Apple AR

Say goodbye to living in just one plane of reality.

That’s because Apple announced today the release of its ARKit, a set of software tools that makes possible high-quality augmented reality (AR) seen through Apple iPhones and iPads.

It overlays 3D graphics, animation and photo-realistic objects on what we used to call the real world, in ways that take the next step beyond the Pokémon Go phenomenon last year.

With this wide availability of AR, marketing platform Wyng co-founder Wendell Lansford told me via email, AR will change “from a novelty to a viable marketing vehicle, and create new paid and owned marketing opportunities for brands and agencies.”

Its broad availability on Apple devices with iOS 11 (out tomorrow), plus comparable technology that Google is releasing for Androids, means that AR — after years of teasing — is now a full channel for entertainment, advertising, education, games and whatever else multi-plane imaginations can create.

The launch announcement was part of the iPhone 10th anniversary event today, which also featured new iPhones and new versions of the Apple Watch and Apple TV. In addition to the new phone models, the ARKit can work on any iPhone 6s, iPhone 7, iPhone SE, iPad Pro and 2017 iPad with the new iOS. In other words, by next year, an estimated half a billion iOS devices are expected to have this capability.

“I share all the enthusiasm in the world for this new consumer interaction model,” AdColony SVP for Strategy Ryan Griffin told me, including the possibility that AR-based advertising could someday be distributed programmatically.

‘Dive in and learn’

AR “is now on the launching pad” in ways that Pokémon Go doesn’t appear to have been, he added, noting that he had a good deal of experience with that pioneering game.

But, Griffin said, he would advise brands to first “dive in to learn” how consumers will use this new medium, and don’t try to sell things yet.

The ARKit, which was previewed in June at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference, utilizes device motion tracking, camera scene capture and advanced scene processing so that the overlays know their positions in the physical world by detecting their position from the device. This means they can get bigger or smaller as you walk toward or away from them, or they can bump into walls.

Vivint IPO

Blackstone Group LP is preparing for an initial public offering or sale of smart-home technology company Vivint, in what's shaping up to be a successful deal for the buyout giant.

Blackstone recently invited investment banks to pitch for a so-called dual-track process that could lead to an IPO or sale of Vivint, people familiar with the matter said. A deal could value Vivint at more than $3 billion, or $6 billion including debt, some of them said. The latter would be about three times what Blackstone paid for the company five years ago.

Vivint sells smart locks, security cameras, burglary-detection systems and other such items and services. Demand for connected homes, cars and other gadgets is rising as the functionality of hand-held devices improves and consumers spend more time on them. Last year, Qualcomm Inc. agreed to buy rival NXP Semiconductors NV for about $40 billion, a deal that would give the tech company more exposure to the automotive industry -- a major area of growth for chip and software providers.

Home security has been a lucrative niche for private-equity firms lately. Apollo Global Management LLC last year bought Vivint competitor ADT Corp. in a nearly $7 billion deal, and is already preparing an IPO that could value the company at well over $15 billion including debt, The Wall Street Journal has reported.

Two years after it bought Vivint in 2012, Blackstone took sister company Vivint Solar public. Last year, the maker of solar panels terminated a planned merger with SunEdison Inc. after SunEdison's board began investigating claims from both a former and a current employee challenging the accuracy of SunEdison's financial disclosures.

Private-equity firms often run a dual-track process when they are ready to exit an investment, in part because it can give them more leverage with potential acquirers. Their preference is usually to sell the entire company, if they can get the right price -- an outcome that may be all the more desirable now given recent volatility in the IPO market.

Hurricanes Boost Zello

The walkie talkie app Zello, which played a major role in volunteer efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, is being downloaded by millions as Hurricane Irma approaches South Florida.

Zello is used almost exactly like a walkie talkie, except it relies on wifi and cell service, so it can support big groups of people in dispersed locations. When Harvey caused widespread devastation in and around Houston, volunteers leaned on Zello to coordinate search and rescue efforts. And people in the path of Irma seem to believe they can put the app to similar uses in this storm too.

Zello has added six million new registered users since Monday, the company's CEO, Bill Moore, told BuzzFeed News, and is now the top free app on the iOS App Store. The app is supporting a few massive groups dedicated to Irma relief, including the 1,800+ member South Florida Hurricane Irma channel.

"With the crush of new users and emergency situations, most of the Zello team is working long days either maintaining capacity or helping with customer support," Moore said.

As Zello's usage grows, it risks getting overloaded and becoming less useful to rescuers. The South Florida group, for instance, seemed to contain a mixture of useful information and chaos Saturday evening. "We’re not Google, we’re not the National Weather Service," one administrator told the group after a number of requests for weather updates.

Still, with traditional communications systems threatened by the storm, Zello stands to play a critical role once again as Irma makes its approach toward Florida.

Sprint-Vivint Partnership

Sprint is wading into the connected home market just as AT&T appears ready to retreat from the space.

The No. 4 U.S. operator is partnering with Vivint, which provides smart home services, to offer connected residential offerings through its retail outlets, according to a new report from Wave7 Research. The carrier has installed digital home offerings at 16 stores in Arizona, Ohio, Utah and Kansas City, Missouri; and plans to expand the initiative to 80 stores by the end of the year, Wave7 said.

“In addition to a wide array of smart home gear (cameras, motion sensors, etc.), the offering provides two MRC (monthly recurring charge) options,” Wave7 wrote in a note to subscribers. “The basic Smart Home Service costs $39.99, but with Vivint’s outdoor, indoor and doorbell camera service, the MRC is $49.99. A small model home has been installed in a few Sprint stores to sell the offering.”

Vivint is a significant player in the automated home market, having been acquired by Blackstone for $2 billion five years ago.

The partnership comes as AT&T is reportedly considering selling its Digital Life business to lighten its debt load as it closes in on the $85.4 billion acquisition of Time Warner. AT&T launched the home security and automation service in 2013 in an effort to broaden its connected devices and services offerings. Digital Life comprises a variety of devices and services including motion alerts, energy controls and live video feeds, and is available in 80 U.S markets including New York and Chicago.

The operator “is exploring options” for Digital Life that may include a sale of the business, Reuters reported last month. The report, which cited unnamed “people familiar with the matter,” said Digital Life is estimated to have between 400,000 and 500,000 users and could garner roughly $1 billion in a spinoff.

That wouldn’t put much of a dent in AT&T’s overall debt of nearly $144 billion, Reuters noted, but “could be a prelude to more divestitures.” Digital Life displays have been pulled from at least some AT&T stores, Wave7 said, although the service is still being sold.

Millenials Don't Watch Live TV

Millennials are eschewing live TV in favor of self-recorded and on-demand content, according to a new study from the Consumer Technology Association (CTA).

Fifty-five percent of respondents in this 18- to 34-year-old age bracket watched time-shifted content vs. the 45 percent who watched live broadcasts. Other findings in CTA’s “Exploring Preferences for Personalized Content Consumption Experiences Study” include:

*Thirty-five percent of those over 35 watched time-shifted content vs. 66 percent who watched live TV.

*One in four respondents learned about new content through predictive recommendations made by the content platform.

*Seventy-nine percent of millennials have clicked on or watched the recommended content.

* The top sources for learning about new content: advertisements (70 percent) and recommendations (67 percent).  

*Only 38 percent of consumers who watch ad-supported content will watch an entire ad without being required “all or most of the time.”

*When watching an ad is required before their content begins, 57 percent said they ignore the ad.

Nite-Ize

By George Harding

This company has a wide range of useful products and the list keeps getting longer. The employees think up more and more useful things for us to use.

One of their products, Gear Tie, is a most useful product and comes in a range of sizes, from the tiny 3 inch ones to the 64 inch monsters. Each  has its uses.

I use the 6 inch Gear Ties to tame my charge cords. I believe  these cords have wrestling matches while they are packed away! They always come out tangled, no matter how carefully I pack them.

Some of the Gear Ties come with a rubberized surface, to provide more friction in their restraining job.

Of course, color is an option as well as length. You can have yellow, blue, black or red.

There are variations in design, too. Some have a ring fastened at the end, which gives you  the option to cinch, twist, hang whatever it is that needs that feature.

Other Gear Ties have a clip at one end, to make attachment to loops, bars and O-rings easy.

The 64 inch Gear Tie is great for cinching down stuff to your car roof  or truck bed.

All in all, the Gear Tie line is versatile and flexible to meet all your needs.

Another useful product is the Inova line of LED flashlights. These range from 110 lumens to 1075 lumens. The body is tough plastic and is longer than a common flashlight. It’s easy to hold and has a switch that allows a selection of beams: very bright, flashing, normal light but circular and more.

I received a T5 1075 lumen Inova flashlight for review and was quite impressed with it. The body is9 inches and produces a very strong light, capable of reaching uver 900 feet! It’s hard to describe the very high intensity of the light.

The body has a cross-hatched surface, which makes it very easy to hold on to, even when wet. The flashlight is well balanced, as well.

One nice extra feature of Nite-Ize products is that they are 100% guaranteed. If there’s a problem, just call them for repair, replacement or exchange.

www.niteize.com

Price of Gear Ties varies from $3 for a 4-pack of 3 inchers, to  $6 for the 64 incher (Amazon)

Price  of Inova flashlight $84 on Amazon

Scoopbroker

By George Harding

Here’s a new idea – take a picture or a video and offer it for sale to a wide range of media outlets that may be interested in your footage.

Scoopbroker has an arrangement set up that gives you the opportunity to take a picture or video or upload one you’ve already takenand upload it to their website.  They offer it for sale to their clients who have signed on to the system.

Scoopbroker receives bids from their clients and refers them to you. If you accept one of the bids, ownership goes from you to the client bidder in exchange for the agreed payment, les a 20% commission.

What an easy way to make a profit from your candid shots.

I signed up for the service, which is pretty simple. You fill in some basic information  there is the usual agreement to “Terms and Conditions,” which are quite lengthy. I didn’t see anything particulary objectionable, but it’s always advisable to read these agreements.

I tried to upload a video I had taken of a truck overturned and burning along an interstate. It was only 2 minutes18 seconds, but the upload has taken considerably long er. It isn’t feasible to use this service if transmitting  files takes so long.

However, it is an interesting idea for making some use of your pictures and videos.

scoopbroker.com                      

Price: none