or to request that iTunes jump to a given product listing.

What you see here is a key-value pair from that file. The URL string that follows after the “adkit-product-url” key suggests that Apple is about to introduce a way to link ads with product URLs. How will this URL work exactly? It’s hard to say without any further details, which are regrettably sparse on the ground, but it suggests that ad sourced product links can be used in a similar way to affiliate-driven links.

<key>adkit-product-url</key>
<string>http://ax.itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/adkitProduct</string>

Not much else is known about Apple’s first venture into the ad business at this stage, but Steve Jobs has allegedly told some executives that this will be “revolutionary” and “our next big thing.” Frankly, we’re starting to get a little concerned with just how often the folks in Cupertino are bandying around the word “revolutionary” — but we’ll hold our judgments until after this announcement happens (if it happens at all).

Apple to announce iAd / AdKit ‘mobile advertising system’ on April 7th? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 28 Mar 2010 01:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink MacRumors  |  sourceMediaPost  | Email this | Comments

Leaked image says iPad lands at Best Buy… on launch day

We’d heard buzzing for some time now around the internet that Apple planned to sell its iPad in more than just its own stores, and usually the name Best Buy was mentioned in the same breath… but now we’ve got some photographic evidence. The above shot comes from what looks to be an internal memo from the big box retailer, not only stating that the stores will be getting the iPad, but that they’ll be getting the iPad on launch day. Now, there’s no way for us to confirm that is 100 percent the real deal, but we speculated this could be coming back in mid-February, and there’s lots of corroborating evidence to suggest this is no joke (such as COO Tim Cook explicitly mentioning the device would be sold at Best Buy) — we just didn’t expect to see it day one. We’re digging for more info on this story, so stay tuned.

Update:
Best Buy’s iPad playbook is certainly looking legit at this point. Our tipster sent us another two screenshots (they’re after the break) showing off BB’s new retail display which includes the iPad. Interestingly, they also tell us that the iPads are set to be delivered to stores on the night of April 2nd, and that quantities will be limited to about five of each model on launch. TUAW has also just published more of the playbook if you want to head over there and check it out.

Continue reading Leaked image says iPad lands at Best Buy… on launch day

Leaked image says iPad lands at Best Buy… on launch day originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 27 Mar 2010 12:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

Google cutting in Android carriers, manufacturers on ad revenue?

Free, ad-supported phones have long been a rumored endgame for Android, but the way that model ends up playing out may not happen the way everyone thought. mocoNews is citing “multiple sources who are familiar with the deals” in saying that Google has been sweetening the pot for both manufacturers and carriers of Android devices by tossing in a cut of the ad revenue generated from their services — search, Maps, and the like. This would certainly explain Android’s stratospheric rise through the ranks in carriers’ lineups around the globe, and — more importantly for consumers — gives them more wiggle room to slap huge subsidies on handsets (assuming the trickle-down economic effect kicks in at all). For competitors, Google offers a unique value proposition here that can’t really be met by anyone except perhaps Microsoft — and with Redmond looking to reestablish its relevance in the mobile space this year more than any other in recent memory, we could definitely see the two sparring to line Verizon’s and AT&T’s pockets with the most green. Naturally, all the parties involved have clammed up — no one’s saying a peep about whether this is true, or to what extent — but we certainly wouldn’t be surprised.

Google cutting in Android carriers, manufacturers on ad revenue? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 25 Mar 2010 18:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Phone Scoop  |  sourcemocoNews  | Email this | Comments

WSJ on iPad for $17.99 a month, magazines to be at or near newsstand prices?


The Wall Street Journal is running a piece that focuses on ad sales for the iPad. Pretty boring stuff except for a few nuggets related to the actual content we crave. Rupert Murdoch already confirmed that his monument to main stream media was coming to the iPad. Hell, they’ve even been treated to a rare, in-house device to assist with the development of the iPad version of the Wall Street Journal. Now it’s quoting “a person familiar with the matter” (wink) who says that The Journal plans to charge subscribers $17.99 per month for iPad subscriptions — for comparison, the print version of the WSJ costs $349 for 52 weeks or about $29 per month. Not bad, but you can’t roll up an iPad to swat the dog.

Conversely, magazines appear set to offer weekly or monthly editions out of the gate, not annual subscriptions. Sources told the WSJ that the April issue of Hearst’s Esquire magazine (no stranger to new media) will arrive in downloadable format without advertisements for $2.99, $2 less than the newsstand price, and will include five music videos (each containing the phrase “somewhere in Mississippi,” oddly enough) to take advantage of the device’s multimedia capabilities. On the other hand, a full iPad issue of Men’s Health with match the glossy’s $4.99 price. Of course, as we heard earlier, publishers will be experimenting with advertising and pricing models to see what works so expect things to be fluid for quite some time after the April 3rd launch.

WSJ on iPad for $17.99 a month, magazines to be at or near newsstand prices? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 25 Mar 2010 04:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceWall Street Journal  | Email this | Comments

Nokia N8 being announced mid-April

We’ve just been told by a trusted source that Nokia will announce a new flagship device dubbed N8 in the middle of next month. That’s not around any major trade shows that we’re aware of, but it is just before the company’s Annual General Meeting in Helsinki — and naturally, it doesn’t hurt their relationship with major investors to have just introduced a killer new device. For what it’s worth, we just saw a leaked photo yesterday morning of a Symbian^3-based phone purporting to be the N8, so this lines up rather nicely, doesn’t it? Announcement certainly doesn’t equate to availability in Nokia’s world, so until we hear otherwise, we’ll assume that Eldar Murtazin’s claim of a September retail launch is likely accurate.

[Image via IT168]

Nokia N8 being announced mid-April originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Mar 2010 10:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

China Telecom launching Palm Pre, BlackBerry handsets this summer

We’ve been hearing that China Telecom would be grabbing hold of Palm and RIM’s respective stables of smartphones since early last year, but at long last we’ve some official quotes to prove those whispers correct. According to a new report over at the Wall Street Journal, Chairman and Chief Executive Wang Xiaochu has affirmed that it will offer an undisclosed amount of BlackBerry devices in China this May, while Palm’s Pre (no word on the Pixi) will hit this July. These deals could certainly bode well for the carrier; as it stands, it’s going up against China Mobile — which already sells BlackBerry handsets — and China Unicom, which is home to Apple’s iPhone. Unfortunately, pricing details weren’t available, but we’re guessing those will pop sooner rather than later.

China Telecom launching Palm Pre, BlackBerry handsets this summer originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Mar 2010 02:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Pre Central  |  sourceWall Street Journal  | Email this | Comments

Wi-Fi Alliance touts first ten 802.11n-certified mobiles, some likely headed to Sprint / Verizon

Bona fide 802.11n took long enough to get here, but now it’s just a matter of time before it becomes all-too-familiar on everyday smartphones. We’ve already seen a handful of 802.11n smartphones hit from LG and Samsung, but here at CTIA the Wi-Fi Alliance has come out swinging with an announcement touting the debut of ten WiFi n-certified handsets. Granted, the release is focused more on the blossoming of 802.11n as a whole rather than specific details about those ten mysterious phones, but a separate report from PC Magazine notes that those that have already passed through the FCC are all packing CDMA radios. Put two and two together, and you start to realize that Sprint and Verizon may soon be trumpeting the carriage of some of the planet’s first 802.11n phones. But hey — who needs WiFi when you’ve got WiMAX, right Dan?

Wi-Fi Alliance touts first ten 802.11n-certified mobiles, some likely headed to Sprint / Verizon originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Mar 2010 22:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink PC Magazine  |  sourceWi-Fi Alliance  | Email this | Comments

NVIDIA’s Optimus uncovered in Sony VAIO Z, along with TRIM support?

Sony’s illustrious VAIO Z may have a so-called “Dynamic Hybrid Graphics System,” but NVIDIA’s Optimus it is not. Or is it. Notebook Review‘s own igorstef started digging deeper within the laptop’s switchable GPU setup, and lo and behold, it sure looks as if Optimus is underneath. He went through the painstaking process of installing a slew of new drivers and tweaking some code within select .inf files, and in the end he seemingly found a way to get Optimus drivers working on the new rig. Of course, the debate has been raging on for five pages now, and it still seems inconclusive as to what’s really going on behind the scenes. In related news, ZoinksS2k seems to have discovered a way to get Windows 7’s TRIM feature working on his SSD-equipped VAIO Z, and if you’re interested in doing some tinkering of your own in either case, you know where to dive in.

[Thanks, Bill]

NVIDIA’s Optimus uncovered in Sony VAIO Z, along with TRIM support? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Mar 2010 21:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceNotebook Review [Optimus], [TRIM]  | Email this | Comments

Nintendo 3DS to come with ‘3D control stick,’ vibration, and Sharp’s parallax barrier 3D LCD?

You had the hard news for breakfast, so how’s about some less official, but still pretty robust, fodder for brunch? Asahi in Japan offers the first word on how the 3DS achieves its 3D-ness by suggesting that the new portable game machine with feature a parallax barrier LCD from Sharp. The tech has apparently already been deployed in a few cellphones over there and is described as “unsuitable” for large-screen TVs. This is corroborated by Nikkei, which suggests that the screens on the new device will be smaller than 4 inches diagonally, placing it closer to the DSi than the 4.2-inch DSi XL / LL. Other news from the latter source include so-called 3D control stick(s), though it’s not entirely clear whether this’ll be anything massively new or just a pair of analog nubs for us to push around. Either way, Nintendo is said to have secured patents for the new control methodology in Japan late last year. The Nikkei article also mentions improvements in WiFi transfers and battery life, as well as a new vibration function. Now that we’ve got all that out of the way, can someone please tell us if this thing has Tegra inside or not?

Nintendo 3DS to come with ‘3D control stick,’ vibration, and Sharp’s parallax barrier 3D LCD? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Mar 2010 11:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceNikkei, Asahi  | Email this | Comments

Palm moving to Android to stay alive? Not according to Palm

You may be seeing a rumor doing the rounds today about Palm throwing in the towel and moving to the Android platform as a means of survival — but just hang on. Most reports are citing an email that made its way to the inbox of what looks like every major tech outlet, stating that CEO Jon Rubinstein issued an internal memo to software developers at the company about the switch. The supposed memo quotes Jon as saying, “While Palm is incredibly proud of our engineers who spent timeless work and effort to bring us this advanced operating system, consumers simply have not caught on. To provide a better future for ourselves and our customers, the only logical choice is to transition our hardware and software to the Android platform.” The plan — according to this email — would be to create a kind of Sense UI-ish webOS interface on Palm devices, while leveraging Android’s market footprint. The anonymous emailer went on to say that the full memo would be made available on Wikileaks at midnight last night.

But guess what? Not only did the memo not appear at the stroke of 12, but when we picked up the phone and actually spoke to Palm, they had a pretty quick response. Their answer? Our sources at the company essentially laughed when they heard this news, and they emphatically stated that there was no memo, and no move internally towards Android. Furthermore, many of the reports are citing a bunk piece of news from Monday which erroneously stated that Palm had halted production — that news has also been refuted by the company. Admittedly, our minds reel at the concept of Android with a webOS UI, but until we get some real, verifiable evidence of that (and not just a random email), we’re going to assume it’s not happening. You should do the same.

Palm moving to Android to stay alive? Not according to Palm originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Mar 2010 10:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments