CNBC Source Likens Issues with Apple Card to “Growing Pains”
10 AUGUST 2022 - It seems Goldman Sachs’ problem with Apple Card was all the people using Apple Card. According to a headline from CNBC, “Apple Card’s rapid growth, outside vendors blamed for mishaps within Goldman’s credit-card business.”
I told you earlier this week that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was investigating Goldman’s credit card business, which mostly consists of Apple Card business. CNBC said then that the agency was investigating the bank’s “account management practices, including with respect to the application of refunds, crediting of nonconforming payments, billing error resolution, advertisements, and reporting to credit bureaus.”
What the world’s hearing now from CNBC is not a finding from the CFPB nor from the bank itself - not officially, anyway. Secret sources said to know something about something, as usual. Remembering that this was pretty much Goldman’s entry into the consumer credit card thing, the secret peeps say “the card’s rapid growth and the new platform built (…) to service it created difficulties, resulting in failures…”
They did not expect as many chargebacks as they got, according to the report. Funny/not-funny enough, those appear to the the area of focus for regulators. The secret-so-and-so says:
We were making the case that we have a seamless way to dispute transactions… But we got no credit for the front end, and we had some failures on the back end.
The source or sources for the report liken Apple Card problems to growing pains attributable to a few points. They include the bank’s decision to build its own systems rather than relying on the same systems other cards have used for decades, outsourcing customer care to third parties instead of building a workforce of folks who knew their system, and staggering growth for Apple Card.
Makes sense. And yet, when people’s money gets messed up, they’re not usually as concerned with your problems as they are with the problems your problems are creating for them.
The CNBC source sounds like somebody inside the Apple Card machine. Officially though, neither Goldman Sachs nor Apple offered comment for the report.
Apple Fixes Bugs with iMovie and FCP X Updates
10 AUGUST 2022 - Word of some bug fixing updates for you iMovie and Final Cut Pro people. Apple Insider says the Cupertino-company released version 10.3.4 of iMovie on Tuesday, along with version 10.6.4 of Final Cut Pro X. “ According to Apple’s release notes,” according to the article:
…the updates address an issue that caused video frames to be out of order during export or playback. That bug fix was the only listed addition in Apple's release notes.
Public Testers Get Third Betas of Next Round of Apple Software
10 AUGUST 2022 - As Shirley follows Laverne, so the latest software for Apple’s public testing program follows betas for developers. Earlier this week we heard word that Apple had hit members of its developer program with the fifth betas of iOS/iPadOS 16, macOS Ventura, watchOS 9, and tvOS 16. Now, a piece from Apple Insider says members of Apple’s public beta program have gotten their third seeds of the same software.
If you’re in the public program, you know what to do. If you’re not but wish you were - info awaits at beta.apple.com. Remember though - beta software should only be run on test devices or spare devices, not on mission critical machines. Also, not to be taken internally, consult your physician, check your local listings, and don’t go swimming until at least an hour after.
iOS 16 Likely Brining Notes on AirPod Updates
10 AUGUST 2022 - Some secret updates from Apple are apparently about to be less secretive. You know how we often hear of new builds of firmware for AirPods with no indication what that firmware does? It seems we’ll get to hear, soon. Or read. According to a piece from MacRumors:
In the fifth developer beta of iOS 16, navigating to Settings → General → About → AirPods and tapping on Firmware Version leads to a new page indicating that AirPods firmware details are available at support.apple.com, complete with a link to a support document that will likely be published by the time iOS 16 is publicly released in September.
Won’t change the way mustard tastes. Still, kind of neat to know.
Beats x Kim: Fit Pro Stoppers in Skin Tones
Beats x Kim in a trio of colors - Image via Apple
10 AUGUST 2022 - Something new for earbuds: Your skin tone. Roughly. A piece from Engadget says Apple subsidiary Beats has joined forces with Kim Kardashian to introduce Beats X Kim. Yet another custom version of Beats Fit Pro, the piece says the trio of colors are made to either “blend in or stand out…”
While not as hard to get as some past Beats exclusives, Beats x Kim can’t be had from just any Apple Store. Engadget says only 10 tony Apple locations will have them, including the 5th Avenue store in NYC, Regent Street in London, and Champs-Élysées in Paris. Fashion chains like Selfridges in the UK and SSENSE in Canada will carry them. They’ll also be sold on Apple’s site, on Amazon in North America, and on WeChat in China.
You know this is really a fascinating thing. On the one hand, they bring an air of exclusivity. At the same time, you can get them on Amazon - where you get everything.
Engadget says Beats x Kim will sell for the standard Fit Pro price of $200 in Canada, France, Germany Japan, the UK, and the US. You can see them on Apple’s site now, though you cannot buy them yet. They go on sale next Wednesday 17 August at 10AM Eastern.
It’s kind of weird to me that a company that brought skin tone matching emoji needed someone famous for being famous to intro the idea of skin tone matching earbuds, but - cool bud. Whatever pumps up the jam.
Ramping Up for iPhone 14
Amid Slowing Smartphone Market, Apple Reportedly Raises iPhone 14 Orders
09 AUGUST 2022 - A slowing smartphone market does not seem to be slowing Apple. In fact, a piece from Taiwan’s United Daily News says the Cupertino-company has increased orders for the first round of iPhone 14s from 90-million units to 95-million.
Working from a machine translation of the UDN article, the piece drives home iPhone’s uptick while other phone makers are feeling down. “At a time when non-Apple phones are generally facing inventory adjustment,” the translation says, “Apple expands the stock of new iPhone 14 series, which will make TSMC's high-end process order acceptance continue to flourish.”
Yeah - it’s good for TSMC and good for Foxconn, assuming Foxconn can hire the people it needs. The UDN report indicates that the OEM has again this week increased its recruitment pay for the iPhone City facility in Zhengzhou. That seems to have been an ongoing thing. We first heard of Zhengzhou hiring sprees for the next round of iPhones all the way back in May. UDN says the increased hiring indicates that iPhone 14 mass production is imminent.
“Lights! Camera! Waiting!”
This time of year, we don’t really need more indication that new iPhones are coming soon. Doesn’t mean we don’t get it. Over the weekend, The Mac Observer observed a note from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. “In his latest Power On newsletter,” the piece had Wonder Mark saying that Apple has “started production of its September media event.” Indications are that the keynote will be 100% pre-recorded, as such things have been since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Gurman says Apple will push play on the keynote in the first half of September, which will come as a shock to no one.
Ming-Chi Kuo Goes Deep on Apple AR/MR Headset Expectations
09 AUGUST 2022 - Don’t you just love a story with a backstory? TF International analyst Ming-Chi Kuo is still with TF International. It seems that someone with a Taiwanese business publication put out a report that the analyst was no longer affiliated with TF International, hence all of his Twitter posts of late. That is a “false report,” according to a Twitter post from Ming-Chi Kuo.
“No hard feelings” seems to be the analyst’s sentiment. Between machine translations and reading rather than hearing though, one wonders what the heck is going on. Whatever the case - to prove that he’s still with TF International, the analyst posted a screen shot of his most recent note for the firm, published on Sunday 7 August. I then took a picture of that with my iPhone and copied the text from that picture into a Pages doc because we live in the future.
That’s the backstory. Here’s the story: Ming-Chi Kuo is super excited about the mixed reality headset he sees Apple announcing as soon as January 2023. Investors are not as excited, but he gets that. Trying to explain it to them before they see it would be like trying to explain a piano to a goldfish. Or trying to explain Norway to a dog, if you want to keep it “all Apple all the time.” The way he sees it, “Apple AR/MR headset will be the next revolutionary consumer electronics product after iPhone.” Explaining why it’s inexplicable, the analyst says:
The success of the epoch-making consumer electronics in the past (such as the iPhone, Wii, etc.) was because they provided innovative experiences that people could not imagine before these products were announced/released. Therefore it is reasonable for most investors to have doubts about Apple AR/MR’s user scenarios currently.
Well, that’s one reason. Another is the price. The TF International analyst thinks the thing will start somewhere between $2,000 and $2,500. He says Apple’s not looking to sell many at that price though - one-and-a-half-million-units or fewer is his thinking. Quoting the analyst again:
Apple's first-generation AR/MR headset focuses on proving if the market demand exists rather than on price/shipment. If the market demand exists, the selling price will gradually decrease, boosting rapid shipment growth with improved production, technology, and cost.
Bloomberg: Apple Acquisitions Slow Significantly in FY21/FY22
09 AUGUST 2022 - Less snacking for Apple, it seems. 9 to 5 Mac highlights a Bloomberg report that says Apple’s appetite for acquisitions has slowed a lot in the last couple of years. According to the piece:
Apple spent $1.5B on buying companies in fiscal 2020, falling to just $33M in 2021 and $169M in the first nine months of its 2022 fiscal year …
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman says the iPhone and Mac-maker “used to acquire a company every three or four weeks…” He sees the drop off as “a sign the tech giant is being more choosy in the face of a shaky economy and heightened government scrutiny.”
Those seem like plausible explanations. Still, one is reminded of a question from the June-quarter earnings call. During that, Piper Sandler analyst Harsh Kumar pointed out that valuations for a lot of companies have gone down, given the macroeconomic shenanigans and goings-on. The analyst wondered whether that put Apple in a buying mood. Apple CEO Tim Cook indicated that Apple is always in a buying mood, if it finds the right thing to buy. Not to contradict the CEO, but if the company spent $33M for the whole of FY21 and has already spent $169M in the first three-quarters of FY22 - that indicates at least some uptick in interest. Then again, it is a bit short of the one-and-a-half-billion The piece says Apple spent on acquisitions in FY20.
Of course, it’s not like they’ve just been sitting on the money. The company has returned billions to shareholders over the past couple of years. Additionally, 9 to 5 Mac says, “Gurman notes in his report that [his] figures don’t include money spent on content, such as TV shows and sports streaming rights for Apple TV+.”
Developers Get Fifth Betas of Next Round of Apple Software
09 AUGUST 2022 - Work continues on the next round of Apple software updates. The Mac Observer says Apple hit developers with the fifth betas of iOS/iPadOS 16, macOS Ventura, watchOS 9, and tvOS 16 on Monday.
The one thing I saw turn up everywhere after the release of the betas had to do with the battery indicator. TMO says “the return of the battery percentage indicator on the Home Screen” jumped out immediately. It’s apparently on by default in the update, though it can be disabled in settings if you like your power consumption a bit more vague. Otherwise - the updates are just grinding and refining. The site figures the next betas for public testers will be along any time.
Malaysia’s AmBank Posts Then Pulls Apple Pay Messaging
09 AUGUST 2022 - A bit of an oops for a bank in Malaysia. Apple Insider says “AmBank published pages to its website detailing its support for Apple Pay over the weekend.” Slight problem though - they jumped the gun. “The pages were briefly visible before being taken down,” according to the report, “with the portal hidden from view as of Monday morning.”
All of that said, Apple Insider indicates that AmBank supporting Apple Pay has been a question of “when” not “if” for at least a few weeks. The bank “teased a launch via text messages in July.” The recent screwup has the news site thinking the answer to “when” is probably “soon.”
Authenticity of “Apple Computer A” Up for Auction Called Into Question
Image via RR Auction
09 AUGUST 2022 - A surprising development around that busted Apple Computer A currently up for auction. You’ve heard me talk about this one for close to a month now. I’ve told you a few times the thing that’s most exciting about the machine is its provenance as the Apple computer that Steve Jobs used to sell The Byte Shop on the machine, putting Apple on the road to success.
Funny story: Turns out maybe not. A piece from Apple Insider says that identification has been called into question. The auction house RR Auction stands by the claim, and the assessment of Corey Cohen. Cohen is a board member of the Vintage Computer Federation. RR Auction call him a “world-renowned expert on Apple 1s,” and says the listing "is properly described. We guarantee it.”
But a report from Mercury News out of San Jose has Paul Terrell, owner of the Byte Shop, saying he thinks the board being sold is from “‘the first delivery’ of 50 computers, not a prototype.” If it was the prototype, it would have been soldered by Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak. Woz says his “hunch” is that it’s not the board Cohen and RR Auction think it is, though he doesn’t seem able to say for sure.
Not surprisingly, the added uncertainty has not moved the needle on the auction. Bidding still stands at just over $407k. I’m not sure how such things work, but I wonder now if it can actually stay that high.
Apple TV+ and Adobe Team to Promote Women Behind “Luck”
09 AUGUST 2022 - The promotional push around the Apple TV+/Skydance Animation feature Luck continues - only it’s not just the film or even Apple products being promoted. Apple Insider says the Cupertino-company has teamed with Adobe on an effort to “highlight some of the women that were crucial to producing [the film] — and inspire future generations of creativity.”
There’s stuff to watch and stuff to do in the promotion. For watching, the piece says Adobe released “a three-part video series highlighting four women who worked on the animated film…”
For doing, the two companies - Apple and Adobe - have released “remixable Adobe Express and Photoshop templates…” Those are said to have been inspired by both the movie and the creatives behind it. For next level doing, Apple Insider says:
…Adobe is also set to hold a new “Find Your Voice” mentorship program that will give five women an opportunity to work alongside [the film’s director] and other Skydance Animation creatives and receive hands-on experience in character design and animation.
The video features, the remixable templates, and info on the mentorship are all available on the Adobe site.
Apple TV+ Announces New Original Podcast “Missed Fortune”
09 AUGUST 2022 - News of another original podcast from Apple TV+. I guess the “+” stands for audio maybe? I don’t know. Whatever the case, the Cupertino-streamer issued a press release Monday, encouraging people to not miss “Missed Fortune.” According to the release:
…“Missed Fortune” is based on the true story of one man’s years-long quest to find a million dollar treasure hidden in 2010 by eccentric art dealer Forrest Fenn.
Since the hunt began, thousands of searchers have gone out in pursuit of the treasure, with at least five of them losing their lives in the process. “Missed Fortune” follows one searcher over the course of eight years, on a hunt that triggers a series of unintended consequences. As Fenn’s treasure gains international attention, people are forced to reexamine exactly what Fenn set in motion.
Twelve years. Thousands of searchers. Apple’s giving it nine episodes. The first three will hit next Monday 15 August. You can catch a trailer for the show - and subscribe if you’re so inclined - in Apple Podcasts, or wherever else you get podcasts.
Report: Apple Asks Vendors to Take “Made in Taiwan” Off of Shipments to China
08 AUGUST 2022 - Tension is brewing over three little words: Made in Taiwan. Well… short words. With big significance. I remember hearing this referenced in a movie that came out in 1979. For… well… ever… China has put forth the assertion that Taiwan is part of China and is properly called (according to the Chinese government) either “Chinese Taipei” or “Taiwan, China”. For its part, Taiwan wants to be called either “Taiwan” or the country’s official name, “Republic of China”.
The Chinese government has long required - on paper at least - that imports from Taiwan be labeled either as coming from “Chinese Taipei” or “Taiwan, China”. However, China’s kind of looked the other way when imports came in with “Taiwan” or “Republic of China” listed as points of origin instead. There is concern that they will no longer turn a blind eye, thanks to a recent visit to Taiwan by US Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi. According to a report on the issue from Apple Insider:
China's decision to more strictly enforce the rule follows US Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to China, which was condemned by Beijing authorities.
Of course, a lot of components for Apple gear are shipped from manufacturers in Taiwan to assemblers in China. According to a piece from The Guardian, “The phrase ‘Made in Taiwan’ can lead to delays, fines, and even the rejection of an entire shipment…” With iPhone 14 expected in the next couple of months… well… really there is no good time for such a disruption, but now would really not be a good time for such a disruption.
“So - how ‘bout you just call yourself China?” Seems a terrible ask. And yet, some say it is what Apple has asked of Taiwan. The Guardian piece cites a report from the Japanese business site Nikkei saying Apple has asked Taiwanese suppliers to label their wares as made in “Chinese Taipei” or “Taiwan, China” to minimize disruption in the supply chain, which has been amazingly disrupted for the past couple of years.
It’s a big ask, but did Apple ask it? It is both easy and difficult to believe the company would. The Nikkei piece names no names. Rather, it cites “sources familiar with the matter,” so who knows who they are? “Apple did not respond to Nikkei Asia's request for comment as of publication time,” according to its report.
TSMC Chairman Warns Against Chinese Invasion of Taiwan
08 AUGUST 2022 - An invasion of Taiwan by China would pretty much put Apple chipmaker TSMC out of business - that is the warning from TSMC Chair Mark Liu. CNBC posted highlights (or lowlights) of an interview between Mr. Liu and CNN. According to the exec, isolating his company would pretty much choke the life out of it. Quoting Liu:
Nobody can control TSMC by force. If you take a military force or invasion, you will render TSMC factory not operable… Because this is such a sophisticated manufacturing facility, it depends on real-time connection with the outside world, with Europe, with Japan, with U.S., from materials to chemicals to spare parts to engineering software and diagnosis.
Bad for Apple? Sure. That’s because TSMC manufactures the A-Series processors that power iPhone, iPad, and other Apple hardware, as well as the M-Series processors that power the Mac, select iPads, and who knows what else currently in the pipeline.
Really though, there’s no telling how many companies would be negatively affected. Certainly most countries - maybe even every country would be. CNBC says TSMC “has over 50% of the world's semiconductor foundry market.” And, Liu makes clear, if TSMC were stopped by invasion, China would be hurt. According to the report:
Liu said an invasion of the territory would cause economic turmoil for China, Taiwan and Western countries. He said that TSMC sells chips to consumer-facing Chinese companies that need the company's services and the supply of advanced computer chips.
"How can we avoid war? How can we ensure that the engine of the world economy continues humming, and let's have a fair competition," Liu said.
Sensor Tower: Game Downloads and Revenue Down in U.S.
08 AUGUST 2022 - Driving home talk of an App Store slowdown are new numbers from the app tracking firm Sensor Tower. I told you last week of a note from Morgan Stanley analyst Erik Woodring that said the App Store had shown growth of only one-percent in July versus the same month a year earlier. That was better than the estimate from Evercore analyst Amit Daryanani. By his reckoning, July 2022 was the first month that the App Store was able to post no growth since its introduction in July 2008.
While it didn’t do the whole range of app categories (or hasn’t yet anyway), and while it was looking at more than just Apple’s App Store, Sensor Tower says - here in the States, we’re off our game. Or games. 9 to 5 Mac has had a look at the Sensor Tower data. According to the site:
Of 14 mobile games genres tracked by app analytics company Sensor Tower, only one saw increased downloads in the first half of 2022, and there were steep declines in most others …
According to the firm:
Most mobile game genres in the United States saw player spending and downloads decline during H1 2022 as the market fell by 9.6 percent year-over-year to $11.4 billion, Sensor Tower Game Intelligence data reveals.
The piece lists a couple of likely reasons for the decline in game downloads. They are both contradictory and completely sensible. The first, according to the report:
With the country reopening after COVID lockdowns, there are many more entertainment options available than there were when people were stuck at home and many venues were closed.
Sounds like people are going out and spending, rather than spending all their spending on phones. At the same time, 9 to 5 Mac says:
Inflation, too, has hit hard, with consumers seeing their spending power fall off a cliff. The economic uncertainties surrounding that also means people are controlling their spending even if they are currently doing fine.
See? Both contradictory and completely sensible. There’s one other culprit likely contributing to the downturn in revenue: App Tracking Transparency. The 9 to 5 Mac piece has Sensor Tower indicating that that is taking a “revenue toll.” According to the report:
Without iPhone owners consenting to tracking, free apps can no longer sell personalized ad spots, meaning ad networks pay them significantly less to run generic ads.
CFPB Investigating Apple Card Issuer Goldman Sachs
Image via Wikipedia
08 AUGUST 2022 - The bank behind Apple Card is being investigated by regulators. CNBC ran a piece late last week that had Goldman Sachs saying that its “credit-card business is being investigated by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over a range of billing and payments practices.” According to the institution, the CFPB is examining Goldman’s “account management practices, including with respect to the application of refunds, crediting of nonconforming payments, billing error resolution, advertisements, and reporting to credit bureaus.”
Goldman Sachs made the disclosure in a quarterly filing last Thursday 4 August. While that filing did not mention Apple, the CNBC piece points out that “most of the bank’s $11.84 billion in card loans through the second quarter were from the Apple Card.”
New Build of Studio Display 15.5 Addresses Audio Issue
08 AUGUST 2022 - The audio problem with Apple’s Studio Display has been fixed. I told you last week of problems experienced by some display users, including the sound simply stopping, playing faster than it should, getting distorted, and/or playing back in a choppy way. When Apple’s solution was - basically - turn it off and turn it on again, the hope was that the issue was software related. Now, a piece from iDownloadBlog says not only was it a software issue, Apple has shipped a software fix. Support documentation for the Studio Display 15.5 firmware update says it resolves “an audio issue” with the display.
Updating might be a tiny bit confusing, since folks will be going from Studio Display Firmware Update 15.5 to Studio Display Firmware Update 15.5. The one the borks the sound is 19F77. The one that fixes it is 19F80. “To check whether a fix is available for your Studio Display,” iDownloadBlog says, “navigate to System Preferences → Software Update, then check for updates manually.”
Bidding on “Apple Computer A” Stalled at $407K
08 AUGUST 2022 - You know I’m starting to doubt my million-dollar prediction on that truly busted old computer.
A few weeks ago I brought you the story of a pre-Apple 1 Apple 1 computer up for auction. It’s special not because it’s in working condition - because it is not. What makes this literally broken machine special is that it’s a demo unit - so demo, the machine wasn’t even called “Apple 1” yet. It’s actually labeled “Apple Computer A.” Making it even more special, it is the Apple computer that Steve Jobs used to sell The Byte Shop on the machine, putting Apple on the road to success.
A very few days after that first story, I let you know that bidding on the busted bit of kit had shot from $130,000 to just over $278,000 to just over $407,000. It was then that I guessed the final sale price could drive north of one-million-dollars. It was also then that bidding ground to a halt. Bidding has been sitting at the same $407,029 since 27 July.
I do think it’s bound to head higher still, but one-million… well… we’ll see. There’s about another week-and-a-half to go. The auction ends on Thursday 18 August.
A Weekend Filled With “Luck” (Not All of It Good)
08 AUGUST 2022 - Luck is likely Apple’s biggest movie since the the 2021 Tom Hanks starrer Finch, and its biggest get for kids since it started producing Peanuts content. Not unlike Snoopy hijacking Apple’s homepage in 2021, a piece from Apple Insider says Apple.com was turned over to the Skydance Animation/Apple TV+ feature Luck over the weekend. Scrolling down the landing page revealed animations of some of the film’s characters landing on, in, or in front of such Apple products as iPad, iPhone, and the Mac. There was also a special section dedicated to the film itself.
Critical Critiques
While the film may have been lucky enough to land prime real estate on Apple’s homepage, it did not fare as well with critics. With 67 professional reviews tallied, the film had an unenviable score of 48% Sunday evening on RottenTomatoes. Audiences are more into it though. They gave the film a fresh score of 73% over the weekend.
A “Lucky” Three-Months for Apple Card Holders
Well received or no, the show must go on - and so must the promotions planned around it. Cult of Mac says Apple is using the animated feature to promote Apple TV+ to Apple Card holders. “It’s your lucky day. For three whole months,” says the headline over the promotion. “As an Apple Card user,” the page says, “you can enjoy 3 months free of Apple TV+…”
Interestingly, the promo is not limited to new subscribers. According to the Cult:
Apple says its Apple Card deal is “for new and existing subscribers to Apple TV+.” But it excludes people who get the streaming service through an Apple One subscription.
Plenty of time to decide. The offer is available through 31 October to Apple Card holders. More info is available on Apple’s site.