iLounge

Apple Inc. and The Beatles’ Apple Corps said today that they have ended their ongoing trademark dispute and have entered into a new agreement over the use of the Apple name. Under the new agreement, which replaces one from 1991, Apple Inc. will own all of the trademarks related to “Apple” and will license certain trademarks back to Apple Corps. The companies said the terms of settlement are confidential. Apple Inc. won a trademark lawsuit brought on by Apple Corps last year, with a UK judge ruling that the company could continue using its logo on the iTunes Store.

“We love the Beatles, and it has been painful being at odds with them over these trademarks,” said Apple CEO Steve Jobs. “It feels great to resolve this in a positive manner, and in a way that should remove the potential of further disagreements in the future.” Neil Aspinall, manager of Apple Corps said, “It is great to put this dispute behind us and move on. The years ahead are going to be very exciting times for us. We wish Apple Inc. every success and look forward to many years of peaceful co-operation with them.”

Update: We’ve posted an Editorial discussing the potential impact of the new agreement.

In addition to releasing new colors for the second-generation iPod shuffle, Apple has quietly updated two additional iPod products: the iPod 5G- and nano-compatible iPod Radio Remote, and the iPod AV Connection Kit. Released in January of 2006, the original iPod Radio Remote included a shortened pair of Apple’s classic iPod Earphones, and a combination remote control and FM radio tuner, the latter part highly similar in design to the second iPod shuffle. The updated Radio Remote (shown) now includes Apple’s latest iPod Earphones, which can be seen through the front of its clear plastic package. Apple’s iPod AV Connection kit retains the same major pieces as its predecessor - a Universal Dock, iPod AV Cable, iPod Dock Connector to USB Cable, Apple Remote, and USB Power Adapter - but updates the USB Power Adapter with the later, smaller September 2006 component. iLounge checks show inconsistent in-store availability of the Radio Remote and AV Connection Kit - some third-party retailers and Apple Stores have the updated accessories, while others do not. Thanks to iLounger TheWho61 for the tip.

Apple recently filed for a patent for a hot unpluggable iPod. “The filing lays out improved techniques for rendering a peripheral—such as an iPod or iPhone—removable from a host computer without the user first having to perform preparatory unmounting actions through software.”

iConcertCal is a new iTunes plug-in that “monitors your music library and generates a personalized calendar of upcoming concerts in your city.” The plug-in is available for both Windows and Mac OS X.

A senior Microsoft executive in charge of the new Zune digital media player is leaving the company. Microsoft said Bryan Lee, corporate vice president at Microsoft’s entertainment and devices division, is leaving the company to “pursue personal interests.”

Game developer Red 5 Studios is sending out customized iPods to potential new employees. “They are on some sort of recruiting blitz, trying to nab devs from elsewhere. Included with the iPod is a personal web link tailored to the recruit, with details about the job they are hoping the recruit would be interested and background on the company.” [via Airbag]

In a sign that Sony has surrendered to the overwhelming popularity of the iPod, the company has introduced its first iPod-specific audio system. The Sony iPod Audio Docking Station CPF-IP001 ($250) is a compact unit for all dockable iPods. The system’s S-Master amplifier and external subwoofer “provide superior sound while the compact and lightweight design allows you to place this docking station in virtually any room of your home,” according to Sony. The system also comes with a wireless remote and a line input for use with other devices. [via TUAW]

Disney CEO Bob Iger said yesterday that his company has now sold more than 1.3 million full-length movies on Apple’s iTunes Store. In an interview with the Financial Times, Iger said digital distribution was “creating more consumption of media” and dismissed fears that online movie sales would cannibalize DVD sales. “The message that we deliver to our traditional [retail] partners is that the pie is getting bigger,” Iger said. Disney began selling movies on iTunes in October.

Apple late Thursday posted iTunes Repair Tool for Vista 1.0, a software update that fixes iTunes issues reported by new Windows Vista users. According to widespread reports, music purchased from the iTunes Store could not be played in iTunes on the new Microsoft operating system released this week. Users reported that they received a message saying their computer was not authorized to play the purchased tracks. “The iTunes Repair Tool for Vista 1.0 will repair permissions for important files required by iTunes to play your iTunes Store purchases,” Apple states in the brief release notes.

V-Moda today unveiled new colors of its VIBE noise-isolating earphones. One of interest to iPod owners is the new Red Roxx model. The red earphones are designed to pair with the iPod nano (PRODUCT) RED Special Edition and will be available exclusively from the online Apple Store, Apple retail stores, and at V-Moda’s website throughout February. These earphones, V-Moda claims, provide “a precise balance of rich bass, warm mids and unprecedented clarity… and are fashionable accessories.” The Red Roxx earphones are priced at $101.

Nike is offering a new cold weather cap designed to hold and control an iPod nano. “Move, groove, and stay warm in the Nike Men’s Soft Shell Therma-FIT Hatphones Cap,” says the company. “This cozy, comfortable skullcap features full functional Nano click wheel controls through a power mesh window in back so you can keep moving while mixing up your music.” It’s unclear whether the cap will hold a nano with a Nike+iPod Sport Kit adapter attached. The Nike Hatphones Cap sells for $60 and is available in black, grey, blue and red.

Vaja has introduced its latest iPod case—the Caddie case for fifth-generation iPods. Made of high quality Argentine leather, the Caddie case (from $110) is available in several different colors and can be customized with an embossed name or logo. The Caddie case features a screen protector, access to all controls and ports, and comes with a matching Caddie leather bag for storing the case and iPod.

In a joint statement from Apple and Cisco, the companies said today that negotiations over the iPhone trademark had resumed, and that legal proceedings will be delayed until Apple can respond to Cisco’s lawsuit. “Apple and Cisco have agreed to extend the time for Apple to respond to the lawsuit to allow for discussions between the companies with the aim of reaching agreement on trademark rights and interoperability,” the brief statement reads. As previously reported, Cisco, which claims to own the iPhone trademark, sued Apple last month for calling its new mobile phone the iPhone. Apple and Cisco had reportedly been in licensing talks, but Apple had ended them without reaching an agreement. Apple recently called Cisco’s lawsuit “silly.”

The San Jose Business Journal reports: “Apple has been ordered to pay the legal fees of online journalists after an unsuccessful attempt by the company to make them reveal sources of information used in stories. Apple will have to pay more than $750,000 to lawyers who defended the journalists.”

According to a survey by ChangeWave Alliance on trends for the digital living room, the Apple TV has the best chance of mass market acceptance among media centers. “Apple has shown the ability both to innovate and simplify its designs to consumers,” said one respondent. “iPod is opening channels to Apple in a big way.” Another said, “They understand the biggest impediment to adoption is that people hate complexity, they just want to plug in and play.”

The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs, a humorous blog written by “Apple CEO Steve Jobs,” appears to be shutting down. “Well my friggin lawyers are advising me that I will have to shut down this scandalous old blog,” writes Fake Steve. “Details not worth going into here. Someday I’ll be able to explain. Maybe I’ll write a book or something.”

Creative Technology this week reported second-quarter net income of $92.2 million, largely due to a licensing payment from Apple. “The big jump in net income during the second quarter came largely from a US$100 million licensing payment received from Apple. That payment contributed $82 million in net income, Creative said. Excluding the Apple payment and investment gains, Creative’s net income for the second quarter was $9.9 million.”

Malachi and Company has introduced a new generation of iPod-ready fitness shirts under the name SyncWear (previously PodWear). The $34 shirts, made from a lightweight polyester material, sport two side-by-side inner pockets; one to hold an iPod nano (or similar flash MP3 player) and the other to hold items like a gym card. Cord management is handled by two fabric loops, one on the right side between the pocket and armpit and one near the right collarbone area.

The National Football League has announced that it will make highlights from this year’s Super Bowl available for purchase the following day at the iTunes Store. The Super Bowl highlights video will be sold along with a 90-minute video of the NFL’s coverage of the Super Bowl. Both videos will be sold for $1.99. “It’s another way for fans to relive the Super Bowl before they get to the water cooler,” said Brian Rolapp, the NFL’s vice president for media strategy. Video highlights from the NFL’s regular season and playoff games have been available from iTunes since September.

Apple plans to launch iTunes Store video sales this spring in Europe, according to Luxembourg’s economy minister. “Apple is going to extend its electronic retail activities in Luxembourg by launching this coming spring its iTunes video platform for the sale of videos in Europe,” said Luxembourg economy minister Jeannot Krecke. “It will provide full-length television series in various European countries.” Krecke said Apple has been in discussions “for several months” with Luxembourg authorities. Apple reportedly chose the small country because VAT is low for online services by European standards. Other U.S. companies, such as Amazon and AOL, have also set up their European operations in Luxembourg. Apple has been selling video content in the U.S. since October 2005. [Thanks, MacGeneration.]

iLounge has posted a full photo gallery showing off the newly colored second-generation iPod shuffles, along with comparison photographs against the same-colored iPod nanos, plus Proporta- and JAVOedge-branded colored shuffle shells designed to offer silver shuffle owners similar results. The new gallery is here.

Additionally, checks by iLounge at Apple Stores across the United States suggest that the new shuffles are still making their way into retail locations, with some stores already displaying the new models and others awaiting shipments later this afternoon or tomorrow. If you are considering the purchase of a silver shuffle, and are concerned about purchasing the newer version - with its superior included earphones - rather than the older one, look for a silver shuffle in a box with gray printing, rather than green printing. All five of the new iPod shuffles come in gray-printed boxes, leaving the classic green shuffle coloration behind.

Apple is now offering a free demo version of its Vortex iPod game on the iTunes Store. An updated variation of the classic Breakout game, the demo of Vortex (iLounge Rating: B+) contains two sample levels. “Vortex is an intense, futuristic 360º brick-bashing arcade-style game,” says Apple. “Maneuver the bat around the edge of the Vortex to block the ball and keep it in play. Smash bonus bricks for power-ups. Destroy all of the bricks to enter the Vortex and advance to higher levels.” iPod games only play on fifth-generation iPods with iPod Software 1.2 or later.

Apple today announced that its second-generation iPod shuffle is now available in four new colors—blue, pink, green, and for the first time in iPod history, orange—in addition to the original silver. Like the iPod shuffle introduced last year, the new models feature 1GB of flash memory storage, an aluminum design with a built-in clip, and weigh just half an ounce. However, they are now packaged with Apple’s most recently updated iPod Earphones, rather than the predecessor model that shipped with prior shuffles. The new iPod shuffle is available immediately worldwide for $79.

Update: iLounge this morning posed several new iPod shuffle questions to Apple Vice President of Hardware Product Marketing Greg Joswiak; the answers can be found below.

Update 2: iLounge’s editors are weighing in on the new shuffle lineup in this Editorial. What do you think?

The Clothes Off Our Back Foundation is auctioning off a limited edition engraved iPod nano signed by stars from NBC’s hit comedy “The Office.” The nano, which has a current bid of $300, was signed by Leslie David Barker, Brian Baumgartner, Kate Flannery, Angela Kinsey and Phyllis Smith at the Platinum Guild 2007 Golden Globes Suite. According to the foundation, proceeds from the auction benefit the Children’s Defense Fund, Cure Autism Now and the emergency relief efforts in Darfur (specifically Friends of the World Food Program, Save the Children and the U.S. Fund for UNICEF). The auction ends on March 15th.

Harvard Extension School is making select content available for free to iTunes users. Free public access is being offered to video previews of 15 of the 50 distance education courses that are available this spring from the university. Previews are in the fields of computer science, management, environmental science, history and the liberal arts. Audio of each complete two-hour introductory lecture is also available for downloading. Course previews include Harvard professor Mikael Adolphson’s Japan: Tradition and Transformation; Harvard professor Shaye J. D. Cohen’s A Thematic Introduction to the Hebrew Bible; Harvard’s Scott Bradner’s Advanced Topics in Data Networking, and Suffolk University professor Robert J. Allison’s The History of Boston.

iLuv has announced its i182 video recording dock, which allows users to record real-time video content to a fifth-generation iPod or various media cards for playback in other devices. The iLuv i182 ($230; March) can record from various A/V sources, including live or recorded TV, DVD players or camcorders, via composite or S-Video inputs. The unit consists of a dock for direct iPod recording, as well as an adapter for recording video to Memory Stick and Memory Stick Duo cards, MultiMedia cards (MMC), Secure Digital (SD) cards, PMPs and USB storage devices.

“A simple user interface of just two buttons on the i182 dock allows users to make simple choices,” says iLuv “One button is to adjust the timer to record in increments of 30, 60, 120, or 180 minutes with resolution up to 640 x 480 at 2.5 Mbps for your iPod and 720 x 480 at 5Mbps for other PMPs. The second button on the device is to start and stop recording. The device automatically stops recording at the end of the specified duration. The next step is to transfer the video files to your digital player, memory card or other device. When using an iPod, iLuv software included with the i182 makes it possible to  automatically register the recorded video file with iTunes and sync to a PC or Mac.”