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Last year, Apple and five other publishers were sued by the U.S. Department of Justice over alleged ebook price collusion. While all the other publishers have already agreed to settle with the DoJ, Penguin has now also confirmed it will pay $75 million in consumer damages, leaving Apple behind as the lone fighter in eBook collusion lawsuit whose trial kicks off on June 3rd (via The Next Web).

Pearson, Penguin’s parent publisher who recently settled with EU authorities as well, has today agreed to pay $75 million as well as additional costs, in order to bring an end to all antitrust claims relating to eBook pricing in the US. Simon & Schuster, Hachette Book Group and HarperCollins had previously agreed to settle for around the $70m mark. The Attorney General also confirmed the settlement earlier today, saying that the investigations and resulting litigation has recovered $164 million in the region so far.

“Consumers are entitled to a fair, open and competitive marketplace,” says Attorney General Jepsen. “This agreement is yet another step toward providing restitution to those consumers who were harmed by alleged price-fixing within the eBook market and will further ensure that, going forward, consumers benefit from fair competition in the sale of eBooks.”

Meanwhile, Apple continues to maintain its stance that Apple entering the e-book market has helped the overall market more than it hurt it.

Penguin Settles Ebook Price Fixing Case For $75 Million Ahead Of Apple’s Trial is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog – Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Rogers has announced today the launch of new one month international data roaming passes for various regions including Europe, Asia, the Caribbean, Latin America, Australia and New Zealand. To purchase and subscribe one of these passes via your iPhone or other smartphone, users need to text “travel” to 7626 or visit www.rogers.com/m/roam on their device’s browser.

Below is a chart supplied to us of the following prices and data amounts included:

Rogers says these new packages will text real-time alerts to your phone to monitor data usage. The data roaming plans will cease when the pass expires by time or usage to prevent excessive overages. Once limits are reached, customers will have the option to purchase another pass or switch to pay-per-use.

Just a couple weeks ago Rogers launched their new $7.99 per day U.S. roaming rate with 50MB of data.

This is a good start–but for seasoned travellers, your best bet for roaming overseas is to use an unlocked iPhone and subscribe to the voice and data plans of a local carrier, as a much more cost-effective solution. Anyone going to jump on these new data roaming passes?

Rogers Launches New International Data Roaming Passes is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog – Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Amazon.ca has some decent sales right now on OtterBox iPhone and iPad cases, which as you probably know offers some of the best device protection available. Here are some sales that have caught our eye and are pretty hot (especially the Defender Series for iPhone 5):

• OtterBox Defender Series for iPhone 5: $22.00 (63% off; regular price $59.80)
• OtterBox iPhone 4/4S Commuter Series: $19.90 (50% off; regular price $39.99)
• OtterBox Defender Series for iPad 2/3/4: $59.00 plus free shipping (34% off; regular price $89.99)
• OtterBox iPad mini Defender: $39.00 plus free shipping (48% off, regular price $74.99)

[via RFD]

Amazon.ca OtterBox Sale: 63% Off the Defender for iPhone 5 at $22, Plus More is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog – Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Amazon has officially announced the launch of Amazon Cloud Drive in Canada to bring 5GB of free storage for users. Just under two weeks ago the company launched the Amazon Cloud Drive iOS app to allow users to store, share and access photos. Files are also accessible via the web, Mac and PC. Additional storage can be purchased for $10 per year for 20GB.

Russell Dicker, Director of Amazon Cloud Drive:

“We are proud to bring Amazon Cloud Drive to our customers in Canada. With Amazon Cloud Drive, you can manage and access files across multiple physical devices and you don’t have to worry about hard drive crashes. All of your content is stored safely on Amazon’s servers and is accessible from anywhere using a PC, Mac or web browser.”

Amazon Cloud Drive is yet another competitor for cloud storage seeking attention from customers. Last week Google announced it had unified 15GB of free storage across Google Drive, Gmail and Google+, while yesterday Flickr announced 1 terabyte of free storage.

Amazon continues to roll out various services in Canada previously exclusive to the USA. Note the following timeline of launches in Canada:

• Dec. 2012: Amazon Kindle eBook store
• Jan. 2013: Amazon Prime memberships
• Jan. 2013: Amazon Kindle Paperwhite
• Feb. 2013: Amazon Mobile for iOS updated for Canadian Shoppers
• April 2013: Lower Amazon Kindle prices by $10

The only hold outs so far include the Amazon Kindle Fire tablets and streaming media services. If Amazon continues its expansion into Canada we very well could see Fire tablets soon.

Click here to learn more about Amazon Cloud Drive. Are you using Amazon Cloud Drive?

Amazon Cloud Drive Launches in Canada with 5GB Free Storage is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog – Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster has noted that Apple’s domestic Mac sales have remained steady for the month of April, AllThings is reporting. The analyst called it a “neutral to slight positive” data point for Apple, adding that it actually is a reasonably good news for the Cupertino giant.

In terms of Apple’s profits, the Mac is no longer the defining product as it once was. Apple CEO Tim Cook has said this at many occasions that the iPad is now the company’s growth engine, not the Mac. But since supply issues resulted in hampered sales of Apple’s newer Macs during the last quarter, seeing flat sales for April will potentially lead to a better current quarter.

“With iPad in particular, we have the mother of all opportunities because the Windows market is much, much larger than the Mac market is,” Cook said back in January. “And I think it is clear that it’s already cannibalizing some, and I think there’s a tremendous amount of more opportunity there. As you know I’ve said for two or three years now that I believe the tablet market will be larger than the PC market at some point, and I still believe that”.

So, as long as Apple continues to exploit the iPad as “mother of all opportunities”, as referred by Cook himself, declining Mac sales will not pose much of a concern to the Cupertino company.

Mac Sales Remain Steady In North American During April is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog – Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Just a couple days ago The Weather Network announced its iOS app surpassed 7 million downloads, making it one of the most popular apps in the Canadian App Store. Today an update brings a pollen report just in time for allergy season, plus language support for Spanish and Italian. Also, there is now better weather reporting for Europe and the USA as well.

What’s New in Version 2.1.40
• Pollen report
• App language support for Spanish and Italian
• Crash bug fix
• Improved weather observations for Europe and the United States

You can see the Pollen Report appear next to the UV Report:

A more detailed Pollen Report shows pollen conditions and current spores conditions for the week with indicators showing low, moderate or high levels.

Click here to download The Weather Network for iPhone–it’s free.

The Weather Network for iOS Adds Pollen Report, Better Reports for USA, Europe is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog – Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

A balance of local and global strength, diversified business areas, and strong corporate brand are some of Apple Inc.’s features that have pushed it to the top of the world’s most valuable brands, according to Millward Brown Optimor’s annual BrandZ list (via 9to5mac).

Apple topped this year’s list due to the strength of its brand, valued at $185 billion, although its rate of growth has slowed by 95% because of a slip in stock price and negative investor sentiment. However, as global BrandZ director Peter Walshe points out, the most powerful brands don’t tend to slip as much, while the finances go up and down (see Apple’s stock price).

Apple maintains its top slot in the rankings this year because of the strength of its brand, with a value of $185.1bn. However, its rate of growth has slowed by 95 per cent due to a slip in stock price and negative investor sentiment.

“Its brand value only increased by 1 per cent this year but it still holds the record for the most valuable brand. And it leads by a long way. The next brand in the ranking, Google, is worth $113.7bn [reversing a 3 per cent decline last year to a 5 per cent gain] so Apple is $71.4bn ahead – nearly the value of Coca-Cola, which just shows how strong, powerful and meaningful that brand is,” explains Walshe.

Millward Brown Optimor creates the BrandZ Top 100 global brands list from 14 categories, stretching over five sectors: consumer, food and drink, financial institutions, technology and commodities. A brand’s value is calculated by taking the financial value created by the corporation and multiplying it by the brand contribution, the company explains.

Apple: Most Valuable Brand in the World is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog – Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

If you have ever travelled to Dubai, then you have seen the iconic 7-star hotel the Burj Al Arab. Designed to look like a flag sail, this hotel sits on a man-made island almost 250 metres off the Jumeirah coast.

The hotel announced (via Redmond Pie) it now offers custom-designed 24-carat gold plated iPads for its guests to use during their stay, to act as a virtual concierge to access services like private dining and housekeeping, noted management to The National:

“Our exclusive Burj Al Arab 24-carat gold iPads further enhance our guests’ experience during their stay,” said general manager Heinrich Morio. “We have also recently introduced iMacs inside all our suites.”

The iPads were made by Gold & Co London, described as “the ultimate in luxury accessories” by chief executive Amjad Ali. The iPads are 64GB models with 4G connectivity and will be available for sale soon in the hotel’s gift shop with a price tag of 37,490 AED, or $10,448 Canadian dollars.

Having visited Dubai before and dined at Al Muntaha (on the 27th floor) for Friday Brunch at the Burj Al Arab, this hotel is the real deal when it comes to the ultimate in hotel luxury. If only guests could keep the gold iPads, but unfortunately that is not the case as they are required to be returned at the end of your stay.

Check out this documentary on the hotel below:

7-Star Burj Al Arab Hotel in Dubai Now Offers 24k Gold iPads for Guests is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog – Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Apple has released a 17 page PDF document detailing its stance on tax policies prior to the U.S. Subcommittee hearing set to take place tomorrow, where CEO Tim Cook is set to defend and clarify the company’s tax practices.

Apple clarifies how in its 2012 fiscal year, $6 billion in corporate taxes were paid to Uncle Sam, the most out of any corporation in the USA, accounting for $1 out of every $40 in corporate taxes collected by the U.S. government, or $16 million per day. This number is expected to rise to $7 billion this year.

The company reiterates in its conclusion the company encourages “comprehensive reform” of the US corporate tax system, most likely to include changes to allow the company to repatriate foreign capital without paying a 35 per cent tax rate, which Apple believes would “stimulate economic growth”, since they would be paying more US corporate tax.

While some Subcommittee members may have differing views on these tax policy matters, Apple hopes the Subcommittee will see that these recommendations aim to create meaningful change and go well beyond what most US companies propose. As both a pioneer and participant in the American innovation economy, Apple looks forward to working with the Subcommittee on its efforts to encourage comprehensive reform of the US corporate tax system. Apple appreciates the opportunity to appear before the Subcommittee to contribute constructively to this important debate.

The Offshore Profit Shifting and the U.S. Tax Code – Part 2 is set to take place tomorrow at the Dirksen Senate Office Building at 9:30AM EDT in Washington, D.C.

Apple Releases Testimony Prior to U.S. Subcommittee Investigation is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog – Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

TalkTo is a free service that launched in Canada back in February. It allows iPhone users to text their questions to any business and receive a reply. Today’s 1.2 update brings a slightly revamped search interface and the main screen now has larger and clearer buttons along the bottom.

What’s New in Version 1.2
Easier to use for new users
Improved search experience
Prominent new message action
Chat states show when business or TalkTo agent is typing
Numerous bug fixes

Honestly, TalkTo is one of my favourite apps on my iPhone as it allows me to ask businesses questions without calling, saving me time and patience. No more navigating through complex telephone menus to find out the answer to a simple question.

Questions such as the following to the Apple Store at Metrotown in Burnaby, BC:

The service works great to make reservations, check if an item is in stock, or to find out business hours, with answers sent back to you via push notifications within five minutes most of the time. It’s like a free personal assistant running telephone errands for you. Don’t have a U.S. long distance plan? Use TalkTo to message American businesses for free.

How does TalkTo work exactly? The service has agents based worldwide to provide coverage 24/7 for your questions. If you ask specific questions such as “Can I get a table at 8pm”, the service will represent themselves to business as TalkTo working on your behalf. If you ask a generic question such as “When do you close tonight?” then the service will ask without identifying themselves.

Click here to download TalkTo for iPhone–it’s free. The service is also available on the web to message any business in Canada or the USA. Let me know how you use TalkTo in the comments below!

TalkTo Text-to-Business for iPhone Adds Improved Search Interface is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog – Canada's #1 iPhone Resource