posted Aug 26th 2011 7:44PM 
Apple has pulled the plug on TV episode rentals via iTunes, abruptly leaving customers with only the option of purchasing per episode -- good thing you can watch those on your Apple TV streamed from the cloud -- or a Season Pass where available. AllThingsD has a quote from spokesman Tom Neumayr indicating this was in response to customers that "overwhelmingly prefer buying TV shows." Making the timing of the move particularly curious are once-again renewed rumors of an Apple HDTV and a WSJ profile of new CEO Tim Cook that indicates the company is "working on new technology to deliver video to televisions, and has been discussing whether to try to launch a subscription TV service." Like Google, any move depends on its success in negotiating a new delivery model from the networks, who so far have been averse to anything that threatens their existing relationship with pay-TV providers. It appears 99-cent rentals didn't move the needle, so we'll wait and see what the folks from Cupertino have up their sleeve next. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Allow us to extend our congratulations to Nicholas Allegra. He's more popularly known as Comex, the party responsible for crafting the infamous JailbreakMe and Spirit tools that's given Apple so many headaches recently. Starting the week after next, he'll be officially wandering around 1 Infinite Loop as a bona fide intern. We're not terribly surprised, since the skill level needed to give iOS engineers a run for their money can be a highly valuable asset to the company; hiring someone with the know-how to spot vulnerabilities in Apple's OS would only serve to make the platform more secure. It wasn't mentioned how Allegra's talents will be utilized by Apple, but -- given the programmer's extensive history -- we can make a few educated guesses. 
A judge in The Hague just issued a ruling in Apple's patent infringement case against Samsung, prohibiting "the marketing of Samsung smartphones Galaxy S, S II and Ace for violation of Apple Inc. EP 2,058,868." In an official press release, the court explains that The Hague judge ruled to "ban trading of Samsung smartphones Galaxy S, S II and Ace," adding that Samsung also violated other Apple patents with its Galaxy Tab 10.1 and 10.1v, though it's not clear whether or not sales of those devices will be banned as well. The specific patents cited include 2,058,868, which deals with "method of scrolling," 2,098,948 for "recording a flag in connection with multiple screen taps," and 1,964,022, which relates to dragging a slider to unlock the phone. We haven't been able to confirm, but from an online translation it appears that the ban will 
Lately, Apple's become synonymous with a flurry of hotly-contested patent disputes, but in a nice change of events, the company's actually been granted a bunch by the USPTO. The recently awarded patents range from the mundane to the utilitarian, covering designs for a customizable docking peripheral, in addition to a solar-powered solution for charging those iDevices. But the real additions to Cupertino's legal arsenal are its patents for what appears to be cover flow-like navigation for video, and display rotation for images captured via iOS cameras. Alright so none of these patents are particularly revolutionary, and they certainly aren't tipping us off to the next iteration of the iPhone, but think of the lawyers, will you? This is the stuff their litigious dreams are made of. 
As the world waits for Apple to release the iPhone 5, Reuters is reporting that Cupertino may be refreshing the iPhone 4, as well. According to two anonymous sources "with knowledge of the matter," an unnamed Korean manufacturer has already begun producing parts for a cheaper, 8GB version of the smartphone, slated to launch within the next few weeks. As for that next-gen handset, the insiders went on to say that the iPhone 4S / iPhone 5 will feature a more spacious touchscreen, better antenna and eight megapixel shooter, and that Apple is indeed aiming for a late September launch, after having already asked manufacturers Hon Hai and Pegatron to prep their facilities for the production of 45 million units, altogether. Details, as usual, are still scarce at this point, but we'll let you know as soon as we get more information. 
posted Aug 19th 2011 11:02AM 
When it comes to the economy, things appear to be pretty shaky in the land of feta and olive oil, but at least Greece's neighbor to the east is ready to spend, considering a very ambitious (and costly) investment in its education system. Turkish Economy Minister Zafer Caglayan just completed a tour through Seattle and Silicon Valley, making stops to meet with executives at Apple, Intel and Microsoft along the way. Caglayan's stateside mission was to discuss Turkey's FATIH Project, which somehow stands for "Movement of Enhancing Opportunities and Improving Technology" and aims to equip 15 million students with tablets within the next four years. The official seems to have left with a positive impression, telling the Turkish Weekly that "upon agreement, Microsoft teams will come to Turkey to cooperate with Turkish firms on the project." He went on to say that Apple executives expressed interest in having iPhone and iPad accessories manufactured in Turkey as well. Doesn't exactly sound like a firm commitment from either company, but 15 million tablets would be nothing to sneeze at, so we'd be surprised if the tablet makers didn't end up making formal bids. With South Korea and now Turkey making commitments to improving education, perhaps we'll see a similar plan hit stateside soon? 