Dennis Sellers

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">The <a href="http://www.canalys.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Canalys research group</a> estimates show that European smartphone shipments fell 4% in 2018 to 197 million units. In quarter four of 2018, shipments fell 2% to 57 million, though Chinese vendors gained significantly. </p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">Disney overtook Apple for the first time in MBLM's <a href="https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2374952-1&h=4262928106&u=http%3A%2F%2Fmblm.com%2Flab%2Fbrandintimacy-study%2F&a=Brand+Intimacy+2019+Study" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Brand Intimacy 2019 Study</em></a><em>, </em>the largest study of brands based on emotions. The two were followed by Amazon, which came in third. </p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">Apple has filed for yet another patent (number 20190049996) involving an autonomous vehicle. Dubbed “peloton” (a group or pack of vehicles) it involves at least two self-driving vehicles traveling together. As with a previous patent filing (number 10,108,202) it would allow one car to charge another even if both are moving.</p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">Apple says it will resume selling older iPhone models (the iPhone 7 and iPhone 8) in its stores in Germany after they were banned last year, but only with chips from Qualcomm, the world’s largest supplier of mobile chips, with whom Apple is involved in a global legal battle.</p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">Apple is expected to debut a news subscription service on March 25. A <em>Wall Street Journal</em> report said the tech giant plans to keep about half of all revenue generated by publications selling subscription. That sounds like a really big cut, but <a href="https://www.recode.net/2019/2/13/18224013/apple-news-publishers-50-percent-subscription-explained-new-york-times-washington-post-texture" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Recode</em></a> says “many” publishers have already signed up.</p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">After Apple discontinued its AirPort line-up (which was a mistake), one of my favorite replacements was the <a href="https://eero.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">eero home Wi-Fi system</a>, which is handsome, easy-to-use, and pricey. In other words, it’s a product Apple could’ve/should’ve made.</p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">There are no Apple stores yet in India, and iPhone users have been stranded with third-party service providers, who they say don’t live up to the premium brand’s promise in the rest of the world, according to a <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/pranavdixit/apple-india-service-repair-complaints"><em>BuzzFeed</em> report</a>.</p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">Okay, pay attention now. This week it has been reported that Apple would debut a subscription news service to complement Apple News and perhaps a magazine subscription service on March 25 with its long-in-the-works video streaming service arriving in late April or early March.</p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">It’s been previously reported that Apple is targeting April to debut a new streaming product that will include original content free for Apple device owners and a platform to subscribe to other digital media services. However, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/13/apple-targets-april-launch-for-video-service.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>CNBC</em> reports </a> that HBO hasn't signed on to the service due to a disagreement over revenue sharing with Apple, while Netflix and Hulu aren't expected to be a part of the "Channels" service.</p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and Advisor to the President Ivanka Trump have announced the 25 members of the <a href="https://www.commerce.gov/americanworker/american-workforce-policy-advisory-board" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">American Workforce Policy Advisory Board</a>. Apple CEO Tim Cook is one of the members.</p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged Gene Levoff, Apple’s former vice president of corporate law with insider trading, according to <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/13/sec-files-insider-trading-lawsuit-against-former-apple-lawyer.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>CNBC</em></a>. Insider trading is the illegal practice of trading on the stock exchange to one's own advantage through having access to confidential information.</p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">According to the latest research from Strategy Analytics, <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.strategyanalytics.com%2Faccess-services%2Fdevices%2Fmobile-phones%2Fhandset-country-share%2Fmarket-data%2Freport-detail%2Fglobal-smartphone-vendor-marketshare-for-15-countries-q4-2018&esheet=51940144&newsitemid=20190213005440&lan=en-US&anchor=United+Kingdom+smartphone+shipments&index=1&md5=65011f81f95e27d713a814a2b43b299d" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">United Kingdom smartphone shipments</a> fell 14% annually to reach seven million units in the fourth quarter of 2018. Huawei was the star performer, while Apple and Samsung lost ground. Despite this, Apple still has 41.1% of the region’s smartphone market.</p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;"><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__steelseries.com_&d=DwMFaQ&c=euGZstcaTDllvimEN8b7jXrwqOf-v5A_CdpgnVfiiMM&r=Ow4aPy9cQd3igcFvmMGyfG9-O_-GjrDliLiWOH5EUvlQNQHoxZFegoMc_GhVhFyE&m=F2vbB05O7bNpgm02D8KZLUz6wu0U2pwUjHAOUz_DuQs&s=gL0010kMPomr2rM5-3hUDYKxlLiz50t6SJTJlYDLOIg&e=" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><span style="text-decoration:underline">SteelSeries</span></a> has announced full Fortnite compatibility across all its mobile controllers including the new Stratus Duo, Stratus XL and Nimbus. This comprehensive family of critically acclaimed controllers is ready for Fortnite on mobile or PC.</p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">U.S. smartwatch sales experienced strong growth in the 12 months ending November 2018 compared to the same timeframe a year prior,  according to <a href="http://www.npd.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The NPD Group's</a> new Smartwatch Total Market Report. And the Apple Watch remains the clear market leader. </p>

<p style="white-space:pre-wrap;">Apple has been granted a patent (number 10,203,489) for an “optical system for a head-mounted display.” One of several such patents, it doubtless involves the company’s “Apple Glasses” headset that’s expected to debut next year.</p>