Here are your Apple rumors and news items for Friday:
iTunes Trails: All Things Digital posted the results of a poll conducted by Citigroup analyst Mark Mahaney breaking down where people are watching (and paying for) video content online. Google’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) YouTube is the overwhelming leader, with nearly 70% of poll respondents saying they watch videos on that service. (Of course, YouTube is free). The leading paid service is Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX), with almost 25% of respondents saying they watch videos on that service. Hulu came a close second among paid sources, with almost 23% of respondents saying they watch videos there, but Hulu is also predominantly free. The only two other paid services competing with Netflix were Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) iTunes and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), both of which trail by a wide margin. Just under 10% of respondents use iTunes for watching videos online, and sbout 7% use Amazon. It’s getting harder and harder for Apple to justify even 99 cents for a television episode when Netflix likely offers the same episode along with thousands of others for $8 a month.
Mac Delay: In past years, Apple has released new iPhones and iPads in the third quarter, but this year it will mean only new operating systems, particularly for the Mac. The new so-called Lion platform will be the company’s first to be released solely as a digital product, available only as a $40 download through the Mac app store. Apple does have new gadgets in the pipeline, however, including a new model of its popular MacBook Air laptop. According to a Thursday report at TUAW, Apple delayed the laptop’s release for Lion to be finished and available to new owners. Not only that, but Apple reportedly has new models of its Cinema Display high-definition computer monitor and its Mac Mini desktop computer ready for release as well, but neither will be available until Lion is released. The strategy is sound — releasing a full lineup of new Mac products all at once, and right in time for back to school shopping, should give Apple a nice sales surge smack dab in the middle of its fiscal second quarter.
Facebook Focus: It’s hard to believe that there isn’t already a Facebook app for the iPad, considering that Apple has sold more than 25 million tablets in the past 14 months. According to a Thursday report at The New York Times, that’s about to change. Facebook will deliver an app that takes advantage of the tablet’s touch screen and embedded camera in “the coming weeks” according to the report. It’s unknown if the app has anything to do with “Project Spartan,” Facebook’s rumored new app storefront for the iPhone and iPad that will compete with Apple’s own app store.
As of this writing, Anthony John Agnello did not own a position in any of the stocks named here. Follow him on Twitter at @ajohnagnello and become a fan of InvestorPlace on Facebook.
