Report: Apple picks up Chomp to bolster App Store

Apple has acquired app search and discovery service Chomp with hopes of improving the App Store, according to TechCrunch.

(Credit: CNET)

Apple has purchased mobile-application search and discovery company Chomp, according to a new report.

TechCrunch says Apple has acquired Chomp, along with its employees and technology, to bolster the search and recommendation features in the App Store, which is now home to more than 550,000 applications.

The price of the deal and when it was made were not mentioned.

An Apple representative declined to comment on the report but issued the following statement: "Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not comment on our purpose or plans."

A spokeswoman for Chomp declined to comment.

Chomp launched in early 2010 as an alternate search tool for sifting through Apple's App Store, later branching out to Google's Android platform the following year. Its technology provides results based on an app's function, instead of its name.

In Apple's case, the company already employs keywords that developers can add as metadata to their app descriptions that will help Apple's own search engine, however they can only be updated with new builds of the software, as opposed to within the search engine's index, something Chomp's technology could bring to the table.

Besides a search engine that can be viewed from the browser, Chomp is also available as a mobile application on both iOS and Android.

Chomp inked a deal with Verizon in September to increase both the accuracy and relevancy of searches made in its own app store, with that technology coming preloaded in new Android phones. At the time, Chomp's Chief Executive Ben Keighran said that the technology would be "a huge differentiator" for Verizon. TechCrunch offers that said deal will continue until Chomp has been fully moved over to Apple.

Apple is highly secretive of the companies it acquires, and rarely makes announcements or confirmations of the purchases, sometimes until an eventual product or feature that makes use of the technology goes public. In the case of Siri, a company Apple bought in mid-2010, the voice assistant feature did not make its debut until October of last year as part of the iPhone 4S unveiling.

Josh Lowensohn grew up in a household full of technology. From a young age he was taking apart computers, snaking Cat 5 cable through walls, and reprogramming video games. Josh covered breaking video game news and wrote game reviews. Since then he's spent his time covering everything from Web apps to all of Microsoft's latest moves. For this blog, Josh is keeping a close eye on everything Apple.

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Apple sued for allegedly selling copy-protected books, report says

Several Chinese authors have sued Apple, alleging copyright violations, a new report claims.

According to Reuters, which cited a report in Chinese financial magazine Caixin, nine authors who are part of the China Written Works Copyright Society (CWWCS) have filed suit in a Beijing court against the iPhone maker for allegedly selling their copyrighted works through its iBooks marketplace. A total of 37 books are included in the lawsuit, according to Reuters, though their titles were not divulged.

The CWWCS has targeted prominent companies in the past. Some of its authors have sued Google over its online Google Books database, as well as Chinese search engine Baidu for a similar service.

Unlike those cases, where the authors nearly immediately decided to sue Google and Baidu, this time around, the CWWCS apparently tried asking Apple to remove the books first, according to the report. However, after "months" of failed attempts, the group has decided to go to court. According to Reuters, the authors are asking for $1.9 million in damages.

Apple did not immediately respond to CNET's request for comment.



Don Reisinger is a technology columnist who has covered everything from HDTVs to computers to Flowbee Haircut Systems. Besides his work with CNET, Don's work has been featured in a variety of other publications including PC World and a host of Ziff-Davis publications.

Don writes product reviews for InformationWeek and is a regular contributor to Processor Magazine.

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Pegatron has iPad 3 order for March, iPad 4 in October, report says

Pegatron Technology, one of the major manufacturers of Apple's iPad, has already begun filling an order of iPad 3 units to be released in March, according to a report from industry Web site Digi Times.

(Credit: Apple)

The report also states that Pegatron will be producing between 7 million and 10 million iPad 4 units set to be released in October. And, according the DigiTimes' "sources from the upstream supply chain," Apple will be changing its manufacturing strategy, which will shift the manufacturing load of iPads to Pegatron (with iPhones as an auxiliary product) from Foxconn Electronics, which will focus on iPhone production (with iPads as an auxiliary product).

Two iPad models this year sounds great, huh? Well, there are couple of things we should decipher from all this before we get too excited.

First, if there are going to be two iPads, it is unlikely that we will see a limited run of an iPad 3 with a looming iPad 4 in the fall. The more likely scenario (if two iPads are to appear in 2012) is that the March iPad will be an iPad 2S, featuring an upgraded processor, more storage capacity, and perhaps more RAM.
It may also include a better camera package (a la the iPhone 4S) and perhaps Siri integration, but other than that, I don't think Apple would add too many extras. The iPad 4 (or as it would follow the 2S, the iPad 3), to be released in the fall, would then likely be a redesign of sorts and include further hardware advances.

Now, I expect something a little more subtle. I think Apple likes having a spring release of the newest iPad model and a late-summer/early fall iPhone event. So, we'll probably be getting the iPad 3, in all its glory, this spring. It will have the Retina Display, the A6, Siri, more storage, and more RAM. We might get a bit of a redesign to accommodate some of the upgraded insides, but it'll probably be hard to tell the difference from an iPad 2 at any sort of distance.

DigiTimes has already published several iPad rumors that include everything from tech specs to the possibility of a smaller, 7-inch model iPad, and everything in between. What do you think Apple's strategy should be for releasing iPads and iPhones? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

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Apple January event to focus on publishing, iBooks, report says

Apple could be talking about iBooks in New York later this month.

(Credit: Apple)

Apple is reportedly planning to hold a special event in New York City later this month. That's got the rumor mill operating at full capacity to figure out what the company has planned.
Yesterday, startup-focused blog TechCrunch was the latest to chime in, saying that a source claims the event will center on book publishing and iBooks. The source didn't say exactly what Apple will announce, but suggested the iPhone maker won't be unveiling any new hardware at the event. Apple's mobile-advertising platform, iAd, also won't be discussed, TechCrunch's source says.
All Things Digital reported yesterday, citing sources, that Apple is planning to hold a special event in New York City later this month. Although some might hope the event will usher in new iPad models or the long-rumored Apple television, the publication's sources said that it would likely focus on media-related topics. Apple's senior vice president for Internet software and services, Eddy Cue, is expected to be involved in the event in some fashion.
The idea that Apple's event would focus on publishing and iBooks, and not the iPad or Apple TV, seems to make some sense, considering the company is reportedly holding it in New York--a major publishing hub. Plus, Apple has historically waited until later in the year to announce a new iPad. Last year, for example, the company didn't show off the iPad 2 until March.
And although the idea of Apple announcing its television later this month is exciting for some consumers, the latest reports on that front suggest the company's set is only in the prototype phase and may be discontinued if its development doesn't go well.
So far, Apple has not confirmed that it will be holding an event in New York later this month. The company has also not immediately responded to CNET's request for comment on TechCrunch's report. But given its history, don't bet that Apple will divulge any details on its plans until it's ready.



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Apple plans NY event this month, report says

Apple is reportedly planning to hold a press event this month, but don't hold your breath that it's to unveil the iPad 3 or rumored Apple TV set.
The tech giant is expected to hold an important media-related event later this month in New York, sources described as "close to the situation" tell AllThingsD.
However, the sources caution that the event is not large-scale and is not related to the iPad 3, the next generation of Apple's popular tablet that is widely expected to be released some time this year. DigiTimes reported late last month that Apple was getting ready to release two new iPad models at the end of January at the Macworld|iWorld conference--a report that has since been widely dismissed.
It also unlikely to involve the interactive television set Apple is reportedly working on. An event of that magnitude, as AllThingsD notes, would most certainly be held in California, either in Hollywood or Silicon Valley.
Apple representatives did not respond to a request for comment.
Eddy Cue, who was recently promoted to senior vice president for Internet software and services, is expected to be involved in the event. The 22-year Apple veteran was instrumental in the creation of the iTunes Music store in 2003 and App Store in 2008.



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