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15 interesting points from Apple’s Q1 2016 earnings call

Cody Lee ∙ January 26, 2016

Apple announced the financial results for its fiscal first quarter of 2016 this afternoon, and the numbers are pretty solid. The company broke its own records on handset sales, moving 74.8 million iPhones, and revenue, garnering nearly $76 billion during the three-month holiday period.

We’ve just finished up the conference call, where Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri discussed Apple’s performance over the three-month period, and offered up some insights into its future. And as usual, we’ve rounded up the 15 most interesting points from the call below.

Tim Cook: Apple has surpassed 1 billion active devices worldwide

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

"Our installed base recently crossed a major milestone of one billion active devices," Tim Cook said in a statement for the company's Q1 2016 earnings press release. The news comes on the back of a record-breaking quarter, where Apple sold 74.8M iPhones and garnered nearly $76 billion in revenue during the 3-month holiday period.

Apple’s Q1 2016 earnings: 74.8M iPhones, 16.1M iPads, $75.9B revenue

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

Apple on Tuesday released its earnings report for the first [fiscal] quarter of 2016. As most of you know, this was the iPhone-maker's holiday quarter, where most consumer electronic companies—particularly Apple—tend to put up monster numbers. And of course Tim Cook and his team did not disappoint.

Once again, Apple has delivered a record-breaking first quarter. The company sold 74.8 million iPhones, up slightly from last year's 74.5 million, and increased its revenue by more than $1 billion. Not all of the numbers are impressive though, as Mac sales are slightly down and iPad sales continue to tumble.

Google paid Apple $1 billion in 2014 to be the default search engine on iOS

Cody Lee ∙ January 21, 2016

Google paid Apple $1 billion in 2014 to remain the default search engine on iOS, reports Bloomberg. The staggering number comes directly from a transcript of court proceedings in Oracle's ongoing copyright lawsuit against Google, which stated that the search giant has an agreement with Apple that gives it a percentage of search revenue generated through iPhones and iPads.

Tim Cook earned $10.3 million in 2015 as Apple’s CEO

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

Ever wonder how much it pays to be the CEO of one of the world's largest companies? About $10 million. On Wednesday, Apple submitted a new SEC filing showing that Tim Cook's total compensation for fiscal 2015 was $10,281,327.

Broken down, Cook received $2 million in base salary, $8 million in non-equity compensation, and $280K in "other" compensation. Note that this doesn't include the $50+ million in awarded Apple stock that vested for Cook this year.

15 interesting points from Apple’s Q4 2015 earnings call

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 19, 2018

Apple announced its financial results for its fiscal fourth quarter of 2015 this afternoon, and the numbers are pretty solid. The company sold 48M iPhones and earned $51.5B in revenue, handily beating numbers from last year but falling short of Wall Street's expectations.

We've just finished up the conference call, where Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri discussed Apple’s performance over the three-month period, and offered up some insights into its future. And as usual, we’ve rounded up the 15 most interesting points from the call below.

Apple’s Q4 2015 earnings: 48.05M iPhones, 9.88M iPads, $51.5B revenue

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 19, 2018

Apple on Tuesday posted its [fiscal] fourth quarter earnings for 2015, offering a look at its performance over the past 3 months. The company shattered most of its sales figures from the same year-ago quarter, but came in under Wall Street expectations in the most important category: iPhone sales.

Analysts were expecting Apple to sell 48.5 million smartphones during Q4, but it fell a bit short at 48.05 million. And although market watchers anticipated lower-than-last-year iPad numbers, the firm came in under tablet sales projections as well. Keep reading for a full breakdown of the numbers.

Verizon raising price of grandfathered unlimited data plans by $20 in November

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 19, 2018

Verizon on Thursday announced that it will soon be raising the price on grandfathered unlimited data plans by $20. As noted by CNET, this will bring the monthly price tag of unlimited data to $49.99 per month, which is in addition to the standard talk and text plan, and the change is set to take place in November.

The amount of people affected by this move should be relatively small. Verizon says that less than 1% of its 100+ million subscriber base still has an unlimited plan, and those that do still have one and are currently under contract from a previous phone purchase won't likely see the price hike until the contract expires.

Apple announces iPhone Upgrade Program: get a new iPhone every year starting at $32/month

Cody Lee ∙ September 9, 2015

Alongside its new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, Apple on Wednesday announced the iPhone Upgrade Program. It's an in-house upgrade program, similar to the installment plans carriers offer, which allows you to get a new iPhone every year for a monthly fee.

iPad Pro starts at $799, available in November

Cody Lee ∙ September 9, 2015

Apple just took the wraps off of its long rumored, 12.9-inch iPad Pr. As expected, the device is incredibly powerful and features two unique (and sold-separately) accessories: a smart keyboard cover and a pressure-sensative stylus it's calling the Apple Pencil.

For those wondering when you'll be able to grab one of the new iPads, and how much it's going to cost you, Apple just announced that the tablet will be available in November, with a starting price of $799 for the entry-level model, which features 32GB of storage.

Judge green-lights $415M settlement in Apple, Google anti-poaching lawsuit

Cody Lee ∙ September 3, 2015

US District Judge Lucy Koh handed down final approval late Wednesday for a settlement between Apple, Google, Adobe and Intel, and their former employees. The payout is said to be worth around $415 million, and should effectively end the long-running Silicon Valley anti-poaching suit.

For context, in 2011, employees of the aforementioned tech firms filed a class action lawsuit against the companies for anti-competitive labor practices. The suit alleged the firms conspired to avoid hiring each other’s workers in an effort to curtail salaries, costing workers $3 billion in wages.

Apple Pay adds support for 18 new US banks and credit unions

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

Apple on Wednesday added 18 new banks and credit unions to the growing list of Apple Pay-supporting issuers in the United States. With these additions, Apple Pay is now compatible with more than 450 financial institutions nationwide.

Launched in October of last year, Apple Pay is a mobile payment service that allows users to pay for goods and services using their iPhone or Apple Watch. It’s accepted at hundreds of thousands of retailers and restaurants around the country.