Apple Launches iTunes Store In Brazil & Latin America, iTunes Match Also Available In Brazil

Apple has just announced, via a press release, that it is today launching the iTunes Store in Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru and Venezuela. Additionally, Brazilians also have access to iTunes Match - the first country to get access to the service since Apple launched the feature last month in the US.

iTunes in the Cloud is available today for free in Brazil and Latin America and iTunes Match is available today for a $24.99 annual fee in Brazil.

Consumers from Brazil and those 15 Latin American countries will now be able to purchase music from major labels such as EMI Music, Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, Warner Music as well as thousands of independent labels. Movies are also accessible to Brazillians on the iTunes Store with movies available from major studios such as Sony and Universal. Whilst iTunes in the Cloud (for music) is available for all the countries listed above, iTunes Match is only launching in Brazil today.

The full press release from Apple is included below the break.

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Apple Lowers iAds Price Commitment For Advertisers

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Apple has lowered the purchase commitment for marketers interested in advertising with the iAd mobile service. When the service first launched, advertisers were asked to make a $1 million dollar commitment to the platform, which was later dropped to $500,000. Today’s report states that Apple has lowered that buy-in commitment yet again to $400,000 – a staggering %60 below the initial launch price.

This strategic move comes on the heels of Apple losing another 4% market share of U.S. mobile display-ad revenue according to International Data Corporation (IDC). In contrast to Apple’s decline, Google’s mobile advertising service AdMob, is doing quite well and has grown to 24% of the U.S. market share in 2011.

In response, Apple is making some changes. It is showing more willingness to bargain on the spending commitment it requires of advertisers.

The roll-out of iAds made quite a splash when it was first announced by former CEO Steve Jobs back in April of 2010. Since the launch, the results have been less than expected and Apple seems more determined then ever to turn the declining business venture in to a success. Their commitment to quality in-app advertising is also a key element in their plan to retain developers for the iOS platform. If iAds become a thriving mobile advertising service that developers could utilize in their iOS apps, then they would be less likely to stray to competitor platforms.

[via The Wall Street Journal]

iOS 5.1 Beta 2 Now Available For Download

The second iOS 5.1 beta (build 9B5127c) is now available for developers to download from Apple’s developer portal. Of interest in iOS 5.1 beta 2, Apple has made an update to Photo Stream which should please photographers.

Photos taken using iOS 5.1 can be deleted from Photo Stream on your device and will be removed automatically from Photo Stream on your other iOS 5.1 devices. Older photos can be manually deleted from your iOS 5.1 devices.

Also available for download is the second Xcode Developer Preview, and a new Apple TV beta.

Apple: 100 Million Downloads From The Mac App Store

Apple has just issued a press release that notes that over 100 million apps have been downloaded since the Mac App Store launched less than a year a go on January 6th. Phil Schiller notes that “With more than 100 million downloads in less than a year, the Mac App Store is the largest and fastest growing PC software store in the world.”

Averaging out the 100 million downloads across the 341 days since the store launched, thats close to 300,000 downloads per day. The full press release is included after the break and it includes some select quotes from developers such as Autodesk, the developers of Pixelmator and the developers of djay - all offering positive words about the Mac App Store, but from different perspectives.

“In less than one year we’ve shifted the distribution of djay for Mac exclusively to the Mac App Store,” said Karim Morsy, CEO of algoriddim. “With just a few clicks, djay for Mac is available to customers in 123 countries worldwide. We could never have that reach through traditional channels.”

The press release also notes that combined, the iOS and Mac App Stores offer over 500,000 apps that have been downloaded more than 18 billion times, with every additional month adding more than 1 billion to that figure. So whilst the 100 million downloads in just under a year is impressive, compared to the download figures of the iOS App Stores, it’s a small proportion.

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Report: iPad 3 Component Production Beginning, Launch Expected For March Or April 2012

According to DigiTimes, which admittedly has quite a mixed record on Apple rumors, manufacturers in Apple’s supply chain have begun delivering parts and components for the next generation iPad. From this information, DigiTimes believes that the next iPad will be available in 3-4 months (aligning with March or April next year), with iPad 2 component supply beginning to wind down now.

OEM production of iPad 2 will remain high at 14-15 million units in the fourth quarter of 2011 but decline to 4-5 million units in the first quarter of 2012, paving the way for the launch of the new iPads, the sources noted.

Furthermore, the Chinese Commercial Times reports that Foxconn will begin production of the next-generation iPad in January, with production volume ramping up in February. It is expected that production of the next iPad will reach 9.5-9.8 million units in the first quarter of 2012.

[Via DigiTimes]

Angry Birds Updated To Version 2.0 With 15 New Levels, All Episodes Unlocked

To celebrate the second birthday of Angry Birds, which was first released on the iPhone on December 10th, 2009, Rovio has released version 2.0 of its popular game, adding new menus and graphics and a series of new birthday-themed levels. Since its release in 2009, Angry Birds has become a worldwide phenomenon, spurring the creation of spin-offs and sequels on a variety of gaming platforms and eventually finding its way to Apple’s iPad with properly scaled “HD” versions. Rovio recently announced the franchise has reached over half a billion downloads, with 300 million minutes played daily across all platforms and 400 billion birds “shot” by players.

Whilst today’s update isn’t exactly the highly anticipated “Angry Birds 2”, it is version 2.0 of the original game, and as usual with software updates Rovio has made sure to include bonuses and treats to dedicated players that have enjoyed the app over the past two years. For one, all episodes are now unlocked, meaning you can pick up Angry Birds from any world inside the game and start playing through all levels (which, obviously, aren’t unlocked). Alongside the slightly reworked interface and menu graphics, Rovio has designed 15 new “birthday cake” levels, and introduced a new orange bird that can be “expanded” to destroy level elements upon touch. Last, new achievements will allow Angry Birds fans to show their dedication to the series on Game Center thanks to this birthday update.

To celebrate the “birdday”, Rovio has also announced a series of initiatives across the globe, including a special presentation by Rovio’s Peter Vesterbacka at the Apple Store in Ginza, Japan. Angry Birds 2.0 for iPhone is available now on the App Store at $0.99, and you can find the just-updated HD version for iPad here. Check out more screenshots below. Read more

Apple Promotes The Beatles With New TV Advert, Free iBook

Late yesterday Apple posted a new TV ad online that promotes The Beatles on iTunes. The ad, called “Covers”, is a 30 second piece that features a number of their album covers animating and morphing into one another to the tune of ‘Magical Mystery Tour’.

It follows yesterday’s release of ‘The Beatles Yellow Submarine’ a free, interactive iBook that is available exclusively on the iBookstore.

This enchanting illustrated book captures the same magical spirit found in the film. The Beatles’ journey to save Pepperland from the music-hating Blue Meanies is filled with surrealistic humor, wit, and clever references to The Beatles’ song titles and lyrics. In this iTunes exclusive, clips from the movie have been included throughout and can be viewed either embedded in the page or at full-screen. The book also contains interactive animations as well as sound effects and music clips.

Jump the break to view the new ad, you can download ‘The Beatles Yellow Submarine’ for free on the iBookstore.

[Via MacRumors]

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Twitterrific 4.4.4 Gains Support for Readability

In light of the Twitter news yesterday, we missed a small but important update for Twitterrific! Fans of the Readability subscription service will find an update (4.4.4) waiting for them in the Mac and iTunes App Stores. Readability can be chosen as a read later services from the Services tab in Preferences on the Mac, and via Twitterrific in the Settings app on iOS. Readability, a bookmarking service that gives back to the authors you enjoy, also offers a customizable web and mobile reading experience, an easy to use article queue that can be shared with others, and bookmarklets to send articles directly to your Kindle.

The previous Twitterrific 4.4.3 update brought in a lot of extra refinements such as the addition of a load more button in profile pop-overs. In 4.4.4, the load more button has been added to timeline searches as well! In addition, 4.4.4 fixes some bugs with the Magic Mouse (no more missed clicks), and fixed a bug that would cause the timeline to jump to the top of the timeline when retweeting. Overall a small but noteworthy update!

Twitterrific is a free download on iOS, with a $4.99 in-app purchase removing ads and adding translations. Twitterrific for the desktop is $4.99 from the Mac App Store.