MacRumors

ExxonMobil this week announced an update to its Speedpass+ iOS app, which gives users the ability to pay for fuel and car washes using their Apple Watch and Apple Pay at over 10,000 participating Exxon and Mobil refueling stations across the United States.

For the Apple Watch payments process, users will have to navigate to the Speedpass+ watch app, select the pump they are at, authorize it for payment, and double-tap the side button to bring up Apple Pay. Once the payment is processed, users can begin fueling up their vehicle.

“With these updates to the Speedpass+ app, consumers now have even more options to pay for fuel while sitting in the comfort of their car – either using Ford SYNC 3 or the Apple Watch,” said Matt Bergeron, vice president of marketing for ExxonMobil Fuels, Lubricants & Specialties Marketing Company.

“This is more than a cashless payment app; it is a platform that earns and redeems Plenti loyalty points and manages receipts. With ExxonMobil’s heritage and commitment to innovation, the Speedpass+ app continues to bring new benefits to its users.”

The update also comes with a new "Ford SYNC 3" feature that lets Speedpass+ app users easily authorize fuel payments using voice commands or an in-car touch screen, as well as check how much fuel is in the tank when away from their car using the app.

The new Speedpass+ update follows the app's introduction of Apple Pay in March of 2016, which introduced the ability to pay for fuel using an iPhone and Apple's mobile wallet. Exxon's Apple Pay solution doesn't use NFC reader technology, instead focusing on software within the app to use GPS and QR codes in order to authorize fuel payments.

Fuel companies have slowly begun to adopt Apple Pay over the years, with Chevron opening up a pilot program for Apple Pay fuel payments at a few of its stations in San Francisco in 2015. A few vehicle manufacturers have also rolled out Apple Pay support directly within their infotainment systems, with Jaguar and Shell partnering up to allow drivers in the United Kingdom to pay for fuel with Apple Pay insider their car.

ExxonMobil Speedpass+ is available to download for free on the iOS App Store. [Direct Link]

Uber found itself in more hot water on Thursday after Reuters revealed that the ride-hailing service is facing a criminal investigation by the U.S. government.

The Department of Justice has reportedly begun an investigation over the company's use of "secret" software that allowed its drivers to operate in areas where Uber was banned or restricted.

First reported by The New York Times, the so-called "greyball" software is said to have allowed the company to identify officials seeking to prevent the service from running. It is claimed the software was used in several areas including Portland and Oregon, where the service was still waiting for approval to operate.

Transport regulation officials regularly posed as passengers in those regions where Uber had yet to obtain approval, in an effort to prove that Uber was operating illegally. The software was used to work out who was an undercover official and would attempt to block them from booking rides in the first place.

Uber has already admitted to using the software. In a letter sent to Portland transport regulators last week, the company said it used greyball "exceedingly sparingly" in the city, but had not used it since April 2015 when it received permission to operate.

Uber has also previously defended its use of the software by claiming that it helped the company limit fraud and protect its drivers from harm. The company prohibited the use of the software for identifying officials shortly after the New York Times report brought the practice to light.

The nature of any potential federal criminal violation, and the likelihood of anyone being charged, remains unclear because the investigation is still in its early stages, according to sources. However, Uber has reportedly received a subpoena from a Northern California grand jury seeking documents concerning how the software tool functioned and where it was deployed. A subpoena indicates that an official criminal investigation is underway.

Uber has come under increasing pressure on several fronts in recent months following several controversies. Concerns were first raised late last year when users complained that the app appeared to track them for days or even weeks after they last used the ride-hailing service.

Recently it emerged that Apple CEO Tim Cook threatened to pull Uber's app from the App Store in early 2015 after discovering that it was secretly "fingerprinting" iPhones that used the app. The revelation came in a New York Times article published last month that detailed the ride-hailing service's history of controversial business tactics.

Bosch has won orders to supply Apple with some of the motion sensors in its next range of iPhones, according to a report by Bloomberg, potentially loosening Invensense's position as the primary supplier of the smartphone components.

California-based Invensense exclusively supplied the gyroscopes and accelerometers in the iPhone SE, iPhone 6s, and iPhone 7, but Apple's new deal with Bosch could see the German firm supply as much as half of the motion-sensing components in Apple's upcoming phones.

Bosch already supplies the barometric pressure sensors for the iPhone, but the deal could reflect Apple's aim to source components from at least two suppliers to make it easier to negotiate cheaper prices.

Invensense is currently seeking to complete a $1.3 billion sale to Tokyo-based TDK Corp, which had hoped to strengthen its business with Apple as part of the deal. "We aim to become a strong player in the sensor business with InvenSense as our perfect partner," TDK CEO Shigenao Ishiguro said in December, when the purchase agreement was first made. Shares in Invensense dipped more than 5 percent on Thursday's news.

Apple has a major iPhone redesign planned this year, with a glass body and edge-to-edge OLED display that includes an integrated Touch ID fingerprint sensor and front-facing camera. The new iPhone is expected to be sold alongside standard "S" cycle 4.7 and 5.5-inch iPhones.

YouTube has announced plans to produce a raft of original programming beginning this year, as the Google-owned video site moves to counter the rising tide of premium streaming services like Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu.

The difference in YouTube's approach to original content is that its shows will be free to view on its website and apps through an ad-supported format, rather than being tied to the company's ad-free $9.99 YouTube Red subscription service.

The company will make a multi-million dollar investment in more than 40 original shows and movies in the next year, according to sources who spoke to Bloomberg. YouTube hopes that high-profile stars will feature in the content and that this will in turn attract bigger advertisers to sponsor the programming.

"We're working with YouTube stars and big celebrities that we know have global appeal, advertiser appeal and are largely established on the platform," Susanne Daniels, YouTube's head of original content, said in an interview.

YouTube has signed up comedian Kevin Hart and TV host Ellen DeGeneres as its first two high-profile celebrities. Hart's show will be a workout-based series, while DeGeneres' program will give fans a peak backstage into the making of her talkshow.

Katy Perry and Demi Lovato also announced behind-the-scenes shows with YouTube, while TV and radio personality Ryan Seacrest confirmed his involvement in a music competition called "Best.Cover.Ever", which will debut on the site later this year.

YouTube's original content plans were announced at the annual digital NewFronts conference in New York on Friday.

Puzzle game Zip-Zap has been named Apple's App of the Week, and as a result, it is available to download for free for the next seven days. Zip-Zap is normally priced at $1.99 and this is the first time it's been free since its September 2016 launch.

Zip-Zap is a puzzle game that asks users to solve puzzles using Rube Goldberg-style hinges and levers that are put into place via well-timed taps. There are more than 100 levels to complete, and the game has no ads or in-app purchases.

Zip-Zap will be available for free until next Thursday, when a new App of the Week will be chosen. It can be downloaded from the App Store. [Direct Link]

Apple today seeded the fifth beta of an upcoming tvOS 10.2.1 update to developers for testing purposes, one and a half weeks after seeding the fourth 10.2.1 beta and more than one month after releasing tvOS 10.2, an update that included improved scrolling and iPad support for the Apple TV Remote app.

The tvOS 10.2.1 beta is designed for the fourth-generation Apple TV. It can be downloaded by connecting the Apple TV to a computer with a USB-C cable and installing the beta software from a registered developer account using iTunes.

Because of the installation requirements, tvOS betas are limited to developers. tvOS 10.2.1 will not be available to the public until the final version of the software launches.

Apple does not typically provide detailed beta release notes, so we don't yet know what's included in tvOS 10.2.1. It's likely to focus primarily on bug fixes, security enhancements, and performance improvements, but we may not know what's new until the software sees an official release.

No notable changes were found in the first four tvOS 10.2.1 betas, but should anything new popup in the fifth beta, we'll update this post.

GE today announced that its connected LED light bulbs C-Life and C-Sleep will gain Apple HomeKit compatibility this summer.

A new C-Reach hub with HomeKit support will allow homeowners to turn on and off their "C by GE" lights, dim them, and control bulbs individually or in groups by rooms with Siri voice commands. The lights also should be able to be controlled with the Home app on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch running iOS 10 or later.

GE said the C-Reach hub will sell for less than $50 and will be available at a discount when bundled with some lights, according to The Verge.

GE describes the C-Life as an "everyday" light bulb that provides "optimal daytime light," while the C-Sleep light bulb is supposedly "warm and calm at night" and "crisp and vibrant in the morning." A starter pack with two C-Life and two C-Sleep light bulbs is available for $74.99 plus shipping in the United States.

Epix has updated its iOS app with a new feature called "Epix Cast," which allows users to beam videos from the service's mobile app to compatible smart TVs and streaming boxes, even if the receiving device doesn't have an Epix app. Notably, Epix Cast allows iOS and Android smartphones to be used normally during a casting, and videos will continue playing "even if the device turns off."

To use the feature, Epix viewers simply have to find a movie to watch in the app, choose the "Tap to TV" button, and select from a list of nearby streaming devices that are connected to their Wi-Fi network to instantly play the selected movie on a bigger screen. When a video is playing the Epix mobile app can act as a remote, a browser to queue up the next movie, and a social feed to discuss the movie with fellow fans.

Epix Cast also allows users to seamlessly switch between multiple TVs and devices without having to start a movie over again. In an interview with TechCrunch, Epix chief digital officer Jon Dakss detailed the technology behind the feature, which goes beyond simply mirroring video playing on an iPhone and performs searches online in order to discover "the highest quality version that will work on your TV."

A pioneer in cross-platform viewing, EPIX is again advancing the “TV Everywhere” experience by making it easier for all audiences to enjoy its content on connected TV devices with the touch of a finger on their smart phones. Premium entertainment network EPIX today announced that it has launched EPIX Cast, a new feature that allows users to cast EPIX content from their Apple and Android devices to any connected TV device without the need for additional hardware.

“From the very beginning of the creation of EPIX, our network has been focused on reaching consumers wherever they are, whenever they want and with an experience that is unrivaled in the market today,” said Mark Greenberg, EPIX CEO. “With this new feature, we’re once again leading the charge on advancing the consumer viewing experience”.

Epix Cast has launched thanks to help from start-up Vizbee, which created the "Vizbee Device Network" to seamlessly connect all video devices in a household and now fuels the new casting feature on Epix.

Compatible streaming devices and smart TVs include: Google Chromecast, Sony Blu-ray Disc Players, LG webOS TVs, Sony Android TVs, Sony Opera TVs, Vizio TVs, and unspecified "other Smart TVs." Down the line, Epix said Samsung Tizen TVs, LG NetCast TVs, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, and TiVo support will be added.

Epix launched an Apple TV app in February, but incoming support for Epix Cast on Apple's set-top box was not confirmed. Like any use of Epix, users will have to sign in with an existing cable provider that includes the entertainment channel in its package listing. When asked whether the company would launch a standalone subscription model in a similar vein to HBO Now, Dakss neither confirmed nor denied such a move, saying, "It’s an area that we continue to explore and look at."

Epix can be downloaded from the iOS App Store for free [Direct Link], and this week's update also includes enhancements to the personalization and communication features of the app.

Snapchat is gearing up to launch a slate of original television shows, using the social network's unique, short-lived media hook as a means to create content that lasts between 3-5 minutes long. Snapchat has signed original show deals with a collection of companies over the past few months, including NBCUniversal, Turner, A+E Networks, Discovery, BBC, ABC, ESPN, Vice Media, Vertical Networks, NFL, and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

In a report by The Wall Street Journal today, sources familiar with Snapchat's plans stated that the company is also discussing deals with CBS and Fox, and is ready to close a deal with Scripps Networks Interactive, which owns Food Network and HGTV. This latter deal is said to result in "offshoots" of current TV shows including House Hunters and Chopped for Snapchat.

Snapchat's current goal is to have between 2 and 3 new episodes of original TV shows debuting every day by the end of 2017. The shows will be housed in the Stories tab of Snapchat, somewhere among the content users see from their friends and the existing media-created news posts.

As Snapchat has held meetings with its TV partners, the company is said to have given "extensive and detailed notes" in an effort to launch a unified slate of shows. Some versions of Snapchat's TV initiatives have already launched, including an interactive audition experience themed after The Voice, but the company is said to now be "looking for scripted dramas, daily news shows, horror, documentaries, animated shows, and more."

While media companies have had various disagreements with YouTube and Facebook, TV companies are flocking to create original shows for Snapchat. That is in part because Snap executives including Mr. Bell, a former News Corp. executive, embrace certain old media values like scarcity and promoting a select group of premium content above user-generated fare.

Mr. Bell says he wants to help grow TV audiences by exposing Snapchat's young user base to their brands. "I don't want to be a TV killer," Mr. Bell says.

To this extent, Snapchat might change some fundamental aspects of the social network in order to encourage binging and catching up with its shows, instead of sticking to its ephemeral content strategy which removed some past shows from the service after 48 hours. For the new slate of TV shows, it's still unclear when exactly Snapchat plans to begin the launch, but users can at least expect them to begin debuting by the end of the year.

Many social networks are looking to add original television content to their services, with Twitter just this week detailing its strategy for launching a 24/7 live streaming news network through a partnership with Bloomberg and various other companies. While Facebook hasn't yet launched original video content of its own, it is building a social network that is more than ready to do so in the future, with multiple updates and app debuts centered around improving and prioritizing video-related content.

Last week we reported that Apple had emailed all iTunes Affiliate Program members to inform them that its commission rate for all apps and in-app content would be reduced to 2.5 percent on May 1, down from 7 percent, globally.

The news came as a blow to app review and discovery websites like AppShopper and TouchArcade that depend on the commissions to generate revenue.

However, this morning MacGamerHQ posted an email communication from iTunes Affiliate Support that casts doubt on Apple's original announcement.

The message above was received in response to a query about whether Mac apps would be impacted by the commission changes. As shown, the email states that iOS and Mac app commissions remain at 7 percent, while only in-app commissions will fall to 2.5 percent.

If the affiliate team's information is accurate, then the change in commissions does not apply to individual app purchases, as Apple originally stated.

MacGamerHQ notes that several affected site owners and bloggers are still seeing 7 percent commissions come through for iTunes affiliate links, despite the fact that the changes were meant to come into effect on Monday. We'll make sure to update this post if/when Apple clarifies the situation.

Update 5/8: Apple has confirmed in a note on its Affiliate Resources website that the commission rate change only applies to in-app purchases (2.5 percent, down from 7 percent). All other rates remain unchanged.

Long-time Apple chip supplier Imagination Technologies has started a "dispute resolution procedure" with Apple after failing to resolve a disagreement over licensing between the two companies (via Reuters).

Last month, Apple informed the British chipmaker that it plans to cease using its graphics technology in consumer devices over the next two years as it transitions to using its own in-house chips for products including iPhones and iPads.

The news came as a major blow to Imagination, which receives a small royalty on every device sold, amounting to up to half of its revenue. The company's shares fell by 70 percent on the day and have barely recovered.

Imagination stated in April that it doubted Apple could go it alone without violating Imagination' patents, intellectual property and confidential information. On Thursday it said it had been unable to make satisfactory progress with Apple on an alternative commercial arrangements for the current license and royalty agreement.

"Imagination has been unable to make satisfactory progress with Apple to date regarding alternative commercial arrangements for the current licence and royalty agreement," it said.

"Imagination has therefore commenced the dispute resolution procedure under the licence agreement with a view to reaching an agreement through a more structured process. Imagination has reserved all its rights in respect of Apple's unauthorised use of Imagination's confidential information and Imagination’s intellectual property rights."

Analysts have predicted that Imagination will become loss-making by 2019 without any Apple royalties to fall back on, and that the firm will have to work out a cost-cutting strategy if it is to survive.

The company has revealed it is selling MIPS and Ensigma – two of its three major businesses – in an attempt to shore up cash, allowing for a renewed focus on its PowerVR graphics technology.

"While the Group has continued to invest in its MIPS and Ensigma businesses, it has now decided to actively market these businesses for sale, concentrate its resources on PowerVR and strengthen Imagination's balance sheet," it said.

Apple today announced that its App Analytics platform in iTunes Connect now provides developers with insight into where customers discover apps, a welcome change that will give developers more information on where app referrals are coming from.

Developers will be able to see if customers are finding apps from App Store browsing and search, from within other apps, or from web referrals.

App Analytics in iTunes Connect now provides insight on where customers discover your app, including App Store browsing and search, within other apps, or on the web. With key metrics based on source types, you can see your top referring apps and websites, making it easier to optimize your marketing campaigns.

Apple first debuted its app analytics platform in May of 2015, giving developers a detailed look at app usage statistics to enable them to create more effective advertising campaigns.