MacRumors

A federal judge has denied Apple's preliminary injunction demanding Amazon stop using the term "appstore" for its Android marketplace. Apple sued Amazon back in March and asked U.S. District Judge Phyllis Hamilton to immediately order Amazon to cease using the term. Apple believes the term is trademark protected.

Several weeks ago, the judge in the case expressed her skepticism regarding Apple's argument that "App Store" should be a non-generic trademark and today ruled that Apple has not thus far established "a likelihood of confusion" between Apple and Amazon's app stores.

A preliminary injunction is an order by the court to restrain a particular activity, usually ordered if the judge believes there is substantial likelihood of success on the merits of the case, or if there is a substantial threat of irreparable damage if the injunction is not granted, among other reasons

Apple believes use of the term by other companies can "confuse and mislead customers." Apple has numerous cease and desist letters to companies using the term, including the owner of pcappstore.com, and open source startup Amahi.

Judge Hamilton set October 2012 as a trial date.

Earlier this year, Amazon launched its Cloud Drive and Cloud Player services, offering users the ability to store music and other digital content on Amazon's servers for access from a variety of Internet-connected devices. With Apple's iCloud announcement last month, some have been wondering whether Amazon might tweak its offerings to compete with iCloud.

In response, Amazon today announced several changes that do exactly that, expanding the music storage capabilities of its Cloud Drive service and launching an iPad-optimized Cloud Player. Among the specific changes:

- Unlimited music storage with any paid plan: Users signing up for any paid storage plan, including the lowest tier priced at $20 per year for 20 GB of space, automatically receive unlimited storage space for music in MP3 and AAC formats. The change leaves the full paid storage amount available for other content such as photos and documents. This offer is available for a limited time.

- Free storage of all Amazon MP3 Store purchases: Most applicable for those users opting to stick with the free 5 GB plan, Amazon will now store all past and future Amazon MP3 Store purchases free of charge and without counting toward the 5 GB limit. The feature had previously been limited to purchases made since the debut of Cloud Drive and Cloud Player.

- Cloud Player for iPad: Amazon has launched an iPad-optimized web player for music stored through the Cloud Drive service. Despite a lack of official support for iOS devices until now, Amazon Cloud Player has been partially functional, but the new changes should significantly increase usability for iPad customers.

The "iTunes in the Cloud" component of iCloud is partially active now, allowing users to automatically download newly-purchased content to all iCloud-enabled devices and to support easy re-downloading of previously-purchased iTunes Store content. The full iCloud service is set to debut later this year alongside iOS 5, and will provide users with 5 GB of free storage, not including purchased music, apps, books, and Photo Streams. Additional storage will be available at as-yet unannounced prices.

The full iCloud launch will also see the debut of iTunes Match, a $24.99/year service that will allow users to store their entire music collections in the cloud for syncing across devices, either by matching to iTunes Store tracks or by uploading directly into the cloud.

As with the debate over whether the next-generation iPhone should tentatively be referred to as an "iPhone 5" or "iPhone 4S", observers are also differing in their opinions on Apple's next-generation iPad. While Apple has so far used the yearly upgrade cycle that has been relatively among the company's mobile devices for the iPad, there have been rumors that Apple is planning to release an updated iPad later this year. That update would come only about six months or so after the release of the iPad 2.

And while many reports have taken to calling the rumored device the "iPad 3" as a logical extension of Apple's naming scheme so far, a new note from FBR Capital Markets analyst Craig Berger (via International Business Times) has now coined a new term for the next-generation iPad: the "iPad 2 Plus".

Berger's note echoes a report from last week claiming that Apple is gearing up for a fall launch of the next-generation iPad, which will include a higher-resolution display.

"There are some indications from the supply chain that Apple may look to introduce an 'iPad 2 Plus' device as they put out request for quotes from various component suppliers for this marginally different device," FBR Capital Markets analyst Craig Berger wrote in a note to clients.

Apple may launch the device in late 2011, the analyst said, citing supply-chain contacts.

Berger's view of the next-generation iPad as a tweaked iPad 2 is essentially the reverse of theories that initially appeared earlier this year in the lead-up to the iPad 2 launch. At that time, some observers had considered what would become the iPad 2 to be an interim release to carry Apple through until it could release a more significant update later in the year.

But with Apple actually having made fairly substantial improvements in the iPad 2 with the addition of dual cameras, a 33% thinner enclosure, and processor and graphics enhancements, Berger's report takes the view of the next-generation iPad being an enhanced iPad 2 rather than a full iPad 3 update.

Regardless of the name attached to the rumored next-generation device, a shift to a higher-resolution display approaching "Retina" resolutions in the range of 250-300 ppi would of course be a substantial improvement even on its own, although it is unclear just what other enhancements would be included in the new iPad.

Spotify is officially coming to the United States. Domestic visitors to Spotify.com are now redirected to a signup page where users can enter an email address to "be one of the first to get Spotify."

Spotify is a Sweden-based streaming music service that offers music from a number of major and independent record labels. It has hitherto been available only in western Europe.

There are free subscriptions limited by hours of listening time, and then paid subscriptions that offer features such as offline mode, the ability to download songs to iPods and more. Subscription fees range from €5 to €10 per month. Spotify recently raised a $100 million venture round at a $1 billion valuation.

Spotify can be used as a replacement for iTunes, iTunes Match and the iTunes Store. Instead of letting users listen to music they have purchased or acquired from other sources, Spotify allows listeners to stream any songs Spotify has licensed.

It is quite a bit more expensive than iTunes Match will be, costing €60-€120/year in Europe, versus $25/year for iTunes Match. US pricing has not been announced yet.

Sign up on Spotify.com to get an invite when the site finally opens.

The New York Times reports that former Flextronics executive Walter Shimoon has pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of security fraud over his role in leaking insider information on Apple's iPhone and iPad plans to research firm Primary Global Research.

Flextronics manufactured chargers for the iPhone, giving Shimoon access to nonpublic information on Apple's internal sales forecasts for the device, which he then shared with Primary Global Research in his role as a "consultant" for the firm.

In addition to sales figures, prosecutors said Mr. Shimoon also tipped a cooperating witness to Apple's plans to develop a new iPhone. But later in the call, according to a transcript from prosecutors, Mr. Shimoon leaked word of an even more secret product in development, the iPad, which at the time was referred to as K48.

"So, you can get, at Apple you can get fired for saying K48...outside of a, you know, outside of a meeting that doesn't have K48 people in it," he told a cooperating witness, according to taped calls. "That's how crazy they are about it."

Primary Global Research has been the target of a federal investigation into "expert networks" that solicit employees offering insider information and provide that nonpublic information to Wall Street money managers to facilitate insider trading. A number of arrests have been made over the firm's collection of insider information on Apple, Dell, AMD, and other tech companies.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Apple is indeed preparing a new iPhone for a launch during the third quarter of this year, with an initial production target of 25 million units through the end of the year.

"Apple's sales estimates of the new iPhone is quite aggressive. It told us to prepare to help the company meet its goal of 25 million units by the end of the year," said another person at one of Apple's suppliers. "The initial production volume will be a few million units... we were told to ship the components to assembler Hon Hai in August."

Countering claims that the next-generation iPhone will be nearly identical in appearance to the iPhone 4, the Journal's sources indicate that the new device will be "thinner and lighter" and that Apple's manufacturing partner Foxconn/Hon Hai is having difficulties with yield rate on the new device due to it being "complicated and difficult to assemble."

Two of the people, however, cautioned that shipments of the new iPhone could be delayed if Hon Hai can't improve its yield rate as the new iPhone is "complicated and difficult to assemble."

Reports over the past few months have been pointing to a September release for the next-generation iPhone, which has been said to carry Apple's A5 processor found in the iPad 2, an 8-megapixel rear camera, and a baseband chip from Qualcomm to support both GSM and CDMA networks.

The JailbreakMe.com website has returned to offer an entirely browser-based jailbreak tool for iOS devices including (for the first time) the iPad 2.

Jailbreaking is a process by which Apple's iOS devices can be opened up to allow for installation of non-Apple-approved applications, customizations and file access. Apple officially disapproves of jailbreaking and has even warned users that these unauthorized modifications can cause "instability, disruption of services, and compromised security." Still, a large and active jailbreak community has emerged over the years since the iPhone's introduction.

A Dev-Team blog post outlines the supported configurations for JailbreakMe:

- iPad1: 4.3 through 4.3.3
- iPad2: 4.3.3
- iPhoneGS: 4.3 through 4.3.3
- iPhone4: 4.3 through 4.3.3
- iPhone4-CDMA: 4.2.6 through 4.2.8
- iPod touch 3g: 4.3, 4.3.2, 4.3.3
- iPod touch 4g: 4.3 through 4.3.3

The JailbreakMe site is unique in that it allows users to jailbreak their devices entirely using the Safari browser and without downloading any additional software. The site itself also offers a Frequently Asked Questions page that reassures users that the jailbreaking process is fully reversible with a simple restore and that there is no risk for any permanent damage. Still, we'd recommend users proceed with caution. The installation process involves simply visiting JailbreakMe from a supported iOS device and tapping "Free/Install" button to initiate the jailbreak.

The browser-based jailbreak process again exploits a flaw in Apple's PDF renderer that allows the tool to open up the device. Just like the previous vulnerability, Apple is expected to patch this one shortly. This same vulnerability could be exploited by malicious parties as well. The programmers of JailbreakMe are also providing a patch to close the security hole behind them for jailbroken users. Users of non-jailbroken iOS devices, however, will have to wait until Apple provides a fix.

More information and answers can be found in our respective "Hacks" forums for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.

The authorized biography of Steve Jobs, announced earlier this year and scheduled to be released by Simon & Schuster in March 2012, has a new title.

According to Fortune, the old title, iSteve: The Book of Jobs, chosen by the publisher's publicity department, wasn't a favorite around author Walter Isaacson's household. Isaacson has succeeded in getting a new title approved:

(Photo by Flickr/Joi Ito)

Even before the iPhone launch on Verizon earlier this year, the carrier had announced that the unlimited data plans being offered with the device were a temporary program, set to be discontinued as soon as this summer in favor of tiered data packages.

Just two weeks ago, Verizon confirmed that it would be dropping the unlimited data plan in July, with leaks pinpointing the new data plans and a debut date of July 7th. Existing unlimited plan subscribers were said to be grandfathered in and thus able to keep their current plans after that date, even after upgrading their devices.

FierceWireless now reports that Verizon has confirmed the new offerings as previously leaked, with the new plans indeed set to go into effect this Thursday, July 7th.

Verizon spokeswoman Brenda Raney told FierceWireless that new smartphone customers will choose from one of four options: $10 for 75 MB per month, $30 for 2 GB, $50 for 5 GB or $80 for 10 GB. There will be an overage charge of $10 per GB of data. AT&T Mobility charges $15 per month for 200 MB and $25 per month for 2 GB.

Verizon has also confirmed that existing customers on the unlimited plan who upgrade their devices on or after July 7th will be able to keep their data plans.

Both Verizon and AT&T have confirmed that they are also looking into rolling out shared data plans across devices, following the lead of other international carriers already offering the plans. Under those plans, customers can draw from a single data allotment using multiple devices such as an iPhone and iPad, but Verizon and AT&T have yet to announce specific timeframes for rolling out such plans.

Update: FierceWireless has edited its story to clarify that the $10 plan offering 75 MB of data is available for feature phones and not for smartphones such as the iPhone.

As HP has sought to take on Apple in the tablet market with its webOS-powered TouchPad tablet, the PC giant has been dinged with a number of lukewarm reviews that suggest a fair amount of potential for the platform and device but with only a mediocre initial implementation.

Former Apple executive Jon Rubinstein, who led the development of the original iPod before leaving the company in 2006 to head up Palm's webOS effort and eventually moving to HP with that company's acquisition of Palm, has reportedly weighed in with a message to HP employees regarding the reviews, published by PreCentral. In the note, Rubinstein makes an interesting comparison between the TouchPad and the original Mac OS X as it debuted ten years ago.

We still have work to do to make webOS the platform we know it can be, but remember...it's a marathon, not a sprint.

In that spirit, Richard Kerris, head of worldwide developer relations for webOS, reminded me yesterday of the first reviews for a product introduced a little over ten years ago:

"...overall the software is sluggish"
"...there are no quality apps to use, so it won't last"
"...it's just not making sense...."

It's hard to believe these statements described MacOS X - a platform that would go on to change the landscape of Silicon Valley in ways that no one could have imagined.

Rubinstein is naturally optimistic in encouraging his staff to keep pressing forward to help webOS and its associated hardware meet expectations, and his unique perspective in having played key roles at Apple, Palm, and now HP enables him to see the parallels and offer conviction that webOS can overcome its challenges.

Palm's webOS has received a fair amount of praise for some aspects of its functionality, but the platform has yet to be a hit with consumers. But with HP putting significant weight behind the platform and moving it into the tablet space while considering licensing it to other major manufacturers, some have seen webOS as a strong contender to become a potential third major smartphone and tablet operating system for the future behind iOS and Android.