COMPANIES AND ORGANIZATIONS

Apple

iPad Pro may enter production by the end of third quarter Apple's 12.9-inch iPad Pro may enter production by the end

of Q3 and go into mass production in Q4. Sharp will provide Open Cell LCD displays while the Foxconn Group subsidiary GIS will be mainly responsible for touch modules, lamination and LCM assembly. iPad Pro shipments are estimated to reach between 4-5 million in 2015 due to the device's fourth-quarter release.

Samsung Display and TPK will be secondary suppliers, with TPK responsible for touch modules and Samsung for displays as well as LCD assembly. Heading into the second half of 2015, GIS is expected to land a larger portion of iPad and iPad mini touch panel orders while TPK's share is expected to decrease.

Messaging apps from Apple, Facebook and startups popular among smartphone users Messaging apps Facebook Messenger, Facebook, Instagram,

YouTube, Snapchat (in the same order) are the top 5 most popular free iPhone and iPad apps on Apple's AppStore this week. Messages sent with apps use the Internet preferentially, while traditional text messaging goes straight over a cell phone carrier network and depending on the cell phone plan can cost the owner on a per-message basis.

The desire for privacy is showing with apps that auto-delete messages gaining steam.

Facebook bought WhatsApp last year for $19 billion. Canadian startup Kik Interactive, whose messaging app is called Kik, just got a $50 million investment from China Internet company Tencent, the maker of that country's popular WeChat service.

Apple may add cellular voice capabilities to the ipad via a new wireless headset Apple may bring voice calls to the iPad via the wireless

headset which is a feature that several competitors are already offering.

The headset could be a headphone combined with a microphone, or it may be a pair of headphones with a microphone, or any personal listening electronic device that can provide the equivalent functionality of a telephone handset but with hands-free operation.

The mobile device can be a cellphone, a smartphone, a tablet computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a laptop computer, a device equipped on a vehicle, and which is capable of receiving and sending cellular network communications signals.

Apple's headset and the user's mobile device will work together so as to enable a user to have a hands-free experience during a telephone conversation. Although users can currently answer calls today on iPad, it's reliant on their iPhone being nearby. This invention appears to go one step further.

Networks, Processors & PSPs

Magento merchants gain access to real-time analytics eBay Enterprise’s Magento platform has expanded a

partnership with New Relic that will provide its merchant customers an in-depth look at the key metrics they may be needed for savvier business decisions.

The New Relic Software Analytics Cloud software and business analytics provided via custom, real-time dashboards from New Relic Insights is designed to help merchant customers gain a better sense of their customer engagement level.

This technology also enhances site speed and stability using the New Relic APM (Application Performance Monitoring).

By using the New Relic APM and New Relic Insights to monitor their business analytics in real time, Magento merchants can now gain a better understanding of how daily performance is impacting their overall business performance.

Others

Microsoft mimics Google’s Now on Tap feature in its latest Bing app As part of its Android M announcement, Google recently

showed off it’s Now on Tap feature which will allow users to get contextual information within any app or screen just by pressing the home button for a few seconds. Microsoft has come up with a similar feature in its latest Bing app for Android ahead of Marshmallow’s release scheduled later this year. The new Snapshot feature taps in to Wikipedia to bring up relevant information and also supplies deep links to relevant services.

Having released a beta version of Cortana for anyone to try, Microsoft’s Snapshot with the Bing app is directly competing with Google’s own baked-in services. Google’s advantage is that it can incorporate everything within the OS itself while Microsoft will always have to opt for making software available to download in form of an app which is an extra step required just to get the service on customers’ phones.

Flipboard hopes to maintain its relevance by letting users customize their news feed Seminal magazine-style news aggregation app Flipboard is

aiming to compete with Apple News by introducing a system that lets users rate stories. Users can adjust the mix of their home feed by tapping on ‘More like this’ or ‘Less like this’ when they are on Flipboard. Adding likes and dislikes on iOS and Android (not the Flipboard website) will send important signals that inform the entire Flipboard ecosystem, strengthening the experience for all readers.

Flipboard is hoping to maintain its relevance ahead of Apple News app release this fall by adding new features, including the new rating system. The rating system gives users a Facebook-style method for giving a thumbs-up or thumbs-down to individual stories — and a muting capability to turn off specific news sources.

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