Apple’s first pair of applications for Android, Apple Music and Move to iOS, may be the start of Apple opening up even further to Google’s mobile platform. According to a new job listing on Apple’s website, the Cupertino-based company is “looking for engineers to help [Apple] bring exciting new mobile products to the Android platform.” The presence of the word “new” seems to indicate that Apple’s plans go beyond the already announced Apple Music and Move to iOS apps…...

In a new promo for Drake’s newly dropped album Scorpion, Apple Music is letting users create their own personalized album art based on the new record cover. This is done by uploading your own photo (or someone else’s if you’re being creative) and supplying your own signature in place of Drake’s… Dubbed Make Your Drake, the tool can create some unique, personal artwork for users to share and save. Drake’s new album is available today on Apple Music, and features artists including Jay-Z and the late Michael Jackson....

Apple this weekend has started accepting donations via the iTunes Store for Hurricane Harvey relief efforts. CEO Tim Cook announced the efforts in a post on Twitter this morning as damage is assessed around areas of Texas where Hurricane Harvey made landfall. Apple is partnering with the American Red Cross to allow iTunes users to easily donate to relief efforts. Customers can donate in $5, $10, $25, $50, $100, and $200 denominations and Apple will transfer 100 percent of the proceeds to the Red Cross....

As part of its quarterly earnings call release, the company announced that its services bundle Apple One will be officially launching tomorrow, on Friday 30th. Apple One combines Apple Music, iCloud, Apple Arcade and Apple TV+ at a discounted price for individuals and families. For $30 a month, the top tier plan Apple One Premier includes 2 TB of iCloud and Apple News+. It will also include access to Fitness+, Apple’s upcoming workout videos service that will debut before the end of the year....

Here’s an interesting observation from Walt Mossberg: Apple News is promoting an ‘Apple News Exclusive’ today, complete with a special badge and top spot on the front page of the app. The ‘News Editors’ Picks’ exclusive isn’t original reporting, however, but instead a book excerpt from Senator John McCain’s new book due out next month. The feature includes a prominent link to The Restless Waves, Senator McCain’s upcoming political memoir, for pre-order on iBooks, followed by a lengthy except including several photos from the book....

The WSJ has illustrated the stark contrast in Apple’s attitude to assisting law enforcement to access iPhones before and after the Snowden revelations about mass surveillance of private data. It was already known that Apple had helped access more than 70 pre-iOS 8 iPhones, and the paper today reports that – in the earliest known case – the company went as far as drafting the language for the court order....

After firing its Korea head in 2012 amid slowing iPhone sales, Apple has hired a new leader for its business in that area. According to a new report from Bloomberg, Apple recently hired Brandon Yoon to head its South Korea business… In the past, Yoon has held posts as Microsoft and Samsung executives. Most recently, he served as a corporate vice president at Samsung, overseeing digital strategy and other areas. Yoon was at Samsung for just under three years and at Microsoft, across several positions, for four years....

iPhone tracks and records the places that you visit more often so as to provide better location-based data and suggestions. These ideas may be very helpful to any person, but you may not like the idea of tracking your locations very frequent. There may be few apps that may not work unless you turn on the Location Services. While an app accesses your location for the first time, you will be receiving a notification asking for permission....

VCommunicator Mobile is a translation engine that uses an iPod in order to offer soldiers a fast and accurate way to access an extensive library of phrases. The software displays graphics, showing either the phrase in Arabic, or a video of a soldier making the appropriate hand gesture. There are collections of phrases for specific situations, like checkpoint, raid or patrol. Over 700 soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan have been testing 260 iPods enabled with the technology for the last year, reports military magazine, Strategy World – and at a cost of $800,000 initial reports are positive....

Yep, that’s right, the company that once praised the crazy ones is now looking to deploy its technologies in new ways in order to keep an eye on people, so they don’t get too crazy… So, what’s the deal? OK – “videoNEXT and Apple will be co-hosting a panel of industry experts who will be discussing the future of video surveillance and where video meets information technology,” we’ve been told....

Update: The Apple Maps COVID-19 database is now live across the United States and Puerto Rico. Users can search for COVID-19 testing locations or view them on the map directly. Expect it to spread to more countries soon. Screenshot and original story below. Continuing Apple’s efforts in helping fight the coronavirus, Apple Maps will soon display testing sites directly on the map. Apple has launched a portal for hospitals, healthcare providers and businesses to register as a COVID-19 testing location....

Apple Launched Apple News+ during its March event, and to say that it has been underwhelming is beyond an understatement. Despite Apple’s promise of 100s of magazines for a low monthly price, rumors suggest that publishers aren’t happy and I’ve read reports that sign up growth has flatlined. I tried the service for a month, and I came away from it less than impressed. As Apple has continued to deploy its new services across 2019 (Apple Arcade and Apple TV+), I’ve been thinking a lot about News+, the path Apple should take going forward, and what impact it could make in journalism....

Apple today has rolled out a major redesign for the App Store web interface. The new redesign replaces the dated and clunky interface that previously housed the App Store on the web… The new redesign takes cues from the all-new App Store in iOS 11, which offers larger images, a focus on curation and reviews, and more. On the new webpage, you’ll see a larger app heading, preceded by “This app is only available on the App Store for iOS devices....

Apple held an event at its Apple Park headquarters today with Will Smith, Jaden Smith, and Jada Pinkett Smith. The conversation was moderated by Apple’s VP of environment, policy, and social initiatives. Tim Cook shared an image of the event on Twitter, saying that “everyone deserves access to quality water.” Jaden Smith founded JUST WATER, an organization focused on bringing clean water to areas in need, such as Flint, Michigan. JUST WATER is touted as being ethically sourced and comes in a 100 percent paper-based bottle....

The C by GE light bulbs are already available and use Bluetooth connectivity to allow for control by the user from the companion C by GE app for iOS and Android. But with Apple HomeKit support, the lights will now be controllable using Siri voice commands and through Apple’s Home app on iOS, in addition to support for Alexa voice commands starting this summer. The support will require a new “C-Reach smart bridge” product to allow the Bluetooth bulbs to connect to Wi-Fi and then HomeKit....

As noted by TechCrunch, Apple has alerted developers in recent documentation that it is in the process of deprecating access to the uniqueidentifier alphanumeric string that is unique to each iOS device. Apple recommends developers create a UDID specific to apps. Obviously, UDIDs were a security threat as marketers and advertisers (and worse) could follow your usage patterns and gather data through different apps. Apple likely will continue to use the UDID for its iAds, GameCenter, subscriptions and other services it offers across iOS devices, or so one industry CEO thinks:

Apple officially expanded the reach of its services offerings today, bringing key content businesses to more countries. The expansion sees the App Store, Apple Arcade, Apple Podcasts, and iCloud launch in 20 new countries. Meanwhile, Apple Music debuts in a total of 72 new markets. Users signing up to the Apple Music free trial in 52 of the new countries will be able to use the service for free for six months, compared to the usual three-month trial offers....

Earlier today, Tim Cook opened Startup Fest in Amsterdam with an interview during which he made several comments about Apple’s ambitious goals in the health industry. Now, a new job listing has surfaced that reveals Apple is looking to hire a high-level lawyer who specializes in health privacy regulations. The job listing was initially posted yesterday (via Business Insider). According to the job listing, Apple is looking for a “privacy counsel” who will focus on HIPAA and how it affects Apple’s health efforts....

Apple has already had quite a busy month, but it’s not over yet. Apple is holding an event on Monday, March 25th at Steve Jobs Theater with the tagline “It’s show time.” The event will focus on Apple’s upcoming services, including Apple News Magazines, original content and streaming video, App Store gaming, and much more. March Apple Event Apple invited the press to its March 25th event earlier this month, using the tagline “It’s show time” on the invite....

As we were expecting, Apple just officially announced its new iPhone 5S live on stage during its event taking place now on the company’s Cupertino campus. The new iPhone 5S largely retains the same glass and aluminum design as Apple’s previous generation iPhone, but it does include upgraded internals, and a new gold color option and fingerprint sensor that we previously reported. The new iPhone 5S comes alongside the announcement of Apple’s much rumored lower-cost, plastic iPhone 5C unveiled during the event earlier today....