Tag Archives: aapl

Apple rewards customers with free content after Christmas

After having a bang-up holiday selling season, Apple  is rewarding its customers with free content for their iDevices. The Cupertino, Calif.-based company launched its “12 Days of Gifts” promotion Thursday. The freebies vary by geographic location and platform and include music, videos, games and other software apps. Apple (AAPL) has held the promotion in Canada and Europe in previous years, but this year opened it up to consumers in the U.S., Apple Insider reported. The first free download in the U.S. is a four-song live set by Justin Timberlake, recorded at the iTunes Festival in London. In Europe, Apple is giving away the video game “Real Steel,” Mashable reported . The downloads for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch devices will be available for a 24-hour period each day. A new download will be revealed every day through Jan. 6. To participate, Apple device users must download the “12 Days of…

Celebrity shills: Match the spokesperson with the tech company

Hoping to generate excitement with consumers, tech companies often pair up with celebrities from movies, TV shows, music and sports. Sometimes these celebs are fans of a company’s products or services. More often they’re just picking up a paycheck. Occasionally the celebrity endorsers have issues. In November 2012, talk show host Oprah Winfrey tweeted her supposed love of Microsoft ‘s (MSFT) Surface tablet from an Apple (AAPL) iPad. Whoops! A trend in the last year or so is celebrities wanting a job title to go along with their advertising efforts. They don’t want to be just spokespeople for a brand. They want to be creative directors. Pop music star Lady Gaga started the trend in January 2010 when she signed a multiyear strategic partnership with PLR IP Holdings, owner of the Polaroid brand. She became creative director for a specialty line of Polaroid imaging products. It was revealed recently that pop …

Apple needs big new product to drive stock price, analyst says

Apple ‘s (AAPL) iPhone distribution deal with  China Mobile (CHL)  this week is all well and good. But what Apple really needs to drive its stock price higher is a big new product or service category, Pacific Crest Securities says. “Although Apple ‘s (AAPL) balance sheet and strong ties into its customer base should prevent material downside, we see little to drive upside from current levels unless the company can launch a massively profitable new product or service category,” Pacific Crest analyst Andy Hargreaves said in a research note Monday. One possibility is an online pay-TV service to compete with cable, he said. To become a “virtual MVPD” (multichannel video programming distributor), Apple would need to sign deals with major premium content providers like AMC Networks (AMCX), Discovery Communications (DISCA), Viacom (VIA) and Walt Disney (DIS). Hargreaves also mentioned advertising and a mobile payment system as possible services that could drive Apple stock…