Apple Suspends Program In Which Contractors Listened to Recorded Siri Snippets

By John Voorhees

Last week, The Guardian reported on Apple’s Siri grading program in which contractors listen to snippets of audio to evaluate the effectiveness of Siri’s response to its trigger phrase. That article quoted extensively from an anonymous contractor who said they and other contractors regularly heard private user information as part of the program.

In response, Apple has announced that it is suspending the Siri grading program worldwide. While suspended, Apple says it will re-evaluate the program and issue a software update that will let users choose whether to allow their audio to be used as part of the program.

In a statement to Matthew Panzarino, the editor-in-chief of TechCrunch, Apple said:

“We are committed to delivering a great Siri experience while protecting user privacy,” Apple said in a statement to TechCrunch. “While we conduct a thorough review, we are suspending Siri grading globally. Additionally, as part of a future software update, users will have the ability to choose to participate in grading.”

In an earlier response to The Guardian, Apple had said that less than 1% of daily Siri requests are sent to humans as part of the grading program. However, that’s not very comforting to users who are left wondering whether snippets of their daily life are part of the audio shared with contractors. Consequently, I’m glad to see that Apple is re-examining its Siri quality-control efforts and has promised to give users a choice of whether they participate.

Pro or Premium?

By John Voorhees

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Apple Q3 2019 Results - $53.8 Billion Revenue

By John Voorhees

Apple has just published its financial results for Q3 2019. The company posted revenue of $53.8 billion. Apple CEO Tim Cook said:

“This was our biggest June quarter ever — driven by all-time record revenue from Services, accelerating growth from Wearables, strong performance from iPad and Mac and significant improvement in iPhone trends,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “These results are promising across all our geographic segments, and we’re confident about what’s ahead. The balance of calendar 2019 will be an exciting period, with major launches on all of our platforms, new services and several new products.”

Estimates and Expectations for Q3 2019 and the Year-Ago Quarter (Q3 2018)

Apple’s revenue guidance for Q3 2019 fell between $52.5 billion and $54.5 billion, with gross margin estimated to be between 37% and 38%.

Going into today’s earnings call, Yahoo Finance said that analysts, who were not expecting extraordinary financial results from Apple, would be focused on News+ and other revenue generated by services,

But according to Bloomberg’s MODL consensus, iPhone sales are expected to fall 10.3% in Q3, pushed lower by the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and China.

The same consensus, however, also points to an increase in sales of iPads, Macs, wearables like the AirPods and Apple Watch, and services by as much as 14.4%. Don’t forget, Apple recently revamped its iPad and Mac lineups, and released a new version of the seemingly ubiquitous AirPods.

In the year-ago quarter (Q3 2018), Apple earned $53.3 billion in revenue. During that quarter Apple sold 41.3 million iPhones, 11.6 million iPads, and 3.7 million Macs. As announced on Apple’s Q4 2018 earnings call, however, the company no longer reports unit sales for any of its products.

AppStories, Episode 122 – Pick 2: Flighty and Pushover →

Linked By John Voorhees

On this week’s episode of AppStories, we talk about pro app subscriptions in the context of the recently-released flight tracker, Flighty, and the new home automation possibilities available when combining new features of iOS 13 with an app/service like Pushover.

Pick 2: Flighty and Pushover

Federico

John

AppStories Episode 122 - Pick 2: Flighty and Pushover

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AppStories+ Deeper into the world of apps

This week, Federico and John talk about pro app subscriptions in the context of the recently-released flight tracker, Flighty, and the new home automation possibilities available when combining new features of iOS 13 with an app/service like Pushover.

Creating the World of Red Rising with Author Pierce Brown (Part 1)→

Linked By John Voorhees

Today on Dialog, we are joined by author Pierce Brown the creator of the Red Rising series of novels. In this first part of a two-part interview, we talk about the lead up to the release of Dark Age, Brown’s latest book that will be released tomorrow, how he got started writing, the themes and influences behind the Red Rising series, the business of writing, social media, and interacting with fans.

You can find the episode here or listen through the Dialog web player below.

Q&A

By John Voorhees

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iOS Media Managers

By John Voorhees

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Apple Announces Acquisition of Intel’s Smartphone Modem Business

By John Voorhees

As the stock market closed in the US, Apple announced the acquisition of Intel’s smartphone modem business. As part of the deal, 2,200 Intel employees will join Apple. The company is also buying intellectual property and other assets from Intel like equipment and real estate associated with the business. According to Apple’s press release, the companies anticipate that the transaction will be consummated in the fourth quarter of 2019, subject to regulatory and other conditions.

Apple says that:

Combining the acquired patents for current and future wireless technology with Apple’s existing portfolio, Apple will hold over 17,000 wireless technology patents, ranging from protocols for cellular standards to modem architecture and modem operation. Intel will retain the ability to develop modems for non-smartphone applications, such as PCs, internet-of-things devices and autonomous vehicles.

Commenting on the deal, Johny Srouji, Apple senior Vice President of Hardware Technology said:

“We’ve worked with Intel for many years and know this team shares Apple’s passion for designing technologies that deliver the world’s best experiences for our users,” said Johny Srouji, Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Technologies. “Apple is excited to have so many excellent engineers join our growing cellular technologies group, and know they’ll thrive in Apple’s creative and dynamic environment. They, together with our significant acquisition of innovative IP, will help expedite our development on future products and allow Apple to further differentiate moving forward.”

Given Apple’s two-year court battle with Qualcomm that resulted in a settlement earlier this year, the deal with Intel is not surprising. Ever since Apple’s acquisition of P.A. Semi in 2008, Apple has been buying hardware companies that have allowed it to make more of the components that are crucial to the iPhone and its other products. The Intel deal, however, is one of Apple’s largest acquisitions and demonstrates just how serious the company is about 5G technology and gaining independence from Qualcomm.