Apple Expanding 'Buzz Marketing' Team Focused on Product Placement Posted: 02 May 2014 08:29 AM PDT Apple yesterday posted a job listing for a "Buzz Marketing Manager" based out of New York (via Dwight Silverman and Business Insider ), with the description outlining a position responsible for managing such areas as product placement in film and television and fostering relationships with "high-profile influencers" to promote the Apple brand.
Apple describes the role as new and reporting to the head of worldwide Buzz Marketing, suggesting that Apple is expanding its efforts in the area. Buzz marketing has been receiving significant attention recently, in large part due to Samsung's aggressive efforts in the area led by the posted by Ellen Degeneres. The stunt, which became the most retweeted Tweet in history, was quickly revealed to have been coordinated by Samsung, which was a promotional sponsor
Modern Family's "Game Changer" episode with iPad promotional tie-in Apple's Buzz Marketing program has been in place for two decades, however, having been developed and led by longtime Apple employee Suzanne Lindbergh until her departure for Jawbone last October. On her LinkedIn profile, Lindbergh highlights her role in helping produce over 1,500 events for Apple's in-store Meet the Filmmaker/Actor series, as well as her work on Apple's original for the iPhone and a promotional tie-in for an episode of Modern Family days before the launch of the original iPad. Recent Mac and iOS Blog Stories
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New Retail Chief Angela Ahrendts Appears on Apple's Leadership Page Posted: 01 May 2014 10:59 PM PDT Former Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts has officially joined Apple and is now listed on the company's executive page alongside other major Apple execs like Jonathan Ive, Tim Cook, Eddy Cue, and Craig Federighi.
Back in October, when Ahrendts' hiring was first announced, Apple CEO Tim Cook noted he was "thrilled" she was joining the team, emphasizing that she shared Apple's values, "focus on innovation," and the company's dedication to customer experience. Prior to joining Apple, Ahrendts served as CEO of Burberry beginning in 2006. She is largely credited with boosting Burberry back to fame after a decline, tripling the company's revenue and working to merge Burberry's online experience with the brick and mortar experience. With her luxury brand experience and her dedication to improving customer experience, it's possible that Ahrendts could bring some significant improvements to both the online and retail shopping experience at Apple, at a time when the company is poised to launch several new flagship products, including the iPhone 6 and the iWatch. Recent Mac and iOS Blog Stories
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Apple Will Begin Notifying Users of Information Requests from Law Enforcement Posted: 01 May 2014 06:13 PM PDT  Apple will begin notifying its users of secret personal data requests from law enforcement, according to The Washington Post, as the company believes users have a right to know in advance if their information is being targeted by the government.
Prosecutors, however, say the move could tip off criminals, allowing them to destroy potential digital evidence, cover their tracks and intimidate potential witnesses before law enforcement can build their case. Alternatively, the Post notes that some companies who already notify users before a government requests have found that investigators have dropped data requests to avoid having suspects learn of their inquiries. In the United States, the typical search warrant requires the police to notify the suspect that they are being searched. However, so-called are not unheard of and allow investigators to search a suspect's house or other property without any notification. This ability was expanded in the PATRIOT Act, allowing the Federal Government to utilize such warrants in nearly any crime. Apple and the other companies are seeking to nullify these sneak-and-peek warrants as they pertain to the digital realm. Apple's changes will be unveiled in an updated privacy policy later this month, an Apple spokeswoman told the Post, and users will be notified in "most cases" when their information is requested by a government entity. Cases in which Apple would not notify users include data requests from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court and subpoenas from the FBI for national security investigations.
The Cupertino company has been increasingly concerned about privacy matters since the discovery of secret intelligence program PRISM, with CEO Tim Cook saying the NSA would have to cart them "out in a box" before it could access Apple's servers. Apple has also hired certified privacy professional Sabrina Ross as privacy counsel to oversee the protection of customer data. Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts. Recent Mac and iOS Blog Stories
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Apple Hiring MIT Researcher With Expertise in Ear-Worn Vital Signs Monitor Posted: 01 May 2014 01:48 PM PDT Apple may be adding to its wearables team, as MIT researcher Eric Winokur will be joining the company in the coming weeks, according to a source who spoke to MacRumors. Winokur, who does research at MIT's Medical Electronic Devices Realization Center, has recently worked on an ear-worn "wearable vital signs monitor." According to his LinkedIn page, one of his specialties is "wearable medical device R&D."
Winokur is listed as an author on a number of academic papers focusing on cardiovascular ear-worn devices that measure vital signs. His work was published in two 2012 papers, the first entitled "An ear-worn continuous ballistocardiogram (BCG) sensor for cardiovascular monitoring" and the second entitled "A wearable vital signs monitor at the ear for continuous heart rate and pulse transit time measurements." Ballistocardiography aims to measure the movement of blood into major vessels with each heart beat. Both papers describe an ear-worn device that is designed to wirelessly monitor vital signs using a built-in triaxial accelerometer. The devices are described as taking on the form factor of a hearing aid and are wirelessly connected to a PC for data recording and analysis. Word of Winokur's hiring comes just as a rumor has surfaced claiming Apple is planning to launch EarPods headphones with integrated heart rate and blood pressure sensors. While the claim is extremely sketchy, Apple patent applications have revealed the company's interest in integrating biometric sensors into headphones in the past. Regardless, it is unclear if Winokur will continue his work on ear-worn monitoring devices at Apple or perhaps move to focus on wearables in general, such as the iWatch. Given the timing of his hiring, it is unlikely his expertise will impact any of Apple's product plans rumored for later this year, but he may certainly contribute to the company's ongoing efforts in the health and wearables area. In a 2011 interview with ABC, Winokur described the benefit of the medical device he was developing, suggesting it was to be worn in the ear all day for continuous monitoring of blood pressure and heart rate.
In recent months, Apple has taken an intense interest in health monitoring, hiring multiple health experts with a range of skills and interests, including non-invasive monitoring of heart rate, oxygen saturation, glucose, and more. Many of the experts have joined the company's iWatch team, focusing on developing a sensor-laden wearable device that may be released later this year. Alongside the iWatch, Apple is also developing iOS 8, which is said to have a heavy focus on health with its included "Healthbook" app, designed to aggregate health-related data from a variety of sources. While Winokur's role is currently unknown, he is set to join Apple next month. Recent Mac and iOS Blog Stories
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Wild Rumor of Apple EarPods with Biometric Sensors Has Roots in Apple's Research Posted: 01 May 2014 08:47 AM PDT A seemingly wild rumor of Apple planning to launch new EarPods headphones with integrated heart rate and blood pressure sensors has been making the rounds today after the claim was posted on anonymous information sharing platform Secret (via Reddit).
While a number of major tech stories have in fact broken on Secret, the anonymous nature of the platform makes it all but impossible to separate legitimate claims from fiction without corroborating information from other sources. As a result, it's easy to dismiss this EarPods rumor from someone claiming to have recently been let go from Apple. But what makes the rumor a bit more interesting is that it has roots in Apple's research as documented in patent applications dating back years. Whether the Secret rumor is a fake inspired by those patent filings or if there actually is something to it is unknown, but it's worth taking another look at what Apple has proposed. In one patent application filed in March 2007 and claiming a priority date of September 2006, Apple proposes using sensors integrated into various accessories or even devices themselves to collect physiological data.
 Apple's concepts for sensor clipped onto earlobe (left) to monitor pulse/oxygen levels or adhered to the skin (right) Alternatively, Apple proposes using sensors embedded in an iPod or iPhone "sling" armband to monitor such data. Notably, two of the inventors listed on the patent filing are longtime accessories head Jesse Dorogusker, who moved to Square in 2012, and "father of the iPod" Tony Fadell, who left Apple in 2008 before starting Nest. A second filing, which was granted as a patent this February, more directly addresses headphone-based physiological monitoring, although the application is also quite old, having been filed in August 2008 with an October 2007 priority date.
 Apple's concepts for sensors integrated directly into earpiece (left) or in a separate housing (right) Biometrics have been rumored to be a significant part of iOS 8, with a new "Healthbook" app for tracking various types of health-related information being a key addition to Apple's mobile operating system. With Apple also rumored to be deploying biometric sensors in an upcoming iWatch, it's clear that the company has been looking at ways of collecting health-related data for many years and the effort may finally be coming together. Recent Mac and iOS Blog Stories
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