Analyst: Cheaper iPhone Would Be a Bonanza for Apple

For Apple, a smaller, cheaper iPhone may be more than a means of entering the market for lower-end phones currently dominated by Android and Symbian–it could be the final step in the company’s global smartphone dominance. That’s the theory put forth today by Bernstein analyst Toni Sacconaghi, who sees an iPhone Nano or Mini as an inevitability, one that would dramatically expand Apple’s addressable market.

Survey: Pre-Release Appeal of PlayBook Half That of iPad

Strong buying intentions are developing around Research In Motion’s BlackBerry PlayBook ahead of its presumed March launch. Extrapolating from a post-CES consumer survey, RBC analyst Mike Abramsky concludes the device could sell four million units this calendar year and in excess of six million units in its first full year at market.

Apple’s “Back to the Mac” Event by the Numbers

As Apple events go, Wednesday’s was a bit lighter on metrics than some others we’ve seen this year. Still, there were quite a few worth noting, beginning with 13.7 million–the number of Macs sold in the fiscal year that ended in September. Then there was the Mac’s installed base: 50 million; and the number of Mac developers: 600,000; and…

100 Million iPhone Owners by End of 2011? Maybe Once the Pre-Order Issues Are Sorted Out.

Apple will more than triple iPhone ownership in the next year and a half, giving it an installed base of 100 million people by the end of 2011. This according to Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty, who theorizes that more than half of all current iPhone owners plan to upgrade to the iPhone 4.

17 Percent of Verizon Customers Would Upgrade to iPhone

AT&T’s iPhone-exclusivity deal hasn’t yet expired; nor has Apple announced plans to sell the device through a second U.S. carrier. But that’s not stopping analysts from speculating about what might happen when it does. Riffing on rumors of a Verizon iPhone, Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty theorizes in a research note this morning that given the opportunity, nearly 17 percent of the carrier’s customers would upgrade to an iPhone.
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Some Web Publishers Take a Pass on the iPad Launch

Lots of publishers scrambled to prep their Web sites for the Apple iPad debut. But some either fell short or didn’t try at all.

Will Bing Sneak Onto the iPad?

Sure, Apple and Google have gone from pals to frenemies to outright rivals. But would Steve Jobs and company really dump the search giant in favor of Microsoft’s Bing? We’ll get our first real clue on Saturday, when the iPad arrives.

Early Nexus One Sales Just 865,000 Short of iPhone Sales

Google may be a formidable search company, but as a mobile device distributor, it’s a piker. After 74 days at market, Google’s new Nexus One “super-smartphone” has sold just 135,000 units, according to a new estimate from analytics outfit Flurry.

Does This Mean We Can Expect a Live Nation “iTunes Convenience Fee”?

This year, Live Nation, the world’s largest concert promoter, will put on some 22,000 live shows–each one attended by carping about the asinine “convenience” and “courtesy” charges the company likes to tack on to ticket purchases. But much as concertgoers might loathe the idea of giving Live Nation even more of their money, they may soon do so. Because beginning today, the company is offering exclusive audio and video recordings of some of its events through iTunes.
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Apple’s iTunes Pitch: TV for $30 a Month

Would you pay $30 a month to watch TV via iTunes? That’s the pitch Apple has been making to TV networks in recent weeks. The company is trying to round up support for a monthly subscription service that would deliver TV programs via its multimedia software, multiple sources tell me. The industry finds this idea both tempting and terrifying.
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Apple to Investors: You're Welcome

Apple to Investors: You’re Welcome

Apple to Sony, Nintendo: Game Over, Man