BlackBerry acquiring networked crisis communications provider AtHoc

BlackBerry has just announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire AtHoc, a leading provider of secure, networked crisis communications. The AtHoc platform will integrate with BlackBerry’s enterprise portfolio and trusted global network, offering customers new capabilities for safety, security and mission-critical business communication.

"BlackBerry is making strategic investments in security, privacy and the Internet of Things, and acquiring AtHoc will enable us to provide a holistic, end-to-end approach to communications," said John Chen, BlackBerry Executive Chairman and CEO. "We have a proud history of securing mission-critical communications for the public sector as well as enterprises operating in the most highly regulated industries. AtHoc's technology and expertise will play a key role as BlackBerry works to connect and secure a broad range of endpoints." 

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Strong iPhone, iPad and Mac sales fuel Apple's $49 billion revenue with $10.7 billion in profit

Apple just announced their most recent earnings behind iPhone, iPad and Mac sales.  The company earned a revenue of $49 billion and $10.7 billion in profit for its fiscal quarter ending June 27th. These results compare to revenue of $37.4 billion and net profit of $7.7 billion, or $1.28 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. 

Breaking down its products but omitting Apple Watch sales figures, Apple attributes its steady success to the iPhone: 47 million units, the iPad and the Mac at 4.7 million units. Apple Watch, Apple TV and iPods collectively earned the company US $2.6 billion.

“We had an amazing quarter, with iPhone revenue up 59 percent over last year, strong sales of Mac, all-time record revenue from services, driven by the App Store, and a great start for Apple Watch,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “The excitement for Apple Music has been incredible, and we’re looking forward to releasing iOS 9, OS X El Capitan and watchOS 2 to customers in the fall.”

Q3 earnings for Apple have been traditionally lower since it is the period leading up to a the yearly iPhone and iPad launches in the Fall as well as generally a quiet time for product and software launches.

Mac OS X 10.11 El Capitan beta 4 now out for developers

Apple made the Mac OS X 10.11 El Capitann beta 4 available to developers today. Featuring experience and performance gains, El Capitan is an incremental update to Yosemite, which was a major overhaul of various OS X features, user interface elements and functionality. Other features include Split View, improved Mission Control and a more intuitive Spotlight search among others. El Capitan lands this Fall as a free upgrade to existing Mac users.

Apple releases iOS 9 beta 4 and watchOS 2 beta 4 to developers

Apple today released iOS 9 beta 4 and watchOS 2 beta 4 to developers. The new watchOS introduces new features and watchfaces, a nightstand mode plus added functionality. iOS 9 beta introduces a variety of new apps including News, a new and improved Notes app and multitasking features and picture-in-picture capabilites on iPad Air 2 devices. Apple's beta releases seem to be on track to the iOS 9 launch this Fall.