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Apple has released to developers the iPhone SDK 3.2 Beta 2 for iPad. The 3.2 SDK was first released in January so developers could begin adapting their iPhone applications for the iPad.

The SDK supports the 1024x768 screen size of the iPad amongst other new interface features. Early word on the new SDK shows few major differences between the first and second betas though additional details may leak out over the next few days.

TBI Research reports that not all major book publishers are enamored with the "agency model" being pushed by a number of publishers inspired by Apple's forthcoming iPad tablet device and iBookstore online store to assert more control over their content.

However, one major book publisher we spoke with sees no reason to shift to that model right now or anytime in the near future.

The reason is that book publishers make less money from the agency model than they do from the traditional wholesale model (in which Amazon buys a book license at the full wholesale price, and then sells each copy for whatever it wants, often losing money on the sale). The agency model, therefore, also leaves publishers less money to pay authors and agents.

Despite the lower costs to consumers and higher revenues to publishers available under the existing pricing model, some publishers feel that the loss of control over their own content threatens the long-term viability of the publishing industry and have been striving to set their own pricing by adopting an agency model, with a 30% share of the sales price for each unit going to the distributors such as Amazon and Apple instead of selling units for a flat price and allowing distributors to set their own retail pricing. Rumored price points for new releases from publishers moving to the agency model have been in the $12.99-to-$14.99 range, while Amazon currently offers such releases at a maximum of $9.99.

The resistance on the part of at least one major publisher to the agency model could result in differing distribution arrangements with its partners, potentially allowing Amazon to undercut Apple's prices for certain titles. But at the very least, the future of eBook pricing and Amazon's dominant market position remain in flux as Apple prepares to enter the arena as a likely major player in the industry.

In April 2008, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) published an Apple patent application revealing the company's research into ways of integrating social aspects into online shopping as part of enhancements to the visitor experience. As described in the patent application, customers would be able to "see" what products other customers shopping in the online store were looking at at any given time. Customers would also be able to interact with each other, allowing them to ask questions of each other such as why a customer had left one product to look at another one.


Another example describes the integration of real-time updates into the virtual shopping experience, such as allowing a store owner to "invite" customers already shopping on the site to a chat or other event with a store guest such as an author. The technology would also allow such realistic details such as 3D perspectives and lighting and scenery consistent with the time of day and season of the user's location.


Patently Apple notes that the USPTO officially granted the patent to Apple this morning, and while the granting of the patent almost certainly holds little significance in terms of a timeframe for launching such technology, the event does serve as a reminder of Apple's thoughts on how it might be able to improve the online shopping experience for its customers.

The patent, initially filed in September 2006, is credited solely to David Koski, a senior software engineer at Apple.

MediaMemo notes that Warner Music Group has reported seeing slower sales growth via Apple's iTunes Store since the introduction of variable pricing last year.

Warner Music Group (WMG) said this morning that it has seen unit sales growth at Apple's iTunes (AAPL) decelerate since the price increase: Industry-wide, year-over-year "digital track equivalent album unit growth" was at 5 percent in the December quarter, down sequentially from 10 percent in the September quarter and 11 percent in the June quarter.

And since iTunes sales make up the majority of Warner's digital revenue, growth is contracting there, too. In the last quarter, digital revenue at the label was up 8 percent compared to the previous year; a year earlier that number was 20 percent.

According to the report, Warner CEO Edgar Bronfman, Jr. claims that the pricing increase has been a "net positive" for the company as it sees the music download business maturing, but acknowledges that raising music prices 30% during a recession may not have been a smart move.

Apple has continued to maintain a nearly 70% share of the overall digital music download market, and last year reached 25% of the total music market in the U.S. as customers continue to move away from physical CD sales in favor of digital distribution.

MediaMemo points to Warner's example as a warning for book publishers, who have begun leveraging Apple's iPad in dealing with major eBook retailers such as Amazon to gain greater control over eBook distribution and increase prices.

Apple today announced the release of Aperture 3, adding over 200 new features to the company's professional photo editing and management application. The updated version includes the Faces and Places tagging features introduced in iPhoto last year, as well as a new feature called Brushes for making painting image adjustments to photos. Also included are Adjustment Presets, which offer one-click options for applying specific styles or looks to entire images.

"Millions of people love using iPhoto to organize, edit and share their digital photos," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "Aperture 3 is designed for both professionals who edit and manage massive libraries of photos and iPhoto users who want to take their photos further with easy-to-use tools such as Brushes and Adjustment Presets."

Aperture 3, which runs as a 64-bit application on Intel Core 2 Duo Macs running Mac OS X Snow Leopard, is available for a suggested retail price of $199, with existing Aperture users able to upgrade for $99. A downloadable 30-day trial is also available.

A new job posting on Apple's site suggests that the company is preparing to add still and video camera capabilities to its iPad tablet device in the future. The position is for a quality assurance engineer in the Media Systems division of Apple's broader Interactive Media Group and is specifically focused on the "iPad Media" segment of the division.

The Media Systems team is looking for a software quality engineer with a strong technical background to test still, video and audio capture and playback frameworks. Build on your QA experience and knowledge of digital camera technology (still and video) to develop and maintain testing frameworks for both capture and playback pipelines.

According to the job description, the employee will be responsible for assisting the development team by testing performance of their systems and developing appropriate tools for performing the testing.

Familiarity with and interest in photography, video as well as media file formats is highly desirable. Experience with tuning of and image pipeline, including, but not limited to AWB, Color Correction, AutoExposure, FrameRate adjustments is a plus.

The lack of a camera has been seen by many observers as a significant disappointment for the iPad. It does appear, however, that the iPad's enclosure contains an empty space appropriate for a notebook-style iSight camera, and the resulting speculation has included thoughts that Apple had either planned to offer a camera in the iPad but pulled it for unknown reasons or is still planning to offer one in the shipping version but did not include discussion of it during the device's introduction for similarly unknown reasons.

Yesterday, a poster in our forums claiming to be a Best Buy employee reported that the company's internal inventory system had been updated to show that all MacBook Pro models had been "deleted", preventing Best Buy stores from ordering any new units of the existing models. Earlier today, the poster followed up with additional information in the form of screenshots of the inventory system showing the "deleted" status for Apple's current entry-level 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro models.


Best Buy inventory system entry for current low-end 13" MacBook Pro


Best Buy inventory system entry for current low-end 15" MacBook Pro
We have heard some whispers that Apple may be planning to introduce new MacBook Pro models tomorrow, coinciding with the Macworld Expo despite the lack of an Apple presence at the event. Late last week, an entry for an unreleased MacBook Pro model based on a new Intel Core i7 processor appeared in Geekbench's online benchmarking database.

Best Buy inventory screens are relatively frequent sources of rumors of imminent product updates, and they typically generate a significant amount of interest and discussion. We have been told in the past, however, that the company frequently makes changes to its inventory system in anticipation of future announcements without any official knowledge from Apple. This is not always the case, however, as an unidentified "mobile computing" device that appeared in Best Buy's system last May did turn out to be a revised MacBook that was released two days later.

Update: Another Best Buy source has informed MacRumors that the Apple notebooks appeared in the inventory system of the store in question as "deleted" simply because the location does not carry Apple computers in-store. Other Best Buy locations continue to be able to order new stocks of Apple notebooks, although an update to the company's MacBook Pro line is still expected in the relatively near future.

iPhone 3GS on left, claimed fourth-generation iPhone on right
iPhone repair site iResQ has posted photos of what it claims are parts for the fourth-generation iPhone presumably due for launch later this year. Among the most notable features of the claimed parts are a front panel that appears to be approximately 1/4" taller than the current iPhone 3GS.


iPhone 3GS on left, claimed fourth-generation iPhone on right
Also present on the new front panel part is a "reflective surface" located just above the earpiece slot on the iPhone. It is not immediately obvious what the feature might be, and iResQ offers no speculation on its function beyond suggesting that it is a likely location for a proximity sensor, although that would not explain the need for the mirrored surface to be visible on the front of the device.


From left to right: iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, claimed fourth-generation iPhone
Claimed leaks of future iPhone parts from Asian suppliers have been relatively common in the past, although such claims should generally be taken with a grain of salt, as evidenced by a claimed iPhone bezel leaked last May that actually turned out to be a part from the Creative Zii Egg.

The Wall Street Journal reports on a research note from Credit Suisse analyst Bill Shope based on meetings with Apple executives revealing that the company has apparently left the door open to future price cuts on the iPad should customer demand not meet expectations.

Shope also wrote that despite the seemingly aggressive pricing of the iPad - the lower-than-expected price points range from $499 to $829 - Apple seemed to indicate it would respond with price cuts if demand for the device wasn't revving up the way it liked. "While it remains to be seen how much traction the iPad gets initially, management noted that it will remain nimble (pricing could change if the company is not attracting as many customers as anticipated)," Shope wrote.

Many observers were surprised by Apple's entry-level price point of $499 for the iPad, with general consensus having been that pricing would come in significantly higher.

Shope also noted that Apple seems relatively unconcerned about the iPad's possible cannibalization of other Apple product sales, following on the theme presented by Apple CEO Steve Jobs during the iPad's introduction that offered a clear segmentation among the iPhone/iPod, iPad, and notebook lines.

TamsIJungle reports (via Engadget) that it received word from wireless carrier Hutchison Austria that the company is planning to offer subsidized iPads for users willing to commit to a two-year data contract with the company. According to Hutchison Austria CEO Berthold Thoma:

Hutchison Austria will be the first Austrian carrier to bundle the iPad. We will do so via our long-established laptop bundle, which offers customers a 333euro rebate if they agree to a 2yr contract offering 5GB of data for 29.90euro.

Thoma also noted that, because the initial supply of iPad models will be Wi-Fi-only, the company will bundle the iPad with a Wi-Fi-based 3G modem for connectivity. Thoma's comments do not necessarily suggest that the carrier has worked with Apple on the subsidized pricing, however, as it would appear simple enough for the carrier to purchase iPad units on its own prior to bundling them for sale to its customers.

Questionable early reports had claimed that Apple was looking to pursue arrangements with Verizon for subsidized tablet pricing in exchange for customer data contracts, although later rumors were relatively silent on the possibility. The only announced carrier offering for the iPad so far comes from AT&T in the United States, which will offer contract-free monthly 3G access plans for $14.99 (250 MB) and $29.99 (unlimited).