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Box Targets Multinationals With Amazon, IBM Cloud Options

Expanding internationally, Box ( BOX ) will team with IBM ( IBM ) and Amazon ( AMZN ) Web Services to offer large companies online data storage in Europe and Asia. Some governments have strengthened consumer privacy regulations by mandating that data be stored locally. AWS, part of e-commerce giant Amazon.com, and IBM will provide data center storage facilities to Redwood City, Calif.-based Box. IBM acquired data center operator SoftLayer in 2013. IBM and Box in 2015 partnered to develop new applications and jointly market products and services. The IBM relationship has enabled Box to target larger business deals, analysts say. The “Box Zones” service will initially offer multinational customers the option of local data storage in Ireland, Germany, Japan and Singapore. Box says that it may expand the service to “dozens” of countries . Box operates three data centers in Silicon Valley. Box stock edged up 1% in afternoon trading on the stock market today . Shares in the online data storage and file-sharing service provider’s stock have slipped 13% in 2016. Box has a low IBD Composite Rating of 27 out of a possible 99. The company vies with Microsoft ( MSFT ), though it’s now a partner for Office 365 products. It also counts as rivals Alphabet ’s ( GOOGL ) Google and privately-held Dropbox.  

Why Apple’s iPhone 7 Could Have A Dual-Camera Version

Smartphone users are driven to upgrade their handsets sooner and to pay more to get better cameras, a survey by InfoTrends shows. InfoTrends surveyed 1,499 U.S. consumers about their use of smartphones and other devices. It found that the recent end of subsidized handset pricing by most wireless carriers would cause more than 40% of smartphone users to wait longer to get a new phone, and about half that number to opt for a less expensive phone. More than 35% of each group, however, said that a significantly better camera would be enough to make them buy sooner or pay more, InfoTrends said in a news release Tuesday . The survey results help explain why Apple ( AAPL ), Samsung and other handset makers promote the photo-taking abilities of their handsets in national television advertisements. Apple is rumored to be making a version of its upcoming iPhone 7 that has a dual-camera design. The benefits of the dual-camera setup include faster speed, better resolution (especially in low light conditions) and the ability to incorporate 2-3x optical zoom. LG Electronics and Huawei already have dual-camera smartphones for sale.

Apple Music, Pandora Stoke Digital Music In Face Of ‘Value Gap’

Buoyed by Apple ( AAPL ) Music, Spotify and other subscription streaming services, sales of digital music vaulted past physical music sales for the first time in 2015 to become the main revenue stream for recorded music, according to a new industry report released Tuesday. But there’s also a widening “value gap,” as music listening on Alphabet ( GOOGL )-owned video wing YouTube and other free, legal sites don’t bring as much revenue for the industry, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry trade group said. Digital music sales worldwide contributed 45% of industry revenue in 2015, overtaking the 39% share from sales of CDs and other physical formats, the IFPI’s report said. “After two decades of almost uninterrupted decline, 2015 witnessed key milestones for recorded music: measurable revenue growth globally; consumption of music exploding everywhere; and digital revenues overtaking income from physical formats for the first time,” the IFPI said. The group added that “revenues, vital in funding future investment, are not being fairly returned to rights holders. The value gap is the biggest constraint to revenue growth for artists, record labels and all music rights holders.” Revenue growth came from subscription music streaming services such as Apple Music, Pandora Media ( P ) and Spotify. Others in the subscription sector include Amazon.com ‘s ( AMZN ) Prime Music and Google Play Music. Besides its free YouTube site, Alphabet subsidiary Google in December launched YouTube Red, a video-subscription service that offers ad-free and offline viewing. Music download sales dropped 10.5% in 2015, the report said, while sales of CDs and other physical formats fell 4.5%. The so-called “value gap” arose because some major digital services “are able to circumvent the normal rules that apply to music licensing,” the report said. “User upload services claim they do not need to negotiate licenses for the music available on their platforms, or conclude licenses at artificially low rates, claiming protection from so-called ‘safe harbor’ rules that were introduced in the early days of the Internet and established in both U.S. and European legislation.” IFPI CEO Frances Moore said in a statement that safe harbor rules were designed for the Internet of the past and “should no longer be used to exempt user upload services that distribute music online from the normal conditions of music licensing.” Apple, Alphabet and Amazon stocks were all up a fraction in afternoon trading in the stock market today . Pandora stock was up 2%, near 8. Image provided by Shutterstock .