By news@appleinsider.com (Malcolm Owen) Billions have been spent on Apple TV+ original TV shows and movies, but now there is more pressure to control how the massive budgets are spent on productions.Foundation for Apple TV+ had a budget of $5M per episodeLike other major streaming services, Apple has spent a lot of money on original programming. Now, it wants to try to be more thoughtful with its expenditure on video content.According to sources of Bloomberg, Apple SVP of Services Eddy Cue has been holding budgetary meetings with studio heads Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht. After allegedly spending more than $20 billion on productions so far, Cue supposedly wants to refine how the money is spent. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums
By news@appleinsider.com (William Gallagher) A child protection organization says it has found more cases of abuse images on Apple platforms in the UK than Apple has reported globally.Apple cancelled its major CSAM proposals but introduced features such as automatic blocking of nudity sent to childrenIn 2022, Apple abandoned its plans for Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) detection, following allegations that it would ultimately be used for surveillance of all users. The company switched to a set of features it calls Communication Safety, which is what blurs nude photos sent to children.According to The Guardian newspaper, the UK’s National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) says Apple is vastly undercounting incidents of CSAM in services such as iCloud, FaceTime and iMessage. All US technology firms are required to report detected cases of CSAM to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), and in 2023, Apple made 267 reports. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums
By news@appleinsider.com (Charles Martin) Sony PlayStation 4 or 5 model users who have a PlayStation Network account and have or create an Apple ID can get a three-month free trial of Apple TV+, the company’s on-demand video service.PlayStation 4 and 5 owners can enjoy Apple TV+ through their console.The new promotion runs until September 22, 2024. Apple partnered with Sony to run a similar promotion during the pandemic in 2021 that offered a six-month trial, but typically offers new users a one-week tryout period.The Apple TV+ service aims for mainstream but high-quality TV shows, movies, and other programming. Apple just received a record 72 Emmy nominations across a wide variety of its current programming. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums
By news@appleinsider.com (Christine McKee) A fan-favorite during last week’s Prime Day, the $299 iPad 10th Generation deal is back in stock while supplies last.Reflecting a $50 discount off Apple’s $349 MSRP for the iPad 10th Generation 64GB Wi-Fi model, Amazon’s $299 price is the lowest available.Buy for $299This deal marks the return of Prime Day pricing, according to our iPad 10th Generation Price Guide, and makes a great family tablet or tool for students when school resumes session for many in August. Continue Reading on AppleInsider
By news@appleinsider.com (Charles Martin) Apple’s Apple Intelligence research team have released two new small but high-performing language models used to train AI generators.Apple’s ability to create incredibly compact yet powerful AI models is unequaled in the industry.The Machine Learning team at Apple are taking part in an open-source DataComp for Language Models project alongside others in the industry. The two models Apple has recently produced have been seen to match or beat other leading training models, such as Llama 3 and Gemma.Language models like these are used to train AI engines, like ChatGPT, by providing a standard framework. This includes an architecture, parameters, and filtering of datasets to provide higher-quality data for the AI engines to draw from. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums
By news@appleinsider.com (Christine McKee) Apple’s popular M3 MacBook Air 15-inch with a boost to 16GB RAM and a 512GB SSD is $200 off as Amazon and B&H compete in a post-Prime Day price war.The $1,499 price, which is available at both B&H Photo and Amazon.com, reflects a $200 price drop on the upgraded model just in time for back-to-school shopping.Buy for $1,499Normally $1,699, this 15-inch MacBook Air model features a bump up to 16GB unified memory and 512GB storage. Both are double the amount found in the standard M3 MacBook Air configuration. Continue Reading on AppleInsider
By news@appleinsider.com (Christine McKee) A lifetime Babbel subscription is on sale for $129.97 this weekend only, marking a return of the all-time best price on the language learning app thanks to the $470 discount.Save $470 on Babbel this weekend only.The flash deal on the lifetime Babbel subscription is courtesy of Stack Social, with the language learning tool plunging to $129.97 for a limited time only.Buy for $129.97 Continue Reading on AppleInsider
By news@appleinsider.com (Charles Martin) Green Dot Bank, an Apple financial partner for Apple Cash and other services, has been fined $44 million by the Federal Reserve over its tax-preparation service. The penalty is unrelated to its role in any Apple services.Green Dot Bank is Apple’s partner for some financial services, such as Apple Cash.Green Dot, based in Utah, is one of the banks used by companies such as Apple and Walmart to provide backing for financial services. Despite enormous cash reserves, Apple is legally required to use bank partners for offerings such as financing instalment payments, or Apple Cash transactions.The US government found that Green Dot engaged in “numerous unfair and deceptive practices and a deficient consumer compliance risk management program” related to services the bank itself offered. The bank was penalized for failing to disclose fees related to processing tax refunds for customers using its tax-preparation services. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums
By news@appleinsider.com (Malcolm Owen) Sports fans can enhance their enjoyment of the Paris Olympic Games with the iPhone and Apple hardware, with a variety of ways to keep up with what’s happening in the world’s biggest sporting event.Paris 2024 Olympics logo in front of the LouvreThe Paris Olympic Games will be taking place this summer, and the various sporting events that take place over a brief few weeks will be watched by millions around the world.To keep up with the action, Apple device users can use a variety of different avenues, whether they are in France or staying at home. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums
By news@appleinsider.com (William Gallagher) While persistent rumors have said that the forthcoming iPhone SE would be based on the same chassis as the iPhone 14, a new report claims that at least the back of it will be identical to the iPhone 16.The current iPhone SE is the last model to feature Touch ID instead of Face IDIt’s not officially known what the rear chassis of the iPhone 16 will look like, although there are at least rumors about its color. What is known that previously Apple has based its iPhone SE models on the casings designed for earlier iPhones.Consequently, the repeated claim that the iPhone SE 4 would utilize the chassis of the iPhone 14 was plausible. It was significant, though, that it would be based on a Face ID iPhone, since the iPhone SE is currently the last-remaining iPhone with only Touch ID. Rumor Score: 🤔 Possible Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums
