Would you take a bath in ice-cold water to help raise awareness for a disease that affects nearly 6,000 Americans each year? That’s exactly who two of Apple’s most high-profile executives did this week, and the challenge continues to be passed on to others. Today’s Morning Report also looks at Apple’s Chinese iCloud data and what to look forward to with Shutterfly’s cloud-based photo service now that it’s out of beta.
Apple Executives Accept Social Media Ice Bucket Challenge
You may have noticed an increasing number of photos and videos on social media this week showing folks dumping buckets of ice water on themselves and wondered what it’s all about. MacRumors reported Thursday that Apple CEO Tim Cook and marketing boss Phil Schiller were the latest to take the plunge yesterday, and it’s all for a good cause.
The aptly named “Ice Bucket Challenge” is intended to raise awareness of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, better known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease), with the caveat that all such challenges must be documented and shared to social media sites, complete with tags for three friends who must then rise to the occasion.
Schiller completed the task first (and documented it on Twitter as shown above), then challenging his wife Kim, actor Chris O’Donnell, and fellow Apple executive Cook; the CEO then took an ice bath on the Cupertino campus as Vanilla Ice’s song “Ice Ice Baby” played in the background, as Apple employees enjoying a bi-weekly beer bash watched on. Cook then passed the challenge on to board member Bob Iger, musician Michael Franti, and former rapper (and Beats co-founder) Dr. Dre.
ThisLife by Shutterfly Exits Beta with Updated Apps
ThisLife by Shutterfly announced this week (PDF link) that the cloud-based photo service is officially out of beta, and ready to offer what the company called “the most full-featured end-to-end memory management solution available.” Complete with iOS, Android, and Kindle apps as well as desktop upload tools and a rich web app, ThisLife by Shutterfly offers facial recognition, duplicate detection, chronological organization, and instant product creation from anywhere there’s an internet connection.
ThisLife currently offers three plans, including a free subscription for up to 2,500 photos, with introductory pricing of $59 per year for up to 25,000 photos and videos, or $139 per year for up to 100,000 photos and videos; both paid plans include a free photo book from parent company Shutterfly for new subscribers. An update to the free iOS app earlier this month also added AirPlay support, the ability to share Stories from a mobile device, and a new Slideshow mode.
Apple Routes Chinese iCloud Data Through China Telecom
The Wall Street Journal today reported that Apple appears to have addressed China’s concerns over the security of its cloud service by moving data for Chinese users onto servers owned by China Telecom and located inside the mainland. The state-controlled carrier confirmed the move last week as “Apple’s only cloud service provider in China,” but the iCloud data stored there is encrypted, protecting it from any potential prying eyes.
“Apple takes user security and privacy very seriously,” Apple said in a statement confirming the change. “We have added China Telecom to our list of data center providers to increase bandwidth and improve performance for our customers in mainland China.”
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(Image courtesy of @pschiller)
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