Pondering the future of Pixelmator by looking at the history of Apple’s app acquisitions.
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Shazam Hits 100 Billion Song Recognitions
apple.com/newsroom/2024/11/shazam-hits-100-billion-song-recognitions/
Apple Newsroom:
Shazam has now officially surpassed over 100 billion song
recognitions since it launched. To help put that into perspective:
That’s equivalent to 12 songs identified for every person on
Earth.
A person would need to use Shazam to identify a song every
s...
Android Authority Reports Google Has Cancelled the Pixel Tablet 2
Mishaal Rahman, reporting yesterday for Android Authority:
Android Authority has learned that Google has canceled the Pixel
Tablet 2, the presumed name of Google’s second-generation Pixel
Tablet. This is disappointing for Pixel fans who were waiting for
Google to refresh...
‘The Blurred Line Between X and the Trump Administration’
msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/trump-musk-partnership-x-twitter-files-rcna180427
Mike Masnick, writing for MSNBC:
Turns out for the “Twitter Files” crew, “creeping
authoritarianism” isn’t so creepy when it’s your team doing the
creeping.
Before, we were told that White House officials’ merely reaching
out to social media companies about election mis...
★ Regarding — and, Well, Against — Substack
My advice to any writer looking to start a new site based on the newsletter model would be to consider Substack *last*, not first.
Apple Is Selling Apple News Ads Directly for the First Time
Sara Fischer, reporting for Axios:
Apple has started selling its own advertising inventory for Apple
News, two sources familiar with the effort told Axios. It’s
pitching new ad units that it hopes will maximize revenue for
itself and its publishing partners. [...]
Publ...
Bob Iger Inadvertently Reveals Percentage of Disney+ Subscribers on Ad-Supported Tier
deadline.com/2024/11/bob-iger-hot-mic-disney-earnings-streaming-1236176581/
Dade Hayes, reporting for Deadline:
Fielding a question from a Wall Street analyst about the growth
outlook and pricing strategy of Disney+, Iger divulged how many
Disney+ subscribers take the ad-supported tier in the U.S. (37%)
and globally (30%). The disclosure was unu...
‘Can You Take a Photo of Us?’
Delightfully clever sketch from Tiny Idea.
‘Inside the Rather Bizarre Relaunch of Jaguar’
James Baggott, writing for Car Dealer Magazine:
Jaguar unveiled a new look, logo and direction for its cars at
what was quite possibly the most bizarre automotive media launch
I’ve ever attended — here’s what happened.
Embargoed until today, the event felt like a halluc...
★ Dr. Oz
I met Dr. Oz ten years ago.
Texas Education Board to Vote on Bible-Infused Lessons in Public Schools
Troy Closson, reporting for The New York Times (gift link):
The optional curriculum, one of most sweeping efforts in recent
years to bring a Christian perspective to more students, would
test the limits of religious instruction in public education.
It could also become ...
Airport — A Typeface Revival
Lukas Schneider:
On 13 November 1961, the Oceanic building at London Airport opened
to handle long-haul flight departure. In 1979, German publisher
Ravensburger brought out a game designed to help children learn to
count. Around Christmas 2023, I stumbled across a copy o...
Android Authority: ‘Google Is Transforming ChromeOS Into Android’
Mishaal Rahman, reporting for Android Authority:
While both Android and ChromeOS have seen huge success in
different markets, they’ve struggled to compete in one product
category where they overlap: tablets. The high-end tablet market
is dominated by the Apple iPad, and ...
Inside ISIS’s Graphic Design Team
404media.co/graphic-design-for-isis-is-his-passion-fbi-alleges-in-filing/
Jason Koebler, writing for 404 Media:
According to the filing, which was first reported by our
friends at Court Watch, Said was an aspiring ISIS
graphic designer who was working with ISIS’s second-in-command
graphic designer. That person told Said that ISIS’s chief
desig...
Apple Devices May Learn to Ignore ‘Hey Siri’ Command From TV Ads
Filipe Espósito, writing at 9to5Mac:
Apple introduced the “Hey Siri” command with iOS 8 to let users
easily interact with the virtual assistant without having to press
any buttons. However, over the years, this has resulted in Siri
being mistakenly triggered when the com...
Daring Fireball
• Daring Fireball Department of Commerce
[Sponsor] WorkOS
workos.com/?utm_source=daringfireball&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=q42024
With WorkOS you can start selling to enterprises with just a few lines of code. It provides a complete User Management solution along with SSO, SCIM, and FGA. The APIs are modular and easy-to-use, allowing integrations to be completed in minutes instead of months.
Today, some of the fastest growing startups are already powered by WorkOS, including Perplexity, Vercel, and Webflow.
For SaaS apps that care deeply about design and user experience, WorkOS is the perfect fit. From high-quality documentation to self-serve onboarding for your customers, it removes all the unnecessary complexity for your engineering team.
Check out our Launch Week announcements to see our latest.
The Talk Show: ‘Annoying Friendliness’
Joanna Stern returns to the show to talk about our new best friends, AI chatbots, and I chime in with how the Voight-Kampff test got it all wrong.
Sponsored by:
- WorkOS: The modern identity platform for B2B SaaS — free up to 1 million monthly active users.
- Squarespace: Make your next move. Use code talkshow for 10% off your first order.
- Memberful: Monetize your passion with membership. Start your free trial today.
Upgraded
My thanks to Upgraded for sponsoring last week at DF. Upgraded’s basic premise is simple: it’s like Apple’s iPhone upgrade program, but for MacBooks. Through Upgraded, you can get a new MacBook every two years with low monthly payments, AppleCare+ coverage, and effortless up...
DOJ Will Ask Judge to Force Google to Sell Chrome and De-Google Android
Leah Nylen and Josh Sisco, reporting for Bloomberg:
Top Justice Department antitrust officials have decided to ask a
judge to force Alphabet Inc.’s Google to sell off its Chrome
browser in what would be a historic crackdown on one of the
biggest tech companies in the wor...
Daring Fireball
• Daring Fireball Department of Commerce
[Sponsor] Upgraded
Greetings, Daring comrades!
Wish to dominate the creative realm with the finest Apple machinery? Your desires align with our grand plan.
Introducing the MacBook Upgrade Program: the ultimate strategy against obsolescence!
Here’s the operation:
- Select your instrument — the nimble Air (from $36.06/mo at 0% APR) or the formidable Pro (AppleCare+ included).
- Pay monthly over 36 months; upgrade after 24.
- After 2 years, exchange for a new MacBook, transfer data, return the old. We’ll refurbish it.
Prefer to keep your device? Finish payments, and it’s yours!
Seize the future; consign obsolete tech to oblivion!
Netflix Claims 60 Million Households Streamed Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul Fight Friday Night, Straining Quality to Breaking Point for Many
deadline.com/2024/11/tyson-paul-fight-glitches-netflix-1236178632/
Dominic Patten, reporting for Deadline Friday night:
Netflix’s much hyped and much delayed live fight tonight between
Mike Tyson and Jake Paul is taking some hits even before the
former heavyweight champion and the YouTuber turned boxer have
climbed in the ring.
From ne...
‘Here’s Why I Decided to Buy “InfoWars”’
Bryce P. Tetraeder, Global Tetrahedron CEO, in an op-ed for The Onion:
Through it all, InfoWars has shown an unswerving commitment to
manufacturing anger and radicalizing the most vulnerable members
of society — values that resonate deeply with all of us at Global
Tetrah...
Mike Tyson Slaps Jake Paul in Face During Weigh-In
espn.com/boxing/story/_/id/42397251/mike-tyson-slaps-jake-paul-face-final-staredown
The winner of tomorrow night’s fight gets to be Secretary of the Treasury in the second Trump administration.
The Onion Buys Alex Jones’s Infowars in Bankruptcy Auction
nbcnews.com/news/us-news/onion-wins-alex-jones-infowars-bankruptcy-auction-rcna179936
Brandy Zadrozny and Erik Ortiz, NBC News:
The Onion, the satirical news company that repeatedly spoofed
conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, has won the bankruptcy auction for
control over his media empire — most notably Infowars, the
far-right, conspiracy-minded website that...
Bill Atkinson Has Pancreatic Cancer
Bill Atkinson, on Facebook, “Request for Prayers”:
On October first, I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Because
of vascular involvement, surgery is not possible. I am taking
weekly chemo treatments to shrink the tumor before surgical
resection. I am tolerating the c...
The Verge’s Compilation of Tech Leaders Congratulating Donald Trump
theverge.com/2024/11/6/24289649/big-tech-leaders-donald-trump-presidential-election
More comprehensive, if less punchy, than my list last week:
Some Big Tech CEOs, including Nvidia’s Jensen Huang, Disney’s Bob Iger, and TikTok’s Shou Zi Chew didn’t post a message for Trump. Netflix co-CEOs Greg Peters and Ted Sarandos also didn’t comment.
★ Disambiguating iPhone Model Names That Have the ‘S’ Suffix
Apple’s S suffix for certain iPhone models — 3GS, 4S, 5S, 6S, XS — has always been problematic in this regard.
Also Now In Public Beta: Find My Enables Sharing Location of Lost Items With Third Parties, Including Airlines
apple.com/newsroom/2024/11/apples-find-my-enables-sharing-location-of-lost-items-with-third-parties/
Apple Newsroom:
Apple has introduced Share Item Location, a new iOS feature that
helps users locate and recover misplaced items by easily and
securely sharing the location of an AirTag or Find My network
accessory with third parties such as airlines. Share Item Location
...
iOS 18.2 Beta 3 Adds New ‘Require Screen On’ Toggle for Camera Control
9to5mac.com/2024/11/11/ios-18-2-beta-3-camera-control-toggle/
Chance Miller, 9to5Mac:
iOS 18.2 beta 3 adds another new toggle for
personalizing the iPhone 16’s Camera Control. Now, you can open
the Camera app with a single press of the Camera Control even if
your display is off.
If your iPhone 16’s display is off, the default beha...
John Geleynse Retires From Apple
John Geleynse, Apple’s longtime head of developer evangelism, on LinkedIn:
Doing anything for 25 years is a pretty big deal. Being a part of
Apple for 25 years has been the privilege and experience of a
lifetime.
My last day at Apple was exactly a week ago today. I’d al...