Things to be included in iTV

THERE SUCH THINGS THAT SHOULD BE INCLUDED IN APPLE TV(iTV)...also it crash Tv market from Panasonic,sony..!! and make Apple share touch peak which ever seen before.

At first I was a little surprised. But after thinking about it, I realized so would I. But it’s not for the reasons that you think. Paying top dollar for Apple products has become the expectation. But consumers have also come to expect more. But what would an iTV give me that I don’t already have? But after opening my refrigerator it suddenly hit me – aFacebook “like” button. Refrigerator – you ask? I’ll get more to that later.

There’s no way this television ambition can work without it. The iTV has to have one. More specifically, it needs to have some type of social and commercial integration. Otherwise it will be a colossal failure. I want it and so should you. Here’s why. In a recent interview with NBC’s Brian Williams, Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook said:

“When I go into my living room and turn on the TV, I feel like I have gone backwards in time by 20 to 30 years. It’s an area of intense interest. I can’t say more than that.”

It seems Cook understands that the TV experience can no longer be “just about TV.” It has to also be about you “the viewer.” He gets it. This is what Sonyand Panasonic have been unable to figure out and the reason why Panasonic is exiting the business altogether. And if Netflix is not careful it will be killed off too.

Cook salivates at the massive social aspect to TV that remains untapped. And if Apple gets this right the company can easily secure 90% of the TV market within a couple of years. If not, it might be the end of Apple as we know it.

For instance, Apple should want to integrate FaceTime with iTV. Aside from killing off Skype, Apple would essentially create the first “social television network.” One that allows you and your buddies to watch the same football game while sending virtual high fives to each other – all between time zones. But it gets better. As you watch the game, iTV will allow you to “like” certain plays or “thumbs down” a bad call from a referee. You can even “like” an American Idol contestant. Forget the text voting – that’s so 2001.

It can all work with Bluetooth connectivity between your iTV and iPad or iPhone. But there’s also a “commercial” benefit to this as well. Viewers should be able to “like” certain products, a baseball team, or even a car or an Applebee’s commercial. And based on these “likes”, iTV will be able to list game times for your favorite sports teams and can take it a step further by recording shows to your DVR based on your “like” selections. But why would someone need to like an Applebee’s commercial?

What this means is that the iTV immediately becomes “the mediator” in ongoing controversies surrounding products like the Hopper from Dish Network that allows consumers to skip television ads. Although the Hopper is a great concept, it’s unfair. On the other hand, this sensitive issue presents an excellent opportunity for Apple.

People don’t “like” ads – I get it. But TV is all about content and content is not free. And the value of the content is determined by the ad dollars it generates. So unless it is a premium channel such as HBO or Showtime, there’s no way to avoid ads. On the other hand, what if iTV figured out a way to make you “like” the ads that you try so desperately to avoid? This would solve the problem facing broadcasting networks like CBS and ABC.

After all, can Apple really “change the way we watch TV” without also addressing this huge commercial “inconvenience?” It would be a missed opportunity. For a lot of people commercials are nothing more than a 3 minute bathroom break. If you’re like me, it’s also the time to get on Twitter and complain about how poorly a game is being officiated. But what if iTV was able to make you look forward to commercials – to the point that you would even consider recording them?

It sounds crazy – I know. But with a “like” button on iTV and a rewards program from Groupon, Living Social or even your favorite local grocer, you would love commercials. Your “likes” would be stored in a way that would allow advertisers to know who you are, your address, your zip code and provide them with other information that allows them to create “targeted ads.” This might even give them enough justification to bring a Starbucks to your neighborhood.

It can all depend on the number of “likes” in your local area provided to them by Apple. They can be called “iLikes” or “ad-likes.” Once your “likes” are stored (presumably) on the iCloud, iTV will be able to interface with the web and stream printable coupons to your device and even create a shopping list. Essentially, Apple becomes both the Facebook and Amazon of the living room. With so much stored demographic information, this can immediately become another revenue stream where Apple can sell targeted ads. It can also mean the end of junk mail in the mailbox outside of your home.

Better still, iTV will also be able to provide immediate content feedback to the TV networks based on the number of “likes.” After all, since Tim Cook said current TV “takes him back 20-30 years” why then should we still rely on a Neilsen rating system that spans 30 years. Also, I don’t know about you, but I don’t recall Neilsen ever asking for my input. Likewise, I don’t personally know anyone else they’ve asked. Yet, Neilsen still speaks for me. With an iTV I can speak for myself.

Bottom Line

The way we view television is changing faster than many believed it would. So for Apple to make this ambition truly the game-changer that it is billed to be, Apple has to effectively change the way we watch content and the way we interface with the products that are marketed to us. And with TV life cycles being 4 years, it means people aren’t dropping them in pools of water and then waiting in line for a new one. Apple has to get this right the first time – especially since consumers would have already paid such a premium. If iTV fails, Apple’s reputation goes with it.

APPLE ROCKS AGAIN

iPhone 5 Arrives in South Korea & More Than 50 Additional Countries in December

CUPERTINO, California—December 3, 2012—Apple® today announced iPhone® 5 will be available in South Korea on Friday, December 7, with more than 50 additional countries being added in December, including Brazil, Russia and Taiwan. iPhone 5 is the thinnest and lightest iPhone ever, completely redesigned to feature a stunning new 4-inch Retina™ display; an Apple-designed A6 chip for blazing fast performance; and ultrafast wireless*—all while delivering even better battery life.**

iPhone 5 is currently available in 47 countries around the world including the US, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan and the UK. iPhone 5 comes with iOS 6, the world’s most advanced mobile operating system with over 200 new features including: Shared Photo Streams, Facebook integration, all-new Maps app, Passbook® organization and even more Siri® features and languages.

iPhone 5 comes in either black & slate or white & silver for a suggested retail price of $199 (US) for the 16GB model, $299 (US) for the 32GB model and $399 (US) for the 64GB model. iPhone 5 will be available through the Apple Online Store (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and select Apple Authorized Resellers.

iPhone 4S is available for just $99 (US) and iPhone 4 is available for free with a two-year contract from participating carriers.

iPhone 5 will be available in South Korea on Friday, December 7 and on Friday, December 14 in Albania, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, China, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Ecuador, Grenada, Indonesia, Israel, Jamaica, Jordan, Kuwait, Macedonia, Malaysia, Moldova, Montenegro, Panama, Paraguay, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Taiwan, Turkey, United Arab Emirates and Venezuela. iPhone 5 will also be available on Friday, December 21 in Barbados, Botswana, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Egypt, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritius, Morocco, Niger, Senegal, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St.Vincent & the Grenadines, Tunisia, Uganda and Vietnam.

*Network speeds are dependent on carrier networks. Check with your carrier for details.
**Battery life depends on device settings, usage and other factors. Actual results vary.

Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices with iPad..........

MORE STORY HERE

APPLE TV.....

Apple TV is in 'early stage of testing,' report says

It's not a formal project yet, but Apple and its suppliers are trying out designs for a large-screen, high-resolution TV, according to the Wall Street Journal

(Credit: CNET)

Apple has begun the early stages of television set testing, according to reports.

The Wall Street Journal says that manufacturers Sharp and Hon Hai -- otherwise known as Foxconn -- are collaborating with the tech giant to test designs for a large-screen, high-resolution TV, according to unnamed officials connected to Apple's suppliers.

The Cupertino, Calif.-based company, which tests ideas internally before bringing products to external suppliers, has been testing television set prototypes "for a number of years," according to the Journal's unnamed sources. The iPad and iPhone maker has already infiltrated the living room with its Apple TV box, which connects online media to traditional television sets.

"It isn't a formal project yet. It is still in the early stage of testing," one of the sources told the Journal.

The idea of Apple producing a television set was brought back to the stage this month by Apple CEO Tim Cook, who hinted in aninterview with NBC that a new product offering may be on the horizon. "When I go into my living room and turn on the TV, I feel like I have gone backwards in time by 20 to 30 years," Cook said. "It's an area of intense interest. I can't say more than that."

Although it remains to be seen how much impact Apple could have in the television and media industry, already entwined in long-standing broadcasting contracts and "smart TV" production by manufacturers, a survey from Morgan Stanley suggested that the brand name may be enough -- and consumers would be willing to pay a 20 percent premium for an Apple-branded set.

Meanwhile, famed technologist and venture capitalist Marc Andreessen speculated at the Dealbook conference this morning that an Apple TV is likely to arrive in 2014 or maybe 2015 at the latest, if it doesn't squeak out in 2013, according to Business Insider

CNET

Apple’s Tim Cook on creativity and changing your mind

On Wednesday, Apple made headlines for its biggest stock drop in four years, as the company’s shares fell more than 6 percent amid fears about competition in the tablet market. On Thursday, the company was back in the news again, this time for two new interviews with CEO Tim Cook—one a lengthy interview with Bloomberg BusinessWeek editor Josh Tyrangiel and the other apparently his first televised sit-down with NBC’s Brian Williams—that revealed Apple would manufacture a line of Macs in the United States next year.

The manufacturing is big news, of course. Cook told Tyrangiel that “I do feel [CEOs] have a responsibility to create jobs,” just not necessarily jobs as Apple employees. And few business leaders can make that claim as well as Apple does, given the ecosystem of jobs the company has helped to spawn through suppliers, developers and accessory makers. While it’s not clear which line of products Apple will make in America, Cook said he intends to do more than just “assemble” the products here, and will invest $100 million in the effort.

But even if the biggest revelation out of the interviews is the manufacturing news, Cook also revealed a few telling new insights about how he leads Apple. Whether or not they help him navigate a tricky patch for the company’s share price, they do give us a better glimpse of the man running the world’s biggest company by market value.

First, he offers what is perhaps the best definition of “creativity” I have ever heard: “Creativity is not a process, right?” he tells Tyrangiel. “It’s people who care enough to keep thinking about something until they find the simplest way to do it.” In other words, he’s implying that a leader’s job is to establish a culture where people will care that much about their work, rather than to try to build some kind of innovation “process.” In fact, he has sharp words for anyone who tries to do the latter: “A lot of companies have innovation departments, and this is always a sign that something is wrong when you have a VP of innovation or something. You know, put a for-sale sign on the door.”

In addition, he says that he thinks “maybe the most important thing” to prevent, as CEO, is becoming insular. This is easy for the CEO of Apple to say, of course, given the hundreds if not thousands of direct emails he gets from customers, as well as the retail stores that give him an opportunity to interact with consumers directly. Not every business leader has that advantage, and Cook recognizes as much. But it’s a reminder that leaders have to find a way to get feedback in an unfiltered way, fostering relationships with customers, allowing for direct access to their inboxes, and spending plenty of time in the field interacting with employees or customers.

Finally, Cook shared with both Williams and Tyrangiel the wisdom he received from Jobs before his death, that he should never look up as CEO and ask what Steve would have done, but instead to “just do what’s right.” An admirable statement from a company founder, of course, and one that seems to already be having an impact as Cook charts his own path on certain decisions—from offering matching philanthropy donations to recently shaking up the company’s management staff.

But what he goes on to say about Jobs in the BusinessWeek Q&A is just as interesting. We like to think of great innovators and great leaders as steadfast and principled in their beliefs, the type of people who rarely waver on their views. Jobs was just the opposite, Cook said: “So many people, particularly, I think, CEOs and top executives, they get so planted in their old ideas, and they refuse or don’t have the courage to admit that they’re now wrong. Maybe the most underappreciated thing about Steve was that he had the courage to change his mind. It’s a talent.

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