MacRumors

Activist investor Carl Icahn, who now discloses material information via Twitter, tweeted today that he and Apple CEO Tim Cook will be having dinner together in September to discuss Icahn's desire for Apple to increase its share buyback.

Icahn recently purchased more than $1 billion in Apple stock and believes the company is 'extremely undervalued'.

Spoke to Tim. Planning dinner in September. Tim believes in buyback and is doing one. What will be discussed is magnitude.

Earlier this year, Apple increased its capital return program to more than $100 billion via increased share buybacks and dividends, and issuing bonds for the first time in over a decade.

Apple today released an update for Find My iPhone, adding a newly redesigned iOS 7-style icon. The new icon was first introduced on the iCloud.com beta page, which was updated in mid-August with a new set of iOS 7 icons.

It appears that the newest version of Find My iPhone may have been released prematurely, however, as the update gives an error message to anyone who attempts to use it without a registered developer account (paid or free).

The update, which also includes bug fixes, will likely be patched by Apple shortly. Until a fix is available, non-developers should avoid updating the app. While Find My Friends was also updated with bug fixes, it does not appear to include any design changes or errors that cause the app to be unusable.

Apple's iOS 7, which is currently available for developers, is expected to be released to the general public in September at the company's iPhone event.

Find My iPhone can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Update: According to Apple's System Status page, the error that prevented non-developers from logging into the app has now been fixed.

Apple is involved in high-level negotiations with television content providers, including ESPN, HBO, and Viacom, to provide programming through 'apps' instead of channels, reports Quartz -- a relatively new business publication with a number of former Wall Street Journal reporters on staff.

It’s unclear how close these deals are to fruition. Some people cautioned that, with the TV industry in such flux, "everybody is talking with everybody." Any deal with an internet TV service like the one envisioned by Apple is likely to be under similar terms as the networks have negotiated with traditional cable companies.

Sources say Apple’s strategy could include forming its own pay TV service, essentially becoming a cable company itself, except with content delivered entirely over the internet. Intel, Sony, and Google are known to be pursuing similar tactics, and could launch their own pay TV services before Apple.

Quartz claims that Apple does want to release a much-rumored television set -- not just a set-top box like the current Apple TV 'hobby' -- to "usurp the role of the cable box" and "control the entire experience of watching TV".

The site also says cable companies have been seeking to prevent providers from signing deals with Apple, but Apple believes it does not need all content providers on board before releasing a TV set -- instead, it needs standout programming to distinguish the product and pioneer the concept of Internet-delivered video programming. The Apple TV boasted only a few content providers when it launched, but has since added a number of new content providers including ESPN, HBO, and Hulu.

A deal to offer standalone ESPN or HBO packages -- or perhaps NFL Sunday Ticket -- could "represent a tipping point" after which Apple would feel comfortable bringing the product to market. ESPN in particular has been open to the idea of streaming its live channels online as part of a standalone subscription service, something that some vocal consumers have been clamoring for -- though it's unclear how many cord-cutters would actually pay for such a service.

Previous reports have said that Apple wishes to 'erase the distinction' between live and on-demand television programming by allowing viewers to begin streaming a show minutes after it began airing live. Last month it was said that Apple was negotiating directly with cable companies and TV networks to allow customers to skip commercials, with Apple compensating for the lost ad revenue.

In his biography, Steve Jobs said he had "cracked" the redesign of television to make it seamless and easy to use, and some analysts have been claiming for years that Apple is working on a television set.

With multiple reports of Apple negotiating with both content providers like Sky News and ESPN and cable companies like Time Warner, the company appears to be examining multiple possible strategies for reinventing television.

With his two-year anniversary of being named Apple CEO coming on Saturday, Tim Cook is the subject of a new profile by Reuters highlighting his leadership style and some of the challenges he continues to face following in the footsteps of Steve Jobs. The report notes that Cook has been overseeing Apple's transition into a "mature corporate behemoth" and that he has successfully managed the company's high-profile iPhone and iPad lines, but that he has yet to prove he can deliver a new breakthrough product category.

Some worry that Cook's changes to the culture have doused the fire - and perhaps the fear - that drove employees to try to achieve the impossible.

The intensely private Cook has been profiled in the past, and his workaholic nature, thoughtful demeanor and "no-nonsense, methodical style" are well-known, but the new profile offers a few more tidbits about his personality and how Apple runs under his command.

People who know him well paint a portrait of a thoughtful, data-driven executive who knows how to listen and who can be charming and funny in small group settings. [...]

Still, he has a tough side. In meetings, Cook is so calm as to be nearly unreadable, sitting silently with hands clasped in front of himself. Any change in the constant rocking of his chair is one sign subordinates look for: when he simply listens, they're heartened if there is no change in the pace of his rocking.

"He could skewer you with a sentence," the person said. "He would say something along the lines of 'I don't think that's good enough' and that would be the end of it and you would just want to crawl into a hole and die."

The report notes that Cook is generally very decisive, as evidenced by the issues Apple experienced with its new Maps app in iOS 6. According to sources, Cook responded quickly to that controversy with an open letter to customers and by bypassing then-iOS chief Scott Forstall to put software and services head Eddy Cue in charge of fixing the problems.

There has, however, been some grumbling by employees about a shift in the Apple culture under Cook, with Reuters quoting a morale survey distributed to members of the hardware engineering group earlier this year by senior executive Dan Riccio.

Overall, the verdict on Cook's tenure so far is portrayed in the profile as still in flux, with his challenging role seeing him making some positive changes for the company but still dealing with issues related to employee happiness and retention. And amid slowing revenue growth as the iPhone and iPad mature, customers and investors are eagerly anticipating the introduction of Apple's next major product line, whether it be smart watches, televisions, or something else.

Japanese website ASCII.JP [Google translation] has posted new photos allegedly showing the highly-rumored gold color configuration for the iPhone 5S, comparing the device’s casing to the traditional color options of the iPhone as well as offering a solo photo from the device’s rear. The color of the device appears to be in line with previous reports that stated that the device would have a “champagne” color palette as opposed to an ingot gold look.

Over the past few weeks, numerous reports have added to the growing chorus of claims for the color option of Apple’s upcoming device, with notable tech journalists such as TechCrunch's MG Siegler indicating from his sources that the iPhone 5S would be offered in a gold color. Following that report, AllThingsD and 9to5Mac also reported that gold would indeed be a new option on the device as well, and this latest leak seems to be consistent with those reports.

Apple will reportedly unveil the next-generation iPhone on September 10, with likely to introduce not only the iPhone 5S but also a lower-cost plastic "iPhone 5C". Both devices are also rumored to launch in the first wave of markets on September 20.

Update: AppAdvice has posted some additional high-quality photos of the rear shell of the upcoming 'champagne' iPhone 5S, this time fully assembled with the pill-shaped dual-LED flash window pictured. The site also has a number of part photos depicting the volume buttons and SIM tray.

Apple’s official Services, Stores, and iCloud status page is reporting that multiple services are experiencing an outage that is affecting “less than 1% of users”. Among the services down are iMessage, Photo Stream, and Documents in the Cloud, and according to Apple the services have been out for over eight hours now.

Multiple Services - Less than 1% of users are affected

Users may be unable to use iCloud Documents, Photo Stream, iPhoto Journals, or Backup & Restore. Users may also be unable to send or download attachments in iMessage.

Apple's verious cloud services have experienced occasional downtime, although outages extending for this length of time are fairly unusual. This extended outage does, however, only appear to be affecting a relatively small number of users.

Last month, Apple’s Developer Center was completely down for over a week due to a security breach, with Apple taking over three weeks to bring those services fully back online.

Update 9:09AM PDT: Apple claims all services have been restored.

Reuters has added to the long list of confirmations and claims that Apple will introduce a gold variant of iPhone with its next device - the iPhone 5S. The report cites supply chain sources in Taiwan for the information.

This follows a research note last week in which KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo stated that Apple would offer an iPhone in a gold casing in addition to the more traditional black and white. TechCrunch's MG Siegler followed up with his own claims and AllThingsD and 9to5Mac soon followed.

Gold iPhone 5S mockup. (Source: iMore)

Siegler speculated that a gold iPhone could be an effort to upsell customers in emerging markets like India and China, where gold is popular, where the low-cost iPhone 5C is expected to be a significant device. Reuters interviewed Jerry Zou, Senior VP and Partner at public relations firm FleishmanHillard in Beijing, whether a gold device would appeal to Chinese customers.

Commercially it makes sense, said Jerry Zou, Senior VP and Partner at FleishmanHillard, a public relations firm in Beijing. New colors would add "novelty and variety, both of which are key to winning over fickle Chinese consumers.

Zou went on to say that a champagne or gold color would be able to portray a luxury or high-end image that was also more restrained and subtle. Most of the customers Reuters interviewed at Apple's Xidan store, however, weren't sold on the idea of a gold iPhone, and consumers in India were "just as skeptical."

Reuters also spoke to Brandon Edwards, a Shanghai-based product designer who believes that a gold iPhone may only add cultural relevance for Apple's existing customers in the country rather than attract new ones who are using other smartphone brands.

Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 5S at an event on September 10, with a fingerprint sensor and perhaps a new 128 GB maximum storage capacity being other significant additions besides the new gold color option.

Apple has seeded the sixth Developer Preview of OS X Mavericks to developers, exactly two weeks after the release of the fifth Developer Preview. With the fifth preview, Apple introduced both the Mac iBooks app and a new beta version of iPhoto.

OS X Mavericks, which is expected to be released this fall, includes multiple new features like a tabbed Finder, full screen dual monitor capabilities, Safari improvements, and a new Maps app. Developers can receive the update via the Software Update tool in the Mac App Store.

Consumers spend four times as much on games from the App Store and the Google Play Store than they do on games for gaming-optimized handhelds like the PlayStation Vita and the Nintendo 3DS, according to the newest report from App Annie.

The report points out that while Google Play game spending surpassed spending on handheld console games (both physical and digital) during the second quarter of 2013, App Store game spending continues to outpace both categories, bringing in far more revenue.

Back in July, App Annie reported that Google Play downloads had surpassed App Store downloads, but App Store revenue remains 2.3 times higher.

App Annie notes that games continue to lead app store growth, and during the second quarter of 2013, games represented approximately 40% of downloads from both Google Play and the App Store. Game sales in both app stores grew a significant amount from the Q1 2013 to Q2 2013 and represented 70% of total app revenue in both the App Store and Google Play.

The App Store and Google Play metrics that App Annie uses for its reports come from App Annie intelligence data, which is designed to offer global market data to publishers. As always, revenue estimates include paid downloads and in-app purchases, but not in-app advertising.