Apple Changes App Store Search Algorithm
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| Apple Changes App Store Search Algorithm | |
| Number | 938 |
| Broadcast Date | SEPTEMBER 9, 2019 |
| Episode Length | 5:25 |
| Hosts | Rich Stroffolino |
The New York Times reports that Apple changed the App Store search algorithm to not lists its own apps as highly, Qualcomm announces mid-range 5G platforms, and Daimler starts testing Level 4 autonomous trucks in Virginia.
Headlines
- The New York Times reports Apple's own apps ranks first in the App Store across 735 of roughly 60,000 search terms as of August 21, 2019, according to metrics collected by Sensor Tower over the last six years. Apple's apps packed the top listings of some searches, up to the top 14 apps listed in some instances. In interviews with Apple engineers, Apple noticed the search results several months ago, and began changing the search algorithm to deprioritize Apple's apps, affecting all Apple apps by July 2019. According to Senior Vice Presidents Phil Schiller and Eddy Cue, this change wasn't a mistake in how the algorithm presented results, rather a decision by apple to better spotlight developers. According to Sensor Tower data, the weekly median percentage of search results with Apple as the top result increased from 0.2% in the 2nd half of 2016 to 1.2% in August 2019.
- Kuo: 'Apple Tags' to Feature Ultra-Wideband Technology, Likely Far More Precise Than Tile's Trackers
- TF Securities Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says his sources indicate Apple will indeed release small circular tags that can be attached to bags, electronics, keys etc, similar to how Tile tags work. The tags are expected to use Ultrawideband which Kuo believes will be supported by all three new iPhones this year. Ultrawideband is considered more accurate than Bluetooth LE, used by Tile. Though the tags might support Bluetooth LE as well.
- If you preordered the Samsung Galaxy Fold through Samsung last spring, Samsung is canceling that earlier preorder while it “rethink[s] the entire customer experience.” To be clear these were people who had expressed the wish to buy a Fold, asked Samsung not to cancel their preorder, but were not charged. Even so, Samsung is granting them a $250 credit for anything in the Samsung online store. Preorders are not currently open for the Galaxy Fold though you can "pre-register" to get notified when the preorders become available.
- Qualcomm announced it's bringing 5G to its Series 6 and 7 chipsets which are used in mid-range phones. The chips will support key regions and frequency bands, including mmWave and sub-6 GHz spectrum. That means 5G phones coming next year at more affordable price points. Qualcomm says 12 manufacturers have signed up to use the Snapdragon 7 Series 5G Mobile Platform and sampling of the chips has begun with availability in phones after Q4 2019. The Series 6 5G Mobile Platform for lower cost phones should start showing up a little later in the second half of next year.
- At IFA Berlin, Roku announced it is expanding its TV licensing program to Europe, allowing manufacturers to use its TV reference designs and the Roku OS. Hisense is the first announced partner, with plans to roll out sets up to 65-inches with 4K and HDR support in the UK by Q4. Since introducing the Roku TV platform in 2014, there are now more than 100 models available from 10 different manufacturers in North America.
- Huawei's Honor division launched the PocketVision app, designed to let people with visual impairments read documents, menus, and text using a smartphone camera. PocketVision offers several solutions for the visually impaired, including optical character recognition on captured images to convert the pictures into text, which is then read aloud. A negative image mode takes a picture of text and allows the user to change the contrast between the background and text for easier reading. And a zoom-in mode uses the phones volume buttons to enlarge text when viewed through the camera. The app is available through the Huawei AppGallery, and supports English, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Italian, and Chinese.
- Twitch launched a beta of its Apple TV app through Apple's TestFlight app. Users will be able to view livestreams, engage with onscreen chat, and browse through channels sorted by popular games. It's unclear when Twitch plans to make the app available in the App Store.
- Daimler announced it began testing Level 4 autonomous trucks in Virginia. Daimler is testing Freightliner Cascadias equipped with lidar sensors, cameras, and radar, using software fro Torq Robotics, which Daimler recently bought a majority stake in. Human safety drivers will be onboard, and the trucks will haul weighted trailers to simulate typical loads. Daimler Trucks North America is currently developing a dedicated autonomous driving truck chassis, with plans to make it broadly available in Q1 2020.
- Researchers at the security firm ESET published details on Windows malware that uses the Windows Background Intelligent Transfer Service, or BITS, as a backdoor to talk to a command-and-control server to exfiltrate data or run malicious code. BITS is used on Windows to detect network activity to download Windows updates during downtime, and allows other apps to tap into the protocol to download updates. Using BITS avoid more typical HTTP traffic and is often ignored by firewalls. This exploit appears to have been around since 2015 and was tied by the researcher to a state-sponsored group dubbed Stealth Falcon, who have been in operation since 2012 and previously tied to targeting United Arab Emirates dissidents.
Links
| Preceded by: "Week in Review for the Week of 9/2/19" |
Apple Changes App Store Search Algorithm |
Followed by: "New iPhones and more from Apple" |