Rite Aid A Big Loser In Apple Pay Users If Reports Are True

There is a growing number of posts and tweets that Rite Aid as turned off a feature that allow Apple Pay to go through after initial tests on Monday demonstrated that Apple Pay works there.  No official reason has been provided but some suggests that this is because Rite Aid is support a rival payment system that probably give companies that back it, Rite Aid, Walmart, Best Buy, and others, more control over customer data and not having to share a small cut with credit card and banks.

Here's the thing.  There is a CVS right by my house.  Oh, a Walgreen too.  And where I jog, there are other places where  I know accept Apple Pay.  So, what do I if I've just got my iPhone 6 Plus with me and not my wallet (I usually carry $20 with me for emergencies when I'm walking about in my neighborhood) and I need a cold drink? 

Not Rite Aid I can tell you that. 

This is what I predict will happen in the next six months. Some Apple Pay (maybe Google Wallet) holdouts will capitulate, especially those who are facing stiff competition from the likes of Amazon (yeah, I'm talking about you, not-so-Best Buy) as cash-rich Apple users go places where their new favorite payment method is accepted. 

On top of that, retailers will be facing financial pressure either from Holidays shortfall or shareholders to accept Apple Pay from their savvy iPhone shoppers.  There are going to be some who are in denial and will continue to see their business go to rivals who do accept Apple Pay. 

Maybe it'll be a good idea to keep a running tab on who is doing well and who are not based on whether they are Apple Pay partners. 

Source:  Josh Hudnall.

Streaming: CBS Versus Hulu

While everyone is talking about HBO versus Netflix (not as much as I thought), the bigger battle is between CBS's new service verus Hulu.

Hulu has been around 2007. It's a join venture between Disney, NBC, and Fox to pull together various current season TV series, some older series, and an assortment of movies not really worth watching. The thing with Hulu is that many of the shows are also available on these three major broadacast stations, ABC, FOX, and NBC. Hulu provides a centralized hub for these videos and others.

Years ago, the blog chatters have been between Hulu and Netflix but they really target different markets with Netflix offering no current season videos but a vast library of older content, and a growing library of its own original series and movies.

With CBS now offering own CBS All Access for $5.99, the question we have to ask if its worth it? The short and quick answer is absolutely not. While it does offer many if its own content, it excludes many shows and sports like NFL and Big Bang Theory. Oh, and you're going to have to sit through commercials, just like you have to with Hulu. Such double dipping makes no sense.

And with $2 more, you can get Hulu for three times the content with three of the four major networks.

Furthermore, I'm rooting against services like CBS and Hulu. After all, much of the content they offer are already free if you're willing to jump from app to app to watch them. That's what I do now via my mobile devices. If I want to watch the Arrow, I'll use the CW app. The Blacklist on NBC, and Castle and Agents of Shield on the ABC app. In having to save myself $8 a month from having to subscribe to Hulu, it's well worth this first-world "hassle".

And just because you pay Hulu or CBS for access that are free on their their website, episodes are metered in that they are available for a few weeks at a time. Say you start on the Blacklist and watch the first two episodes and got busy. You come back to it a few weeks later, you suddenly find that not only are the first four episodes no longer available for streaming, you have only access to the latest three or four episodes. It makes no sense for paid service to work this way.

Furthermore, if you really want to stream live content, set up a Slingbox and stream them from your tablets.

And reason I would like to see CBS fail is this: consider having to pay $24 for free over-the-air content. And then what happens if CNN, ESPN, or TNT wish to offer their own content? $10 to $15 a channel? It then starts to add up.

I'm hoping eventually, the studios will realize bringing the "cable" model on their own and sell direct to users will not work. They'll have to realize that they cannot charge more just because they are standalone services and not bundled.

Only time will tell but if CBS's new scheme works out. My spidey-sense is tell me it won't.

Sent from my iPad

Key Products Missing From Apple's Media Event Today

There is a lot to talk about today after Apple unveiled new iPads, Mac mini, and a Retina Display iMac. Oh, Apple also updated the OS for the Mac and Apple Pay which will be available on Monday.

We'll get more into that later. What's missing from the Apple event is just as important and worthy bringing up in a post or two.

First, Apple said nothing about the iPod line. Not a word about the iPod touch which had not been upgraded near the end of 2012 with a minor update in June this year.

I'm assuming that means we can forget about the rest of the iPod line as well.

The other thing missing is Apple TV. There had been a lot of chatter that is indirectly related to Apple TV. The most recent is the news that Time Warner will be offering HBO as a standalone service at the start of 2015. That was quickly followed by CBS offering a $7 service that is immediately available (though I think it's pretty lame).

Lastly, where was health and home related updates and accessories? The omission of these two big iOS initiatives are not particularly episode butt it does suggest that Apple will be taking things slower. Think of this as two "hobbies" that are going to take time to mature.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Mobile: HBO To Offer Standalone Service for Cordcutters! We Can ThankNetflix

Source: USA Today.

No doubt by now, you know that HBO, a service of Time Warner, is only available with a cable or sat TV sub.  What you should know by now is that HBO will be offered as a standalone service san the cable baggage in 2015.  That means you'll probably pay a disproportionate amount for HBO to stream on your Apple TV, Chrome dongle, or Roku.  It means maybe pay anywhere from $15-20 for the service but you won't have to shell out $100 for a bunch of stuff you don't want to watch.

A couple of things you'll want to note going foward:

First, We can thank Netflix.  Yeah, without it, not only will we not get a bunch of back catalog of TV and movies for dirt cheap but also really get things moving along with respect to competition for your eye balls and wallet. 

Second, look for other studios to monetize their services once HBO has established their presence on non-traditional platforms.  Looking for a comedy channel with just old Friends episodes for $2?  Sure?  I'd pay $5 for an all The Simpsons and Fox animated services access. 

Lastly, bundles will come once more channels are offered to cord-cutters.  It'll be offered with greater flexibility than what cable guys are now offering. And it'll completely up-end how we watch TV. 

Now, $15-20 might be a lot for just one "channel" right?  I predict that HBO might offer tiered services.  For older stuff, maybe it'll be around $10 and current shows will jump up to $15 or more.  And maybe even $20 if you want to not just stream from your Apple TV but also tablet.  This would allow Time Warner to satisfy cable partners and give consumers more choices.  Of course, you can already get older HBO content if you have Amazon Prime.  But that's $100 a year. 

The question now is when in 2015?  January 1st?  March? Summer?  Fall?  What's your time?

Update: there is indication this standalone HBO streaming service will come at the beginning of 2015. We should know more as info gets leaked. The entertainment industry isn't known for keeping secrets. 

- Posted using BlogPress

Mobile: Congress Is Pro-iPhone (Not So Much Android) But What About Its Policies?

Source: The Hill.

According The Hill,  of 108 members of Congress who have responded to The Hill's survey, 71% and 95% of them uses the iPhone and iPad respective.  Of the lot, 9% uses Android and Blackberry is alive and kicking with 28%.

While it's not surprising that Apple has also won the heart and minds of Congress when it comes to their choice of mobile devices, the high number of respondents who use the iPhone is questionable only because it's likely Apple fans in Congress are more likely and willing to turn in the survey.

For instance when Tim Cook was dragged in front of Congress to answer questions relating to Apple legally paying all the taxes it is obligated to, Senator Claire McCaskill (Democrat, Missouri) unabashedly declared her undying love for Apple.  When members of Congress questioned Google executives, no one ever made similar declaration or, at the very least, acknowledge how great Google's search results are.

What's of interest would be the breakdown of operating systems, Chrome OS, Linux, OS X, and Windows that are used by congressional staffers.  In the show The West Wing, White House operatives could often be seen with a Powerbook sitting on their desks.

Interestingly, their love of Apple only goes so far.  So far, the Obama administration has not shown Cupertino much love nor has Democratic senators who use iPhones, iPads, and Macs.  It goes to show just how powerful traditionally based political bases still are.

In recent years, however, tech companies like Apple and Google that have shied away from big lobbying operations in Washington has started beefing up their presence in DC.  It's rather sad that these companies, instead of investing these millions in R&D, are forced to spend them on lawyers and lining the pockets of politicians.

A Few Biz To Take Care Of - Puzzled about 8.0.1 Release and Overblown Bending Issues

I'll make this quick.  I got the iPhone 6 Plus:  space gray, 128 GB.  I took my first photo with it today that was worth posting onto Eyeem (I abandoned my Instagram account).  I have some early thoughts about it but I'll get into my own review at a later time.  First, a couple of items today that are iPhone related.

First, iOS 8.0.1 was a mess if you don't already know. It bricked the cell connection and made its iconic TouchID useable for new iPhone 6 users.  So, Apple issued 8.0.2 quicker than I expected.  Supposedly it fixed that.  I'm using it now and it seems fine.  I care more about TouchID and it works just as before.  

What I find puzzling is how Apple could have released 8.0.1 thinking it was ready for primetime.  I assumed this to be Apple's testing sequence.

1. They installed iOS 8.0.1 on all qualified iOS devices.  By that, I mean any device that can run iOS 8.  They installed it and rebooted them.
2. Then they made sure everything is working.  Wi-Fi, cell, multi-touch, Touch ID on the 5S, 6, and 6 Plus.  All working, right?  I'm sure there is a battery of tests they conduct to make sure it was working fine.  
3. They might make some adjustments here and there.
4. Then someone, I assume to be a manager or managers, signed off on it.
5. Release it to the public.

So, somewhere in there, someone dropped the ball?  Maybe TouchID wasn't tested?  I find that unlikely just as unlikely is that all those brilliant Apple engineers who tested 8.0.1 did not make one sign call or attempted to collected to a cell service.  

I'm sure more industrious journalists or bloggers will do the leg work and get to the bottom of that.  

Anyway, it's all good now.  8.0.2 is working fine as far as I can tell.  

Now, the fiasco that may or may not be real regarding the iPhone 6 Plus bending.  While the media has made it out to be a big deal out of it, it has largely been defused on a number of levels.  Having learned from Antenna-gate (we Americans love our "gates"), Tim Cook and his PR team got in front of the potential brush fire and started to build backfires to keep it from spreading.  

In the past, Apple under Steve Jobs would not respond for days or weeks.  That Steve Jobs had to called a press event to address the antenna issue in the iPhone 4 was just stupid but he did it and Apple is better for it having learn that valuable lesson.  A lesson that was applied to what could have been an ugly "gate" over iPhone 6 Plus bending merely by putting in someone's jean pocket.  

Short story, as media reports about iPhone 6 Plus' bending, someone released a Youtube video (which some claim to have been faked) showing him bending the iPhone 6 Plus along with competing flagship mobile devices from Samsung, HTC, LG, and Motorola.  Never mind that it was the bending tests conducted on these phones was not scientific, but the dude, you can't really fault him, got his few minutes of fame and further inflamed the Android-iOS religious war.  

What Apple did next was to invite selected journalists to visit its testing facilities where an assortment of Apple products, including the iPhone 6 Plus, was put through various torture tests (The Verge via Appleinsider).  Of course, not everyone was satisfied.

So, up stepped Consumer Reports with its own tests.  First, a bit about on the history between Apple and Consumer Reports.  CR was one of the leading media outfits that was leading the charge against Apple over the iPhone 4 antenna issue. So there is no love between the two.  If you're in the middle like I am or are anti-Apple, you have to assume that CR will be at least impartial in their bending tests of the iPhone 6 Plus.

So, what they did find?  Well, according to Apple, they have only 9 documented complaints over the 6 Plus bending and Apple made sure to test the heck out of the new iPhones.  Well, CR seemed to agree and more.  In fact, CR found that the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus can withstand more pressure than even Apple claims.  Furthermore, the bigger iPhone 6 Plus which the Youtube guy, in his unscientific bending tests, claim to bend more easily than the smaller iPhone 6, is actually stronger than the iPhone 6.

The iPhone 6 Plus withstood 20 pounds more pressure than the iPhone 6 before any deformity to the case was witnessed and ten pounds more pressure before the cases cracked.  

In the Youtuber's video, he found the HTC M8 to be quite strong.  One of the strongest as a matter of fact.  What did CR find?  The HTC M8 was weakest of the lot.  Besting the iPhone 6's was the LG G3, iPhone 5 (I question why didn't they use the iPhone 5S), and the Samsung Galaxy Note 3.  

I have no theory as to whether the youtuber did anything improper.  I can only say that the media is always hungry for eyeballs and, in this quest, have managed to embarrassed themselves and does nothing to make themselves accountable when they make a mistake.  We'll see over the next few days whether of the mainstream media publish retractions or at the very least acknowledge the Consumer Report tests.

Politics Of Selling iPhones in China - Record 10 Million iPhone Sales Forced Beijing To Lose Face

Assuming you follow everything Apple either as a financial analyst (you guys suck by the way), Apple fan, or a general mobile tech fan, you know that Apple has not yet begin to sell the latest and greatest iPhones, the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.  Why is that?  Didn't Tim Cook say that China is one of Apple's most important market? 

Yes, but see with the Chinese government, as bad as they are, they really are worse than one might imagine because not only is it a biggest apparatus in the history of mankind at suppress freedom and truth, justice, and the American way (yes, to me, Superman still stands for that - DC, grow one, please), they really like people to respect them.  Fine, I'm okay with that.  But what they hate more than freedom is losing face.

Now, recently, Beijing has been bully foreign companies around. Why are they doing this?  Because many of these companies including Apple and Microsoft are American companies.  And spying scandals aside, Beijing is really trying to foster its own home-grown companies to compete better no only on its home turf but globally as well.

However, to think that Xiaomi, an even better copycat of all things Apple than Samsung is, will ever be a high-end player against Apple is laughable.  But Beijing is trying hard.  And that means if it can delay the sales of the new iPhones by a few days or weeks, it will.  Plus, I'm sure Beijing is also attempting to extract additional concessions from Apple.

However, Beijing did lose face today and big when Tim Cook, Apple CEO, announced proudly that Apple has sold more than 10 million iPhones since it went on sale in select countries on Friday, Setpember 19th (pre-sale started on the 12th).  While the number of 10 million is impressive compared to the sales figure of the 5S last year, there is one major difference.

Last year, Apple launched the iPhone 5S in China the same time it did in the US.  Let me repeat:  the sales of 5S and 5C during opening weekend was 9 million.  Without the Chinese market, Apple still managed to top that by 1 million. 

While, Apple only cares about making the best products it can, without actively participating in Beijing's political game, it for the Chinese government to lose a lot of face.  Beijing overplayed its hand with the iPhone sales.