The Tech Media Minute: Amazon Prime Day, Pokémon Go and Declining Mac Sales
On this Tuesday, we’ve good news and bad news for Apple. We also highlight Amazon Prime Day.
Top stories
Amazon Prime Day is here
Today, July 12 is the second annual Amazon Prime Day. Like on Black Friday, there are plenty of deals available — if you can find them. Thankfully, there are plenty of sites highlighting the best deals now available, including:
- Hottest Amazon Prime Day Wearable Tech Deals, Forbes
- Amazon Prime Day deals that beat Black Friday, USA Today
- 10 Amazon Prime Day Deals to Know About, Paste Magazine
Our advice: Before making a purchase, visit CamelCamelCamel and be sure that today’s price is actually a good deal. Also, visit Amazon this afternoon when many of its electronics deals go online.
Why Apple loves Pokémon Go too
We already told you just how important the incredibly popular Pokémon Go game has become to Nintendo’s bottom line. Now Bloomberg reports that Apple is actually making more money on the game.
Pokémon Go is free to play. However, in-app purchases are available, for which Apple gets the company’s customary 30 percent cut. The rest is divided up between the game’s three creators, which includes Nintendo, Google’s Niantic, and Pokémon.
As David Gibson from Macquarie Capital Securities notes:
“We presume that out of every 100 units earned at the App Store, 30 would go to Apple, 30 to [software developer] Niantic, 30 to Pokemon and 10 to Nintendo.”
Pokémon Go is currently available in the Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. It’s expected to launch in other countries in the coming days.
See also: Why did Google get rid of the company behind Pokémon Go? (Re/Code)
Apple needs new Macs, right now
One look at MacRumor’s Buyer’s Guide tells the story: It’s been a long time since Apple refreshed its Mac lineup. Therefore, it doesn’t come as much of a surprise that Mac sales are falling.
According to IDC, worldwide PC shipments in the second quarter of 2016 were down 4.5 percent, totaling 62.4 million units. Apple’s take, however, fell much more, down 8.3 percent year over year. This was good enough for fifth place worldwide behind Lenovo, HP Inc., Dell, and ASUS.
Don't Buy
Credit: MacRumorsApple is expected to refresh the company’s Mac lineup this fall.
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On this day
Today, July 12 is Different Colored Eyes Day and Pecan Pie Day.
The GeekWire Sports Tech Summit begins in Seattle, Washington.
Rewind: On this day in 1960, the first Etch-a-Sketch game went on sale.
Extra reading
Looking for more to read? We’ve got you covered:
- You Can Now Post Bigger GIF Files Of Up To 15 MB On Twitter, But There’s A Catch, Tech Times
- Is It Really Illegal to Share Your Netflix Password?, Slate Magazine
- You won’t believe what’s inside Sonos’ first-ever retail store, CNET
Want even more? Check out Tech Media Extra.
The Tech Media Minute is published Monday through Friday on AppAdvice.