MacRumors

Fortune yesterday released its 2012 "Fortune 500" list, ranking America's largest companies by revenue. As a result of its continued strong growth, Apple rose 18 spots from last year's rankings to land at #17 in the new rankings, which are based on companies' fiscal year reports.

The company emerged from the tragic passing of co-founder Steve Jobs saddened but in no perceptible way weakened. Under CEO Tim Cook, the company continued pumping out new products -- like a significantly upgraded version of the iPad tablet. Apple nearly doubled its earnings per share in 2011, compared to 2010. That helped nudge management to announce plans for the firm's first dividend since 1995, returning some of the $97.6 billion in cash it had accumulated. Apple fans and analysts alike also continue to await a long-rumored television set from the gadget maker.

Apple's 2011 profits of $25.9 billion led the company to a new high as the third most profitable company behind energy giants Exxon Mobil ($41.6 billion) and Chevron ($26.9 billion). Microsoft sits in fourth place with profits of $23.2 billion.

Overall, Exxon Mobil ($453 billion in revenue) surged to barely overtake Wal-Mart ($447 billion) in the race for the top spot in the Fortune 500.

With very strong performances in the first two quarters of fiscal 2012, Apple is putting itself in position to surge even higher in next year's Fortune 500. Apple's official revenues totaling $85.5 billion in just the first half of the year could allow it to threaten to enter the top five next year, as the fifth position is currently held by General Motors at $150 billion for 2011.

As revealed by Apple's iPad selection page for Latin America, the new iPad will be launching in 13 new countries in that region this Friday, May 11. The most significant new addition is Brazil, where Apple's manufacturing partner Foxconn has been ramping up production on iPhone and iPad production.

A further examination of Apple's country-specific store pages reveals that this weekend's iPad launch will actually include a total of 30 countries. The majority of those countries will see the new iPad launch on Friday, May 11, but seven countries in the Middle East will debut the new iPad on Saturday, May 12. The full list of launch countries includes:

May 11: Argentina, Aruba, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Cambodia, Chile, Costa Rica, Curaçao, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Jamaica, Kenya, Madagascar, Malta, Martinique, Mauritius, Morocco, Peru, Taiwan, Tunisia, Vietnam

May 12: Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates

The new iPad appears to still be awaiting certification before it can be sold in China, Honduras, Indonesia, Nicaragua, Paraguay, and the Philippines, and Apple is now promoting lower pricing on the iPad 2 in those countries as it awaits final approvals for the new device.

Apple also quietly launched the new iPad in Turkey this past Saturday, May 5, and following this weekend's launches the new iPad will be available in close to 90 countries around the world.

Apple's new senior vice president of Retail, John Browett, has introduced himself to Apple Retail employees in an email obtained by IFO Apple Store.

Team,

At last I've officially started at Apple, and it's great to be here. I've had the chance to meet many of you at stores in the U.S. and across Europe, and one of my top priorities for the coming months is to meet many more people on our team around the world.

It's incredibly impressive to be on the inside of Apple Retail. Many of my friends, relatives, and former colleagues have written to tell me how lucky I am to be working with such a great group of people, and I couldn't agree more. While our stores are fantastic and our products are amazing, it really is our people who make the difference in creating the best retail experience.

There will be much more to share in the weeks ahead, and I'm looking forward to meeting everyone over time.

I am thrilled to work with all of you as we build the future of Apple Retail together.

Browett, who joins Apple from British electronics retailer Dixons, started work at Apple on April 20, nearly six months after former retail head Ron Johnson left the company to head up JC Penney's turnaround efforts. Browett was awarded restricted stock units worth more than $60 million as an enticement to stay with the company for the next five years.

Apple appears to be testing a notification service on the iCloud website. The test message appears at the top of the browser window upon logging into iCloud.com.

Apple introduced a new notification system in iOS 5 and has announced that a similar feature will be coming to the Mac in the Mountain Lion operating system this summer.

It's possible that Apple will include syncing code in iCloud to share notifications across devices, for calendar alerts and new mail, or the notifications may be used for some other purpose.

Last month saw six small U.S. carriers begin offering the iPhone for the first time, and it appears that another round of expansion to similar carriers is coming on May 18. Four new iPhone carriers, all operating CDMA networks, have rolled out their announcements so far today:

- Bluegrass Cellular (Kentucky)
- Golden State Cellular (California)
- Nex-Tech Wireless (Kansas)
- Pioneer Cellular (Oklahoma)

As with other regional carriers, the new entrants will be offering the iPhone at $50 below the standard pricing available through Apple and the major carriers. Under the discounted pricing, the iPhone 4S will be priced at $149/$249/$349 and the iPhone 4 will be available for $49.

Given the small nature of the carriers announcing their iPhone launches, publicity is somewhat unorganized and we're asking readers to let us know if they spot word of any others involved in this round of launches.

Our sister site TouchArcade.com has launched an official iOS app this morning.

TouchArcade is a site focused on game news and reviews for Apple's iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad platforms. The new iOS app features website content, easy game discovery, user forums, as well as app tracking abilities. Games can be added to your "Watch List" so you can be notified of sales, official reviews, and updates.

Meanwhile, we have already started working with the same app developers (Flexibits) and designer (Bartelme) to begin work on an official MacRumors app. It's too early to predict a timeframe, but we hope to launch this year.

The TouchArcade app is available now and is free to download. [iTunes Link]

Last year, both AT&T and Verizon acknowledged that they were working on offering shared data plans, which would allow multiple devices owned by a single user or members of a family to draw data from a single monthly allotment. But while there has been evidence that Verizon is making progress on its plans, AT&T has been relatively quiet about its efforts aside from acknowledging that billing and other issues were complicating the work.

CNET now reports, however, that AT&T may be close to launching its shared data plans. The news comes from AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega, who indicates that the carrier knows what it intends to offer to its customers.

"I'm very comfortable with the plan that will be offered to our customers," de la Vega said on the sidelines of his company's home security and automation event at the CTIA Wireless trade show. [...]

He said the company knows how the plan would be structured. He, however, declined to provide any specific details on timing, and wouldn't comment on whether it would be out in the next few months or if AT&T would beat Verizon Wireless to the punch.

Shared "family plans" for voice minutes have been available for quite some time, and a similar mechanism for sharing data seems to be a natural evolution. But aside from sharing data among family members, even individuals could see a benefit from the plans, which would allow them to subscribe to a single monthly data allotment that could be used with their iPhone, iPad, and perhaps even a USB modem or mobile hotspot device.

T-Mobile USA yesterday announced its plans to begin work with Ericsson and Nokia Siemens Networks to roll out LTE service in 2013, taking advantage of spectrum it obtained from AT&T last week following the failed merger of the two carriers. But perhaps more importantly for iPhone users, T-Mobile's network improvements will allow it to offer HSPA+ service in the 1900 MHz band compatible with current iPhone hardware "by the end of the year".

As part of the company’s network modernization effort, T-Mobile also plans to launch 4G HSPA+ service in the 1900 MHz band in a large number of markets by the end of the year. Network modernization trials have shown up to a 33 percent increase in HSPA+ data speeds as well as improved in-building coverage. Rolling out 4G HSPA+ services in the 1900 MHz band will also provide customers with the ability to use a broader range of devices, including the iPhone, on T-Mobile’s 4G network.

T-Mobile already has over one million iPhone customers on its network and has been beefing up support for those customers even though they are currently limited to T-Mobile's much slower EDGE data network.

T-Mobile USA began refarming its spectrum late last year, allowing a small number of users to access 3G speeds on the 1900 MHz band compatible with the iPhone. With yesterday's announcement, that refarming will spread nationwide and make it possible for the carrier to fully support the iPhone without Apple being required to build hardware specific to T-Mobile and a handful of other carriers using the 1700/2100 MHz AWS bands for their 3G/4G service.

AllThingsD notes that T-Mobile USA Chief Technology Officer Neville Ray acknowledged that the spectrum refarming will allow the carrier to aggressively target current AT&T customers whose contracts have lapsed by the end of the year.

Ray declined to comment on whether the company would directly target iPhone users in a big marketing push planned for later this year.

“It would make sense,” Ray agreed, but added, “We’re not there yet.”

Apple is widely expected to include LTE support in the next-generation iPhone, and a September-October release in line with rumors would still leave T-Mobile behind the curve with its LTE network not rolling out until 2013. But the carrier would certainly be in a much more competitive position simply by offering a fast HSPA+ network supporting the iPhone.

The number of industries that Apple is disrupting with the iPhone and iPad is growing by the day. Amtrak, the government-owned American passenger railroad company, has adopted the iPhone as a ticket scanner for its 1,700 conductors, reports the New York Times.

The phones will be in a case equipped with a barcode scanner, similar to the Linea Pro cases that Apple uses at its retail stores. The phones will scan barcodes on paper tickets, as well as digital barcodes on smartphones. The MBTA commuter rail in Boston is adopting a similar system for smartphone ticketing.

By late summer, 1,700 conductors will be using the devices on Amtrak trains across the country, the company said.

With the new system, passengers will be able to print tickets or load a special bar code on their smartphone screens for conductors to scan, and conductors will be able to keep track of passengers on board, Amtrak said.

“You don’t even need to print the document and bring it with you,” said Matt Hardison, chief of sales distribution at Amtrak, who helped plan the iPhone program. “We’ve made a number of important improvements for both our customers and Amtrak, all in one fell swoop.”

The Times notes that Amtrak's ticketing system is long overdue for an upgrade. The prior ticketing process involved punching a hole in a paper ticket and physically transporting those tickets to a central location where the information was entered in a database. Among other things, conductors couldn't keep track of how many empty seats were on a train and customers needed to get their paper tickets cancelled and reissued if they wanted to change to a different train.

Amtrak does have an iPhone app that allows riders to book tickets, check train status and schedules, and more. Amtrak eTickets can currently be purchased within the app for 4 routes, with the entire Amtrak system rolling out the ticketing scheme during 2012.

Amtrak for iPhone is available free on the App Store. [Direct Link]

Apple today released iOS 5.1.1, offering bug fixes and other improvements for recent models of the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

This update contains improvements and bug fixes, including:

- Improves reliability of using HDR option for photos taken using the Lock Screen shortcut
- Addresses bugs that could prevent the new iPad from switching between 2G and 3G networks
- Fixes bugs that affected AirPlay video playback in some circumstances
- Improved reliability for syncing Safari bookmarks and Reading List
- Fixes an issue where 'Unable to purchase' alert could be displayed after successful purchase

For information on the security content of this update, please visit this website:

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1222

iOS 5.1.1, which arrives as Build 9B206, is available for the following devices via iTunes, Apple's site, and over-the-air download directly from the devices:

- Third-generation iPad: Wi-Fi, AT&T/GSM, Verizon
- iPad 2: Original Wi-Fi, New Wi-Fi (with A5 die shrink), AT&T/GSM, Verizon/CDMA
- Original iPad

- iPhone 4S
- iPhone 4: GSM, CDMA
- iPhone 3GS

- iPod touch: fourth-generation, third-generation

Cult of Mac reports that it has received information from a "well-placed" source who claims to have seen a prototype of the rumored Apple television set. According to the source, the device resembles Apple's current Thunderbolt display but is "much larger" than the 27-inch model currently offered.

Among the key features reportedly included on the prototype Apple television set is a Siri-enabled iSight camera allowing users to make FaceTime video calls using the device. Addressing the fact that users are likely to sit substantially farther away from the television than they do their computers and mobile devices, the source claims that the camera will be able to automatically detect and track faces, zooming in on them for FaceTime calls even if they move about the room.

The Apple HDTV makes FaceTime calls using the built-in iSight camera. The camera is sophisticated, with facial recognition and the ability to zoom into the user’s face and follow them as they walk around the room. This allows users to make video calls from the couch across the room, rather than having to stand smack in front of the TV.

In addition, calls are initiated by Siri, the iPhone 4S’s virtual assistant. “[Apple] used Siri to make a FaceTime call,” the source said.

Apple's rumored television set is widely expected to make extensive use of Siri, a rumor that first surfaced in Jobs' authorized biography, in which he was quoted as saying that he had "finally cracked" the problem of creating an elegant interface for the device. With Jobs calling it "the simplest user interface you could imagine", speculation immediately leapt to Siri, which could allow users to change channels and find shows using only their voice.

The idea of a Siri-enabled television set quickly gained steam with a followup rumor from The New York Times claiming that Apple was indeed working on such a device for a launch in late 2012 or 2013.

Apple has reportedly been working with component suppliers on plans for Apple television sets in recent months, although debate continues as to whether such a product will be ready for launch by late this year, next year, or even 2014.

ZDNet reports on the discovery of a significant breach of password security for certain users of Apple's FileVault encryption system under OS X Lion. Affected systems currently store the login information for every recent user of the machine in plain text, allowing for easy circumvention of encryption.

In specific configurations, applying OS X Lion update 10.7.3 turns on a system-wide debug log file that contains the login passwords of every user who has logged in since the update was applied. The passwords are stored in clear text.

Anyone who used FileVault encryption on their Mac prior to Lion, upgraded to Lion, but kept the folders encrypted using the legacy version of FileVault is vulnerable. FileVault 2 (whole disk encryption) is unaffected.

The issue was noted last Friday by David Emery on the Cryptome mailing list.

This is worse than it seems, since the log in question can also be read by booting the machine into firewire disk mode and reading it by opening the drive as a disk or by booting the new-with-LION recovery partition and using the available superuser shell to mount the main file system partition and read the file. This would allow someone to break into encrypted partitions on machines they did not have any idea of any login passwords for.

Emery also offers some suggestions for dealing with the issue, including turning on FileVault 2 and setting a firmware password on the machine in question.

The issue was actually first noted in the Apple discussion forums back on February 6, just days after OS X 10.7.3 was released to the public. That poster now notes that the issue may extend further than just the specific FileVault situation outlines by others, as he notes that he has experienced the same behavior on an OS X Lion virtual machine through VMware Fusion, without FileVault ever having been active on the installation. Consequently, the extent of the issue may not yet be fully known.

Apple has yet to offer any response to the issue, although it is unclear when the company became aware of it. Apple touts the security features of OS X Lion in its promotional materials for the operating system, with a focus on FileVault as an important component of that security, and it seems likely that the company will move as quickly as possible to investigate and fix the issue.