Apple 10295 Published by Bob 0

Gaming enthusiasts who gobble up every tidbit of news they can about consoles, gadgets and titles didn't have a lot to digest Thursday when Apple revealed that the new iPhone OS 4 would include Game Center, a social gaming network. The news was just one feature mentioned in the overall update for the smartphone operating system; Steve Jobs' company certainly didn't unlock any new levels in the details category.

Apple's Game Center Tilts the Playing Field

Apple 10295 Published by Bob 0

A change in the wording of Apple's developer agreement in iPhone 4.0 appears to block all efforts by third party platform vendors (including Adobe's Flash and Microsoft's Silverlight) to shim or adapt their code to work as a native iPhone app. Rather than being a competitive blow directed at Flash however, it appears the real motivation is to support sophisticated new multitasking features in the new operating system.

Apple's prohibition of Flash-built apps in iPhone 4.0 related to multitasking

Apple 10295 Published by Bob 0

Acquistions are one thing, and rollouts are quite another. This week, in the world of mobile advertising, Apple beat Google to the punch in its demonstration of new mobile advertising platform iAd as part of its iPhone OS 4 announcement. Apple CEO Steve Jobs showed developers how iPhone and iPad app users won't have to leave their apps to view ads that include features such as movie trailers and even games.

Apple Lobs First Grenade in Mobile Ad Wars