In an interview ahead of Apple's third quarter earnings call, Apple CEO Tim Cooktold Bloomberg that Apple employees in the United States won't be returning to their offices until early 2021 as the coronavirus continues to spread in the United States.
Apple initially had some employees return to its campuses in mid-June, with some key employees returning even earlier in May, but it appears most workers will continue doing their jobs in their homes through the end of the year.
"We've kicked the time period that U.S. employees would come back until early next year," Cook said in an interview with Bloomberg TV. "To go beyond that, it would depend on the success with a vaccine, success with therapeutics" and local conditions, he added.
Cook said Apple’s process for re-opening its offices would be similar to how it has handled its retail stores. He likened the process to an “accordion” where the company would open offices and then re-close them as necessary depending on the data.
Other tech companies like Facebook and Google said in June that employees would be able to work from home for all of 2020, with Twitter and Square allowing employees to work from home permanently if they choose to do so.
Apple was planning a multi-phase approach that would see employees trickling back in throughout the summer months, but told employees at the time that its plans were fluid and could change based on local and state stay-at-home orders.
Apple CFO Luca Maestri during the Q3 2020 earnings call said that Apple is taking a cautious approach with both its corporate facilities and its retail stores, and the company is trying to understand how the virus is evolving over time. Most employees will be working from home through 2020, at which time Apple will re-evaluate.
Maestri said that it's hoping for a vaccine and will make future decisions as it gets more information.
Apple today announced financial results for the third fiscal quarter of 2020, which corresponds to the second calendar quarter of the year.
For the quarter, Apple posted revenue of $59.7 billion and net quarterly profit of $11.25 billion, or $2.58 per diluted share, compared to revenue of $53.8 billion and net quarterly profit of $10.0 billion, or $2.18 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. Both revenue and earnings per share were June quarter records.
Gross margin for the quarter was 38.0 percent, compared to 37.6 percent in the year-ago quarter, with international sales accounting for 60 percent of revenue. Apple also declared a quarterly dividend payment of $0.82 per share, payable on August 13 to shareholders of record as of August 10.
Apple is also announcing a four-for-one stock split that will take effect for shareholders of record as of August 24, with split-adjusted trading to begin on August 31.
Apple's results were obviously significantly affected by the global health crisis, and the company did not issue financial guidance for the quarter in its previous earnings release on April 30, but results were generally ahead of Wall Street expectations.
“Apple’s record June quarter was driven by double-digit growth in both Products and Services and growth in each of our geographic segments,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “In uncertain times, this performance is a testament to the important role our products play in our customers’ lives and to Apple’s relentless innovation. This is a challenging moment for our communities, and, from Apple’s new $100 million Racial Equity and Justice Initiative to a new commitment to be carbon neutral by 2030, we’re living the principle that what we make and do should create opportunity and leave the world better than we found it.”
Apple is once again not issuing guidance for the current quarter ending in September, as considerable uncertainty surrounding the health situation's impact remains.
Apple will provide live streaming of its fiscal Q3 2020 financial results conference call at 2:00 PM Pacific, and MacRumors will update this story with coverage of the conference call highlights.
Apple earnings call recap ahead...
1:40 pm: Apple's stock price is up nearly 5% in after-hours trading, pushing through the $400 mark.
1:48 pm: Mac and iPad sales were especially strong, which should be unsurprising given the shift to work-from-home setups and some product updates.
1:51 pm: At just 44% of overall revenue, the iPhone's share of Apple's business was remarkably low. That's a combination of the late-stage lifecycle of the current flagship models, strong performance in Mac and iPad, and continued growth in Services.
1:53 pm: Apple's four-for-one stock split next month should bring the share price down to around the $100 range, depending on its performance between now and the split date. It's Apple's first stock split since a seven-for-one split in 2014.
1:56 pm: The hold music on Apple's financial results conference call is terrible.
2:02 pm: The earnings conference call is starting.
2:02 pm: On the call is Apple CEO Tim Cook and Apple CFO Luca Maestri.
2:03 pm: Forward-looking statements, projections, etc etc. Tim coming on now.
2:04 pm: Starting with kind words about Congressman John Lewis. "I was humbled and fortunate to know him, and as an Alabama native... He inspires me still."
2:04 pm: Throughout the call, I'll speak in greater detail about Apple's support for equity and justice.
2:04 pm: In an uncertain environment, Apple saw a quarter of historic results.
2:04 pm: June Quarter record with revenue of $59.7b, up 11% YoY. Products and services grew double digits, and revenue grew in each geographic segment.
2:05 pm: What makes us proud is not merely what we did but how we did it. We committed $100 million to launch Racial Equity and Justice initiative.
2:06 pm: More context on quarter's results: Due to uncertain and ongoing impacts of Covid-19, we did not provide typical guidance last quarter but we did provide some color on how we expected the June quarter to play out. Across our product categories, beginning with iPhone: Up 2%, expected YoY performance to worsen but saw better than expected demand in May and June. Strong iPhone SE launch, continued economic stimulus, and potentially some benefit from shelter-in-place restrictions lifting around the world.
2:07 pm: iPad and Mac growth to accelerate, saw double-digit growth this quarter. In spite of supply constraints on both products. Working hard to get more iPads and Macs into customers' hands, recognizing how integral they are to working and learning from home.
2:07 pm: Wearables growth decelerated as we expected, but grew by double-digits and set revenue records for non-holiday quarter.
2:08 pm: Installed base of active devices grew to new active records across all categories. Services generated $13.2 billion, up 15% YoY.
2:08 pm: Two distinct trends we were seeing and they played out as we thought. Results for Ads and AppleCare were impacted by reduced levels of economic activity. Had strong performance in digital services with all-time records in App Store and Apple Music, Video and Cloud Services. Elevated engagement on iMessage, Siri and FaceTime.
2:09 pm: Apple TV+ just hit history-making 95 awards nominations and 25 wins and accolades.
2:09 pm: Proud to announce that we have achieved our goal of doubling our Fiscal 2016 services revenue 6 months ahead of schedule.
2:10 pm: Results stand in stark relief in a time of real economic adversity. We do not have a zero-sum approach to prosperity. Focus on growing the pie, and make sure our success isn't just our success. Want to create opportunities for others. App Store is an example. Independent economists found the App Store facilities more than $500 billion in commerce globally in 2019.
2:10 pm: Can measure economic resilience in ways App Store helps with remote ordering for restaurants and other opportunities and more.
2:11 pm: Allocated $400 million of multi-year $2.5 billion commitment to new buyer construction and affordable housing projects.
2:12 pm: Thanking AppleCare and Retail employees for adapting to reopening and reclosing challenges.
2:12 pm: Re WWDC: Though we could not be together in person, we set new standards for what an all-virtual event could be. 22 million viewers across all Apple's streams. 72 hours of video content, with more than 200 direct to video engineering and design sessions, and 4,500 person-to-person appointments across 227 virtual labs.
2:13 pm: Touting iOS 14, macOS Big Sur, Apple Silicon and other releases.
2:14 pm: Looking forward, we are profoundly optimistic about Apple's future. With this success comes a real responsibility to lead with our values. We are just as proud of our announcement this month that Apple will be fully carbon neutral by 2030 across our entire supply chain, and including the energy use of every device we make, as we are of any hardware innovation. We want to leave the world better than we found it.
2:14 pm: Stand with those marching for their lives and dignity through the Racial and Ethnic Justice initiative.
2:15 pm: Discussing the obligations of Apple to stand with the communities where employees live and work.
2:15 pm: Handing off to Luca Maestri.
2:15 pm: June quarter was a testament to Apple's ability to innovate and execute in challenging times.
2:16 pm: New June quarter revenue record, up 11%, despite 300bp headwind from FX.
2:16 pm: Results were very strong all around the world. Grew in all geographic segments.
2:17 pm: $46.5 billion product revenue. iPhone returned to growth, and saw double-digit growth from iPad, Mac, and wearables. Lockdowns and point of sale closures were widespread in April, but saw demand for all products improve significantly in May and June.
2:17 pm: Unmatched loyalty of customers led to all-time high in all geographic segments across all product categories.
2:17 pm: 38% gross margin, down 40bp sequentially.
2:19 pm: iPhone revenue grew 2% to $26.4 billion, with customer demand improving as the quarter progressed. COVID was most impactful during the first 3 weeks of April. Improvement in May and June around the world.
2:19 pm: Latest surveys of consumers in the US, indicates iPhone customer satisfaction of 98%.
2:20 pm: Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+ are contributing to overall services growth, and add users, content and features. Customer engagement in the ecosystem continues to grow at a fast pace.
2:20 pm: More than 35 million new paid subscriptions.
2:21 pm: Wearables business is size of Fortune 140 company.
2:21 pm: 70% of Apple Watch buyers are new to the product.
2:22 pm: Both Mac and iPad are extremely relevant products in the current climate. Customer satisfaction at 96% for Mac and 97% for iPad. Half of customers purchasing Mac or iPad were new to that product. New all-time high for both products.
2:22 pm: Retail set records thanks to performance of online store.
2:23 pm: Touting the growth of Telehealth services.
2:25 pm: Total debt of $113 billion. Net cash is $81 billion at end of quarter. Continue to reach net cash neutral position over time. Returned $21 billion to shareholders. $3.7 billion in dividends and equivalents, and $10 billion in open market repurchases.
2:26 pm: Move to September quarter, will provide some color on what they're seeing. Similar to last quarter, given uncertainty in near term, will not be giving revenue and margin guidance for the coming quarter. But additional insight on expectations for September quarter for product categories: On iPhone, expect to see recent performance continue including strong customer response for iPhone SE. Started selling iPhones in late September. We project supply to be available a few weeks later.
2:27 pm: For services, expect same trends in June quarter except for AppleCare. We expect difficult comp for AppleCare considering COVID-related point of sale closures.
2:28 pm: Opening the call to questions:
2:29 pm: Q: Katy Huberty with Morgan Stanley: In light of economic adversity, can you walk us through how Apple's leveraging finance and trade-in programs to make technology more affordable and accessible? How might these expand over time?
A: As Luca mentioned, in June we rolled out the ability to do interest-free financing in our stores with payments and that's in addition to trade-in which is becoming a more-common trend now which is terrific because it's great for the environment and acts as a subsidy against the phone. Compound these with financing and trade-in, it makes the product super affordable. We're happy with what we're seeing in that regard.
2:31 pm: Q: Specifically to iPhone, the category returned to growth, installed base is larger today, replacement cycle is elongated and affordability element. Does all of that combine to build confidence that we're entering a longer period of iPhone revenue growth after six quarters of decline?
A: Very pleased with how we did on iPhone, better than we thought. May and June were much better. iPhone in totality, the things that get me very optimistic is the size of the active installed base, major geographies like US we had the top two selling smartphones. Three of four in the UK, five of six in Australia, top four in Japan, Urban China iPhone 11 was top-selling smartphone in the country. These are very different geographies with different competitive situations and we're doing fairly well. iPhone SE, it's clear, that from early data we're seeing a higher switcher number than we did in previous year that we feel very good about. Seemed to appeal to some people that were holding on to the device for a little longer because they wanted a smaller form factor phone. Combination of smaller form factor and affordable price made iPhone SE very popular. iPhone 11 is still most popular but iPhone SE definitely helped our results and as Luca said in his outlook, we do see that continuing into this quarter currently.
2:33 pm: Q: Services business and in terms of TV content production, how did movement restrictions affect content production?
A: Working to get it restarted because we shut down in March and yet to really restart in a significant way, particularly for those shot in the LA area. Given the current status of the virus.
2:35 pm: Q: With strong sales in Mac, do you think back-to-school season got pulled forward by a quarter?
A: For providing commentary for September, we expect all the non-iPhone product categories to have strong year-over-year performance. Back-to-school season is clearly this one and we're very excited not only for Mac but for iPad. Fantastic lineup of products and we know that these products are incredibly relevant especially given current circumstances. Performance that we've seen for Mac in June quarter to continue.
2:36 pm: Q: Shannon Cross, Cross Research: Talk a bit about what you're seeing in China? Revenue up 2% plus record iPads, but given their 5G is a bit ahead, how are you seeing market play out?
A: Growth that we see, we did see growth, currency affected China a bit more than other places, affected 400bp. In constant currency we would have grown at 6%. iPhone 11 has been our best selling phone and has been number one in Urban China. iPad was helped in June quarter there by the work from home and distance learning as it was in other geographies. Mac also grew strong double-digit during the quarter. And services set a new June quarter record there. We also continue to see extremely high new customer rates on Mac and iPad there. Perspective... Three out of four customer buying Mac are new, 2/3 buying iPad are new. These are numbers that we are super proud of.
2:37 pm: Q: Decision to bring Apple Silicon in-house and benefits you're expecting to see from vertical integration and intel modem business integration?
A: What we'll wind up with is common architecture across all of our products, which gives us some interesting things we can do and products that unleashes another round of innovation. Don't want to say a lot about it other than we're extremely excited about it. It's something that we've worked on quite a while to get to this point and we're looking forward to shipping the first Mac with Apple Silicon later in the year.
2:39 pm: Q: If I think about the strength with iPhone, where is this trend coming from? Replacement cycles or new iOS customers? Clearly these growth rates seem impressive in context of pandemic.
A: It's a combination of a strong launch of iPhone SE, and some pickup thanks to economic stimulus in different countries, and some of the reopening that took place across the quarter. We've been having a strong cycle with the iPhone 11 and 11 Pro, so when you combine a strong cycle plus iPhone SE launch, plus reopening of stores etc, I think there are a lot of things that were going in the right direction there.
2:41 pm: Q: Perspective on how we think about 38% gross margin? What are levers to improve this going forward and in that context, do you see a point where product gross margin stabilizes because it's been trending lower.
A: We were at 38%, down slightly sequentially but up the same amount YoY. Really, the big negative impact that we felt for several quarters has been the strength of the US dollar. FX impact on sequential basis was 90bp, YoY was 130bp. That is something to keep in mind. Other aspect to keep in mind is that we sell many different products, they have different margin profiles, and different mix can have an impact on the aggregate of product gross margin. We're very pleased to see performance of Mac, iPad and wearables, but it's a different mix. Going forward, the variables are always the same. FX will continue to have an impact, the mix of products that we sell, the commodities market has been relatively benign and we'll see how that plays out over time. As you know, for several years, we've been managing gross margin fairly well in spite of some difficult situations like the one with the strength of the dollar and we plan to make good trade-off decisions between revenue and units and margins.
2:43 pm: Q: Survey on smartphones in China, large portion of install base is on 6/7/8 device. Trade-in programs etc, what are you doing to get those customers into latest technology?
A: Customers upgrade at different pace, but I don't have exact install base from China but much like in other geographies, the upgrades have extended some. Extended some during the depths of the pandemic in China and the rest of the world and probably to the rest of the world and is happening still at this point. The key thing that we can do is keep innovating, deliver a product that people can't imagine going through life without, and obviously keep rolling out these programs that make the front end purchase be much less and this is the financing and trade-in programs. I do feel like those are going quite good in a number of geographies.
2:45 pm: Q: Should we think about how much iPad and Mac sales are pull-forward or earlier future upgrades?
A: The install base is growing and new customer numbers that Luca went over in the aggregate are still very high, close to 50% kind of range. That to me bodes well for the future. There's clearly some amount of work from home and remote learning that do affect the results of Mac and iPad positively. They probably affect wearables and iPhone the other direction. But on Mac and iPad, these are productivity tools that people are using to stay engaged with their work or stay engaged with schoolwork. We believe we're going to have a strong back-to-school season, sitting here today it certainly looks like that.
2:46 pm: Q: Can you share a bit about channel inventory, talked about tightness for Mac and iPad in June quarter, in terms of where you think inventory is across product categories?
A: We usually have gotten away from talking about channel inventory, but sitting here looking at it, iPhone is slightly less than a year ago and that's at quarter-end point at end of Q3. Obviously, iPad and Mac are constrained so both of those are less than year-ago quarter.
2:48 pm: Q: Color you can share about impact COVID had on OpEx, work from home stipends, less travel, employee support costs. What's longer term opportunity of employees working remotely, maybe permanently?
A: On OpEx front, there have been certain things that have been affected in terms of cost reductions, travel is a perfect example, meetings we have internally, but we've also invested heavily in initiatives with a program where we match employee donations, we've made donations directly, on a net basis the costs outweighed the savings both in March and June quarter but we think it's the right thing to do. From employee perspective, what we said so far is that here in the US in most of our population will continue to work from home through the end of the year. Try to understand how the virus is evolving over time, taken a cautious approach both with corporate facilities and with retail stores. Retail stores you've seen we've reopened in a number of geographies around the world, reopened here in the US, we've had to reclose here in the US as the number of cases has gone up and we'll continue to track how the virus is doing. Hoping for vaccine or cure and so we'll make those decisions as we get more information.
2:50 pm: Q: Focus on the gross margin expansion within services line, all-time record for the quarter. Curious whether you think that was a theme, within services there's a pretty wide margin within businesses and should that continue to improve?
A: Sequential expansion for services and that was driven primarily by mix. Very broad portfolio and defending which does better, we have an impact on services gross margin. We like services business because it is a recurring type of revenue and is accretive to company margin. 67% this quarter and we want to offer competitive services across the board and the same comments on products, what matters to us is to be successful with everything we do and provide great products and services to our customers. The relative success of products and services in marketplace will drive what our margins are. Margins are a byproduct of success in the marketplace.
2:52 pm: Q: On wearables, you're categorizing wearables as being a little bit impacted by pandemic. First time that wearables haven't had that growth. Is there pent up demand as we get to normalized environment?
A: On Watch in particular, like the iPhone, more affected by store closures. Because some people want to try on the Watch and see what it looks like, look at different band choices and those sorts of things. As stores closed, it puts more pressure on that. We did come out last quarter and we knew things would decelerate because of the closures. We ended up being pleased with how we did, but store closers affect the wearables and iPhone.
2:54 pm: Q: Coronavirus the company did a fantastic job at overcoming the hurdles. As you look forward to Christmas/Holiday shopping season, given the economic challenges and coronavirus, give commentary how you expect to see differences from past Christmas cycles? But Apple is showing a lot more strength coming into Christmas than past years.
A: We take it one quarter at a time. We'll give color on December quarter in October. Generally speaking, we need to see a vaccine or therapeutic or both. There's some optimism around that in that particular time frame. No particular information that isn't publicly available there. That would boost consumer confidence quite a bit if it began to happen, and I think that any kind of consumer company would benefit from that.
Q: Quick comment Luca, about iPhone coming out a few weeks later — was that for iPhone, iPhone chips, product launches, can you expound on that?
A: On iPhone, I said in my remarks that we launched a year ago, the new iPhone in late September so I was referring to the new product. I said that this year, the supply of the new product will be a few weeks later than that.
2:56 pm: Q: Can you comment on penetration of Apple Card users in iOS install base, and have you seen any changes in Card users in terms of spending on Apple products?
A: Changes in consumer spending as shutdowns occurred and store closures occurred. Saw that across the card, it affected the categories that you would guess the most — travel, entertainment, etc. Pull the lens out on Apple Card, we're happy with the number of people who have the Apple Card. We think it's the fastest rollout in the history of credit cards so we feel very good about that.
2:56 pm: Q: Now that Apple has Apple Silicon for Macs, would you consider this monetizing this as merchant silicon or is this forever for Apple use?
A: I would never say "forever." We're a product company and we love making the whole thing, and if we can own the user experience with the goal of delighting the user, that's the reason we're using Apple Silicon is we can envision some products that we can achieve that we couldn't achieve otherwise.
2:57 pm: The call has ended. Replays are available on apple.com/investor.
Some Apple Watch Series 5 owners have been experiencing battery issues with their devices that cause random shutdowns even when the Apple Watch is reporting high battery levels.
An inconsistent reading of actual battery level appears to be at fault, as in most cases, the Apple Watch reports near 100 percent battery levels for most of the day before dropping down to close to 50 percent and then shutting off. Macrumors reader Todd describes the issue:
Prior to a recent update, my watch had been accurate in reporting its battery level. It's hard to say which recent update MAY have created the issue, or if it's a result of something different, but I'm currently running watchOS 6.2.8. For the past few weeks, my watch has been reporting at or near 100% battery levels for the duration of the day - 5-6 hours at least. It will then drop down to around 53% and then abruptly shut off. Once restarted, it reports a battery level of 53% but will then shut down again if not placed on a charger.
Other users have seen a problem where the Apple Watch shuts down at around 50 percent battery, charges up to 99 percent in a short period of time, and then has problems charging fully to 100 percent.
There are complaints about these battery life issues on the MacRumors forums and the Apple Support Communities, plus iMore wrote about the issue earlier this year. From the Apple Support Communities:
I am having the following problem with my Series 5 Apple Watch, purchased four months ago:
1. After a full charge, the battery charge indicator remains stuck at 100% for approximately 4-9 hours.
2. The battery charge indicator then begins to decrease.
3. When the battery charge indicator reaches approximately 15-33%, the watch powers down suddenly, with no low battery warning (which should be given at 10%).
In summary, the battery charge indicator is essentially never correct.
Apple Watch Series 5 owners have been complaining about battery life issues since the device was first released in September 2019, and while it doesn't appear to be a widespread issue, there are a good number of people who are experiencing problems.
Complaints have persisted across multiple watchOS updates, and there have been a reports about battery errors after the latest watchOS 6.2.6 and watchOS 6.2.8 updates. Some affected users have been able to solve the problem by getting a replacement watch from Apple, but other techniques, such as resetting the watch, re-pairing, deleting watch faces, and more have not worked.
Given the mixed reports about the battery problems and the length of time that people have been experiencing issues, it's not clear what's going on but it appears that Apple hasn't yet been able to fix the issue.
Google today rolled out a new feature for iPhone users who are signed up to beta test Chrome, allowing passwords saved in Chrome to be used in other apps on the device.
Chrome passwords can be accessed on iPhone by going to the Passwords & Accounts section, choosing Autofill Passwords, and then selecting the Chrome option.
With this feature enabled, Chrome will function as a password management option right alongside iCloud Keychain and other password management apps like 1Password. You will be able to select Chrome as an option to look up a password when signing in to an app, as is possible now with existing password management options.
This feature is available in the Chrome Beta for iOS at the current time, and there’s no word on when it will roll out to the release version of the iOS Chrome app.
Apple CEO Tim Cookyesterday testified in front of the U.S. House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee where he was questioned on Apple's App Store policies, but Congress also released a series of emails that Apple had submitted as part of the ongoing antitrust investigation.
Those emails revealed Apple's thoughts on App Store fees and provided insight into its efforts to negotiate deals with Amazon, but there were also emails on other topics, including the ongoing Right to Repair battle that Apple has been fighting against independent repair shops.
Repair site iFixit is part of the Right to Repair fight and today highlighted Apple's internal discussions about Right to Repair and the context surrounding those discussions, which is an interesting read for those who support the Right to Repair movement.
For those unfamiliar with Right to Repair, it's legislation that mandates that consumers should be able to repair their own devices, and that electronics companies like Apple should provide repair parts and repair manuals to all repair shops, rather than just Apple Authorized Service Providers.
Apple has lobbied heavily against Right to Repair, but internally, emails suggest Apple has been uncertain about its position and how it wants to handle repairs in the future. As an example, Apple scrambled to figure out its narrative when The New York Times in April 2019 wrote an op-ed in favor of the movement.
"The larger issue is that our strategy around all of this is unclear. Right now we're talking out of both sides of our mouth and no one is clear on where we're headed," reads the email.
An internal Apple email on repair shared with the subcommittee
Later in 2019, iFixit discovered iMac repair manuals online and questioned Apple about it. iFixit received no response, but according to the emails shared with Congress, it sparked internal discussion. From an email between Apple PR execs:
Right now, it's pretty clear things are happening in a vacuum and there is not an overall strategy. Plus, with one hand we are making these changes and the other is actively fighting Right to Repair legislation moving in 20 states without real coordination for how updated policies could be used to leverage our position."
As it turned out, Apple released the iMac manuals for the EPEAT green certification standard, and not all teams at Apple were aware those manuals were being uploaded nor was everyone in favor of it. Apple did not ultimately remove the manuals, but has not posted further repair instructions online.
Multiple states have introduced Right to Repair legislation, but lobbying from Apple and other companies like John Deere has prevented it from passing. Apple continually cites customer safety as the reason why repairs need to be restricted.
In fact, to persuade California lawmakers not to pass Right to Repair legislation, Apple's lobbyists took apart an iPhone and explained how customers could harm themselves if the lithium-ion battery is punctured. Apple has also said that it wants to assure customers that their products will be "repaired safely and correctly," as the reasoning behind not opening up repairs to all repair shops.
Even as it fights Right to Repair legislation, Apple has been making some moves to attempt to appease those pushing for expanded repair access. Apple in August 2019 introduced an Independent Repair Provider Program that provides independent repair businesses with genuine Apple parts, tools, training and repair manuals, but it does require repair shops to sign onerous contracts to get access.
iFixit does, of course, heavily advocate for Right to Repair policies so the piece on Apple's uncertainty over how to handle the shifting demand for access to repairs is somewhat biased, but the full article is worth a read for those who are interested in better access to repairs.
Apple with iOS 13 introduced HomeKit Secure Video functionality, which allows home security cameras that adopt support to offer integration with iCloud and the Home app, along with improved security features.
Multiple companies have been developing cameras that work with HomeKit Secure Video, and Eve recently released its $150 Eve Cam, a new camera option that is compatible with HomeKit Secure Video.
Design
Design wise, Eve Cam looks like many other home security cameras on the market, offering a circular webcam-like shape with a rectangular base that allows the camera to be rotated and positioned in the ideal location to provide the best view of a room. It is made from a lightweight plastic material that doesn't exactly look cheap, but it doesn't scream quality either.
There's no mistaking it as anything but a camera, but the relatively small size, black color, and simple shape allow it to blend well with any decor. The flexible magnetic base allows the camera to be positioned in multiple ways to best suit the room where it's located. The hinge rotates 360 degrees around and 180 degrees up and down, so you can put the camera all the way flat if necessary to hide the video feed.
Eve Cam can be placed on a table, shelf, desk, or other flat surface, or mounted up on the wall (hardware included), but keep in mind that it does need to be plugged in at all times and is not battery operated. There is no weatherproofing, so this is an indoor only camera, unlike the Logitech View, another HomeKit-enabled camera.
An LED on the Eve Cam, which can be disabled, displays camera status. There's no light when it's off or recording has been disabled, a blue light when streaming is enabled and inactive, and a red light when streaming is active and recording is turned on.
Video Quality and Features
Eve Cam features 1080p video recording and streaming along with a 150 degree field of view that is able to capture most of what's going on in a room. There's an infrared motion sensor and support for night vision up to 16.4 feet away when it's dark outside.
Compared to the Circle View from Logitech, another similar HomeKit Secure Video camera, the Eve Cam has a narrower field of view (180 degrees vs. 150 for the Eve Cam). In practice, I can see a bit less of the room when both are in the same position, but there's not a drastic difference.
I also don't see much difference when it comes to video quality - both the Eve Cam and the Circle View are similar, but I'll give the edge to the Eve Cam because it seems to be just a bit more crisp. I think the Circle View performs a bit better in night mode shots, though it's a close call.
There is a built-in microphone and speaker so you can communicate with someone who is in the room with the Eve Cam. Audio quality was fine. It wasn't the best I've ever heard, but it's clear and easy to understand what's being said.
Setup
Setting up the Eve Cam was super simple, as most HomeKit products are. I opened up the Home app, scanned the QR code, and was up and running. I didn't have to connect to a 2.4GHz network for setup because it worked with my 5GHz network, which is a plus.
HomeKit Secure Video
With all cameras that support HomeKit Secure Video, recorded footage is stored in iCloud with end-to-end encryption, which feels more secure than storing footage on servers run by the camera manufacturer.
Eve charges no fees for storing HomeKit Secure Video footage, but using the feature requires a higher-tier iCloud Storage plan. For a single HomeKit Secure Video camera, a 200GB iCloud storage plan is required, and for up to five devices, the 1TB plan is required.
Apple charges $2.99 per month for the 200GB plan and $9.99 per month for 1TB of storage, with no discounted yearly payment plans available. On the plus side, though HomeKit Secure Video requires higher storage tiers, the stored footage does not count against your iCloud storage plan. If you have the 1TB plan, you can use 1TB of storage for apps, photos, messages, files, and more rather than having it eaten up by camera content.
All HomeKit Secure Video footage is stored in iCloud for 10 days, which has been a pretty good length in my testing. I don't often need to access recordings after a few days, and if I do, I can just save the relevant recording to the Photos app before it expires.
Without a compatible iCloud storage plan, the Eve Cam still provides access to live video and notifications when motion is detected, but it can't send specific notifications for when people, pets, or vehicles are detected, nor can footage be recorded and saved.
If you have multiple HomeKit Secure Video cameras and only want to pay for one feed, it's simple to swap between which one is able to record by turning off recording and setting the camera to streaming only. Only the camera that records will require the iCloud subscription.
Home App
Eve camera recordings, both live and stored in iCloud, can be viewed directly in the Home app. Live video is streamed directly to device from a Home Hub, which keeps live recordings secure.
Eve Cam shows up in the "Cameras" list at the bottom of the Home app on iPhone, iPad, and Mac, both on the main page if the camera is favorited and on the page for the specific room in the home that it's assigned to. My camera is in my office, for example, so I see the feed when I look at the Rooms section in the app and choose the room I've labeled office.
With the tvOS 14 update, you can also see camera feeds from HomeKit-enabled cameras like the Eve Cam right on the Apple TV, which is useful if you just want to keep an eye on a specific room while watching TV.
Tapping on the camera shows the current feed along a timeline of recordings provided that you've activated iCloud storage options. You can scroll through the timeline to view past footage, with recordings noting when a person, pet, or vehicle is detected if that particular feature is turned on.
Settings and Automations
There's a lot of granular control over what the camera records, how footage is stored, and what kind of motion detection is activated, which is one of the nice things about HomeKit Secure Video cameras. Apple understands privacy and provides more options than you might get with other home security cameras.
You can choose different streaming and recording options for home and away, so if you'd prefer to have the camera record when you're gone and turn off when you're home, that's an option. Apple in fact has four recording options for all HomeKit Secure Video cameras, including Eve Cam, which are set for home and away.
Off - Nothing is recorded and no one can stream video from the camera. The camera does not detect activity and does not trigger automations and notifications.
Detect Activity - The camera can detect activity to trigger automations and to send notifications, but no one can stream and nothing is recorded.
Stream - The camera's live stream can be viewed, but nothing is recorded. In this mode, it can detect activity to trigger automations and to send notifications.
Stream & Allow Recording - This mode allows the cameras live stream to be viewed and it allows footage to be recorded and stored in iCloud.
When these settings talk about automations, they're referring to the motion detection features of the Eve Cam that can be used as triggers in automations. You can, for example, have an automation that turns on all the lights when motion is detected in a specific room. Automations can be set up with any other HomeKit-enabled products with the Eve Cam serving as the trigger device for activating a scene.
Note that the Eve Cam has motion detection, but it lacks the light sensing feature found in the Logitech Circle View, so automations and scenes are limited to motion detection functionality.
Motion Detection and Notifications
All HomeKit Secure Video cameras, Eve Cam included, can be set to record when any motion is detected or the camera detects a person, animal, or vehicle to cut down on random motion detection alerts. Detection for people, animals, and vehicles is done on device rather than on a server somewhere.
Video recordings can be set to record audio or not record audio, and there is an option under "Recording Options" in the Settings to erase all camera recordings.
Apple also offers detailed options for notifications. The Eve Cam can send a snapshot of what's going on whenever motion is recorded, so you can see at a glance in a rich notification if there's something happening that needs to be addressed.
Notifications can be set to be recorded when any motion is detected or when a person, animal, or vehicle is detected and a clip is recorded. Notifications can be limited by time and by location, so you can have notifications turned off while you're at home or during certain hours of the day when there's a lot of activity in the house.
Eve App
You can also view footage from the Eve Cam in the Eve app, which you probably have installed if you own other Eve products. The Eve app isn't necessary, and it offers much of the same feed that you'll see in the Home app along with the same functionality for creating automations and scenes.
You can't view recorded footage in the Eve app because it's all in iCloud, so for the most part, there's no need to use the Eve app with the Eve Cam, but it does have a timeline of when motion was detected and that has the potential to be useful.
iOS 14 Features
iOS 14 introduces a few new features for HomeKit Secure Video that work with the Eve Cam. First and foremost, video from the camera can be viewed in Picture in Picture mode if you tap on the Picture in Picture icon (two screens and an arrow). In Picture in Picture mode, you can do other things on the iPhone will watching the camera feed.
There are also suggested automations you might want to use with camera functionality, such as activating the lights in the room when motion is detected, and there's a new Face Recognition option. With Face Recognition, the iPhone can detect specific people in camera footage recorded by the Eve Cam, letting you know if it detects someone in the family.
Face Recognition pulls information from the Faces that are stored in the Photos Library, and the feature is disabled by default. Notifications will be sent with specific information on who has been detected if the feature is turned on.
The other new feature is Activity Zones, so you can set the camera to only send notifications when motion is detected in a certain part of the video. So if you're recording your office but want to block out notifications for where you sit because there's constant motion, you can do so.
Bottom Line
The Eve Cam is one of a handful of new cameras that offer HomeKit Secure Video functionality, which is more private and protected than standard home security cameras thanks to iCloud integration, encryption, and on-device motion analysis.
At $150, the Eve Cam isn't cheap, but it's a good solution if you're looking for a camera that works with HomeKit and the Secure Video feature specifically. The Eve Cam is similar to the Logitech Circle View that we also recently reviewed.
Comparatively, the Eve Cam is easier to position with the 360 degree base, has slightly better video quality, is $10 cheaper, and offers the Eve app as well as Home app integration, but it is indoor only, has a less wide field of view (150 degrees vs. 180 degrees), and the night vision is slightly better with the Circle View.
Either camera is a great home security option depending on the feature set that you're looking for, but do be aware that these are specifically designed to work with HomeKit Secure Video and are not compatible with other smart home systems. It's also worth noting that there are more affordable HomeKit Secure Video cameras on the market such as the $40 Eufy Indoor Cam but I have not yet been able to try it out to see how it compares to the more expensive options.
CBS parent company ViacomCBS today announced a significant expansion to its streaming service, CBS All Access. In addition to a new user interface across all major device platforms, CBS All Access is gaining more than 3,500 episodes of TV to improve its back catalog, as well as older movies.
This includes shows from channels like BET, Comedy Central, MTV, Nikelodeon, Smithsonian Channel, TV Land, and movies from Paramount Pictures. The company also said that CBS All Access will continue to gain more shows and movies soon, with up to 30,000 episodes of TV and movies expected to be added in the months to come.
Some of the shows and films added in the most recent update include:
BET: All seasons of “Real Husbands of Hollywood,” “Hit the Floor,” plus all prior seasons of “Single Ladies” and more
Comedy Central: All seasons of “Chappelle’s Show,” “Strangers with Candy,” six prior seasons of “Reno 911!” and more
MTV: All seasons of “Laguna Beach” and “Snooki & Jwoww,” prior seasons of TEEN MOM 2, seasons of JERSEY SHORE: FAMILY VACATION and MTV FLORIBAMA SHORE, as well as a selection from THE CHALLENGE, “Beavis and Butt-Head: The Mike Judge Collection” and more
Nickelodeon: All seasons of “Avatar: Last Airbender,” “Rugrats,” plus all prior seasons of SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS and more, in addition to seasons of “Danny Phantom,” “The Legend of Korra” and “Sam & Cat” that were previously available
Smithsonian Channel: More than 60 episodes of “Aerial America,” seasons of “Air Disasters,” documentaries such as “The Day We Walked on the Moon,” “The Green Book: Guide to Freedom,” “MLK: The Assassination Tapes,” “Pocahontas: Beyond the Myth” and more
TV Land and VH1: Programming like “Hot in Cleveland,” as well as prior seasons of RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE and LOVE & HIP HOP and more
Paramount Pictures: More films have been added to the service since May, including “The Firm,” “Charlotte’s Web” and “Scary Movie,” with more than 150 movies in total now available
In terms of the update, ViacomCBS said that the new user interface has enhanced personalization and discovery. This includes advanced recommendations, curated homepages, new content categories, and central hubs for various ViacomCBS brands. The update is rolling out today across all major device platforms, including iOS and tvOS.
Notably, today's updates appear to be the first step toward a rebranding for CBS All Access, which the company today announced is coming in early 2021. It's unclear in what way CBS All Access will be rebranded, but considering the increase of various other Viacom channels on the platform, the company could plan to drop the "CBS" name in favor of something more all-encompassing.
Network-exclusive streaming platforms continue to grow, with NBC's own Peacock service gaining 10 million subscribers since its launch earlier in the year. HBO has also streamlined its streaming services, rolling HBO GO into the new HBO Max service.
Two weeks after its nationwide launch, NBCUniversal's Peacock streaming service has accumulated 10 million free and paid users, reports The Verge.
"NBCUniversal successfully launched Peacock in Cable's footprint in April, ahead of the streaming service's U.S. nationwide launch earlier this month, with 10 million sign-ups to date," Comcast chairman and CEO Brian Roberts stated during the earnings report. "The company is really trying to lean into streaming," he said. "I'm pretty excited as the world is transitioning… broadband is making that all possible."
It was a positive announcement among otherwise disappointing second-quarter earnings, as the company continues to struggle with the impact of the global situation on entertainment divisions. Peacock is a key part of NBCUniversal's restructuring, in which it will "shift resources from linear to streaming," according to NBCU CEO Jeff Shell.
The service showcases NBC shows such as "30 Rock," "Cheers," "Downton Abbey," and "Saturday Night Live," with live sporting events such as the English Premier League and the U.S. Open Championship.
Peacock was considered a late entrant to the crowded streaming service market, but has surpassed HBO Max, which has drawn 4.1 million subscribers since its launch in May. HBO Max does not have a free tier like Peacock, however. While Peacock has pleased executives with its performance, Comcast's home internet and cable segment lost 477,000 video subscribers.
Apple's rival service, Apple TV+, has been reported to have had slow growth, and it is estimated that fewer than 15 percent of eligible customers have signed up, despite the offer of a one-year free trial with the purchase of Apple hardware. Apple does not report subscriber numbers.
Like HBO Max, Peacock is not available on Amazon Fire TV or Roku. Peacock is available on iOS and Apple TV, and operates with both a free and a premium tier.
Update: This article has been updated to make clearer that the count includes users on both free and paid tiers.
A few retailers have opened up new discounts across a few of Apple's first-party accessories today, including deals on iPhone cases, an iPad Pro Smart Folio, and Apple Watch Bands. You'll find these sales at Amazon, Verizon, and Best Buy.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
Apple offered Amazon lower App Store fees to convince it to launch its Prime Video app on the App Store and Apple TV, documents published by the U.S. antitrust subcommittee have revealed.
According to email correspondence between Apple's services chief Eddy Cue and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, Apple struck a deal to bring Amazon Prime Video into the App Store by agreeing to take a 15% revenue share of subscriptions signed-up through the app. Apple usually takes a 30% share of all App Store subscription revenue, dropping to 15% only if the subscription continues for a second year.
In 2016, when the meeting took place, Amazon Prime Video wasn't available on Apple TV, which competes directly with Amazon's Fire TV. At the time, Bezos admitted that Amazon was holding out for "acceptable business terms" from Apple to include its service on Apple's set-top box. It's unclear if the reduced subscriptions cut was part of the final terms of the agreement.
According to the email, Apple also agreed to take a 15% share of third-party Amazon Channels sold through the app if the subscriber used Apple payment processing, agreed to support integration with Siri and pipe in Prime Video content to its TV app for iOS, and agreed to include Prime Video results in Siri and Spotlight searches. A year after the email was sent, Amazon Prime Video launched on Apple TV.
Other documents shared by the committee also reveal correspondence between Apple and Amazon regarding the 2018 deal for Apple to officially sell devices on Amazon's website. Bloomberg notes that the documents show Amazon expected to bring in $3.2 billion from the deal in the first year, including $1.1 billion from iPhone sales.
The reduced App Store fees for Amazon's Prime Video app are actually part of a longstanding policy run by Apple to provide better fees for subscription-based streaming video apps.
However, the antitrust subcommittee interpreted the deal as representing preferential treatment given to Amazon and that Apple was not treating its developers equally when it came to providing access to its App Store and other platforms. "That is not correct," Cook said on Wednesday when asked by the subcommittee if some developers are treated differently. "We treat every developer the same."
A few notable discounts on Apple's MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models have appeared at Amazon and B&H Photo this week. Earlier in the week we shared news of 2020 MacBook Air notebooks for $100 off, and now the latest 13-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models are seeing solid discounts.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
We've rounded up all of these deals in the lists below. Prices start at $899.00 for the 13-inch MacBook Air ($100 off), $1,599.99 for the 13-inch MacBook Pro ($199 off), and $2,099.00 for the 16-inch MacBook Pro ($300 off). These sales represent the current best prices online for each notebook.
You can find even more discounts on other MacBooks by visiting our Best Deals guide for MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. In this guide we track the steepest discounts for the newest MacBook models every week, so be sure to bookmark it and check back often if you're shopping for a new Apple notebook.
Apple is facing another antitrust complaint in Europe, this time from the developers of encrypted messaging app Telegram.
In a complaint to the EU Commission, the app's creators argue that Apple must give iOS users the opportunity to download software outside of the App Store. The Financial Times reports:
In a complaint to EU competition chief Margrethe Vestager, Telegram, which has more than 400m users, said Apple must "allow users to have the opportunity of downloading software outside of the App Store".
According to the paywalled report, Telegram's complaint recounts how in 2016 it was prevented from launching a gaming platform on the App Store because it was deemed to violate Apple's rules. Telegram subsequently dismantled the venture to avoid "being deleted from the App Store," and claimed that it was "an example of Apple's capacity to curb innovation thanks to its 'monpolistic power' on the app market."
The complaint follows a blog post earlier this week by Telegram founder Pavel Durov in which he takes Apple to task and lists seven "myths" that the company uses to justify its 30 percent commission on apps hosted in the App Store.
Telegram is the third company after Spotify and Rakuten to formally complain to the EU Commission, which is already conducting two investigations into Apple's App Store and Apple Pay.
Apple once considered taking a 40 percent cut from some subscription apps, according to documents shared today by the House Judiciary Committee (via Bloomberg).
Back in March 2011, Apple's services boss Eddy Cue emailed three other executives and suggested Apple should "ask for 40% for the first year only," but that a "few deals" needed to be worked out for Apple to "see what is right."
One of the executives, Jai Chulani, wrote back that Apple could be "leaving money on the table" asking for 30 percent in the first year of subscriptions.
At the time, the emails referred to apps that offered digital content like Hulu on the Apple TV rather than apps running on iPhone and iPad, though Apple had launched App Store subscriptions in February 2011.
Apple ultimately decided to take a 30 percent cut from subscriptions purchased through the App Store, and later reduced that rate for longer running subscriptions. Today, when customers sign up for a subscription within an app, Apple collects 30 percent for the first year, and 15 percent for the second year and all subsequent years.
Apple CEO Tim Cook during his testimony at today's antitrust subcommittee meeting emphasized that Apple has not changed its App Store fees since the App Store launched, and has in fact lowered them, referencing the 15 percent cut.
Ahead of the antitrust meeting, Apple also commissioned a study suggesting Apple's App Store fees are in line with the fees collected by other digital marketplaces and service providers.
Leaker Jon Prosser, who has a somewhat mixed track record when it comes to predicting Apple's plans, today said that new iPhone 12 models and new iPads will launch in October.
Multiple rumors have suggested that some or all of the iPhone 12 models coming this year will see a later than normal launch. Apple typically unveils and releases new iPhones in the month of September, but problems caused by the global health crisis have resulted in manufacturing delays.
Just today, Qualcomm insinuated that one of its 5G partners will see a "slight" launch delay, a statement that most likely refers to Apple. Apple plans to use Qualcomm's 5G chips in all new 2020 iPhone models.
So far we don't know exactly how long the iPhones will be delayed, but Apple could unveil new devices in September and then release them later, as it did with the iPhone XR in 2018. October is a relatively safe guess, as Qualcomm suggested the delay won't be too long and other rumors have also pointed toward an October launch.
Prosser did not provide insight into which iPad models will see a refresh, but there have been some rumors suggesting an iPad Pro with mini-LED display is in the works, though most information suggests that launch has been delayed until 2021.
There have been some specific rumors indicating that Apple is working on an 11-inch iPad Air with an all-screen display and under-display Touch ID, and if accurate, that would be the most notable iPad refresh on the horizon.
Prosser has accurately predicted some of Apple's launch plans, but he has also shared incorrect information such as suggesting Apple planned to rename the iPhone "iPhoneOS" and providing images of a fake AirPower-like wireless charging mat. Some of his claims have also been somewhat outlandish, such as the suggestion that Apple is working on a set of Steve Jobs heritage edition Apple Glasses modeled after the glasses that Jobs wore.
Earlier this week, Prosser said that Apple will launch a new iMac in August.
Apple today updated its Apple Store app with a new "For You" tab that offers access to order status, devices, accessory recommendations, services, reservations, and product tips, all in one simple to access place.
There's also a feature that's designed to allow you to compare a new iPhone you're considering purchasing with your existing iPhone so you can see the difference at a glance.
The updated Apple Store app, which lets Apple customers make purchases, view orders, find accessories, and more, can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]
Qualcomm today shared its third quarter earnings report and hinted that Apple's upcoming 5G iPhones could be delayed, according to Reuters. Qualcomm said its fourth quarter projections might be impacted by the "delay of a global 5G flagship phone launch."
From Qualcomm CFO Akash Palkhiwala, who referred to the delay as "slight":
"We're seeing a partial impact from the delay of a flagship phone launch. And so what we've seen is a slight delay that pushes some of the units out from the September quarter to the December quarter for us."
The fourth quarter covers July, August, and September, and September is typically the month when Apple launches new smartphones. Given the release timelines of other smartphones and Apple's size, it's unlikely that Qualcomm is referring to a different smartphone launch, even though Qualcomm declined to name Apple or the iPhone.
Apple is using Qualcomm's 5G chips in its iPhone 12 lineup, and all models are expected to support 5G technology. There have been multiple rumors indicating Apple's iPhone launch will be delayed this year due to the ongoing global health crisis and restrictions on travel.
So far, rumors have indicated that iPhones could be delayed by about a month, which suggests a launch in October rather than September. It's not clear if all iPhones will be delayed, or if some models will come out in September while others launch in October or later.
Apple is still likely to unveil the new iPhones in September as it usually does, launching the devices later in the year. There is precedent for a launch that's uncoupled from an announcement. In 2018, Apple debuted the iPhone XS, XS Max, and XR, with the two more expensive iPhones launching in September and the XR coming later in October.
Apple CEO Tim Cook was, as expected, questioned about Apple's App Store policies during today's antitrust hearing with the U.S. House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee. Cook primarily stuck to the talking points provided in his opening statement [PDF], but he did have some extra color to add.
Cook was specifically questioned about email app "Hey" from Basecamp, which was at the center of a huge controversy earlier this year after Apple approved the app and then threatened to remove it from the App Store because Hey was skirting Apple's in-app purchase rules.
At issue was the fact that the "Hey" app was non-functional for customers unless they subscribed to the $99 per year Hey email service outside of the App Store. Hey did not want to give Apple a 30 percent cut of profits, while Apple claimed that it did not want an app that "doesn't work" on the App Store. Hey at the time opened to a blank screen asking users to log in.
When asked about the inconsistency over the approval of the app and the subsequent controversy, Cook didn't have much to say other than pointing out that the issue was resolved and that the App Store provides a lot of value for developers.
Hey is in the App Store today and we're happy that they're there. I believe they have a version of their product for free so they're not paying anything on that. I would also say that the 15 or 30 percent is for lots of different services, compilers, programming languages, APIs, etc. [...]
It's an economic miracle that the App Store allows a person in their basement to start a company and serve 170 countries in the world. I believe it's the highest job creator in the last decade.
Cook went on to explain that Apple does sometimes make mistakes given the volume of apps that are examined each week. "I'm sure we made errors," said Cook. "We get 100,000 apps submitted a week and there are 1.7 million apps in the App Store."
Cook was asked if Apple's 15 to 30 percent cut that it takes from apps squeezes out the next generation of App makers and whether it's unjust, and Cook said no.
No, I don't think so. There are a lot of apps on the store and a lot of people are making a very good living.
There were questions on whether Apple was "extracting" commissions from apps that have had to change their business models in response to the pandemic like Airbnb and ClassPass, (as outlined here) and whether this was pandemic profiteering.
Cook said Apple would "never do that." He went on to explain that if something has moved to a digital service that does not follow the App Store rules, that it does need to go through the App Store. "In the cases I'm aware of, we're working with the developers," he said.
As for educational apps, Cook said that Apple will not make efforts to monetize apps that students adopt as they transition to learning digitally.
We're proud of what we've done in education. We're serving that market in a significant way. We will work with people who move from a physical to virtual world because of the pandemic.
When asked about limiting copy cat apps and whether those rules apply to Apple, Cook said that he was not familiar with what was being asked, but Apple is subjected to the same rules as other app developers. The Congressman questioning him, Joe Neguse, said that Apple's App Store rules allow Apple to use any data collected by developers to create clone apps while also preventing these kind of apps from developers.
Cook said that he was not familiar with that, and that he'd follow up with the Congressman's office. He did, however, say that Apple would "never steal somebody's IP."
Cook's full testimony can be watched on YouTube as the U.S. House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee livestreamed the proceedings.
Apple in early 2019 removed or restricted many popular screen time and parental control apps on the App Store due to their use of Mobile Device Management, or MDM, which the company said put user security and privacy at risk.
During today's antitrust hearing with the U.S. House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee, Cook was questioned about Apple's decision to remove the parental control apps, which came after the release of Apple's own Screen Time feature.
Cook said what Apple has said multiple times before, that the apps that used Mobile Device Management to allow parents to limit kids access to their devices placed data at risk. "We were worried about the safety of kids," Cook said.
Cook's statement was similar to what Apple said when the apps were removed: "These apps were using an enterprise technology that provided them access to kids' highly sensitive personal data. We do not think it is O.K. for any apps to help data companies track or optimize advertising of kids."
The Congresswoman questioning Cook asked about a specific app from the Saudi Arabian government that also used MDM, but Cook said he was not familiar with the app and that he would have to provide more data at a later date. When questioned about whether Apple applies different rules to different app developers, Cook once again said that rules are applied to all developers equally.
Cook was asked about the timing of the removal of the parental control apps, given that Screen Time had launched not too long before, a question that Cook largely skirted. He was asked why Phil Schiller had referred customers complaining about the removal of parental control apps to Screen Time, but Cook referenced the more than 30 parental control apps in the App Store and said there is "vibrant competition" in the parental control space in the App Store.
When pressed on whether Apple has the power to exclude apps from the App Store or remove competing apps, Cook returned to what he said during his opening statement, that there's a "wide gate" for the App Store, referring to the fact that there are more than 1.7 million apps available. "It's an economic miracle," said Cook. "We want to get every app we can on the App Store."
In tandem with the questioning on parental control apps, Cook was asked why, in 2010, Apple used the App Store to push publisher Random House into participating in the iBookstore, which Random House had declined to do. In a cited document, Apple iTunes chief Eddy Cue at the time emailed Steve Jobs that he "prevented an app from Random House from going live in the App Store," because Apple was aiming to get Random House to agree to an overall deal. Cook in response said there are "many reasons" an app might not make it through the approval process. "It might not work properly," he said.
One of the documents shared by the subcommittee
Apple's 2019 decision to limit parental control apps led the developers of those apps to call for a public API that would allow them to access the same features that are available in Screen Time after the MDM options were restricted, which Apple declined to provide.
Mobile Device Management, which the apps used, is a feature that is specifically designed for enterprise users to manage company-owned devices. Apple's position is that the use of MDM by consumer-focused apps has privacy and security concerns that have been referenced in App Store guidelines since 2017.
Rather than providing an API, Apple ultimately decided to allow parental control app developers to use Mobile Device Management for their apps, with stricter privacy controls that prevent them from selling, using, or disclosing data to third parties. Apps must also submit an MDM capability request that evaluates how an app will use MDM to prevent abuse and to ensure no data is shared. MDM requests are re-evaluated each year.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
