Apple Returns Unexpectedly with a Few Surprises

Apple returns to the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). It is happening right now in Las Vegas. The technology giant and smartphone maker hadn’t attended the event as much as twenty-eight years. It came as a bit of a shock to many who hadn’t expected the technology giant to show up and this afforded them the chance to do quite a bit. 

Apple didn’t show up with any fancy hardware or innovations for which they are known for. Jane Hovarth who is the senior director for privacy at Apple was around to promote consumer privacy. Hovarth was part of a panel discussion that included Susan Shook from Procter and Gamble, Erin Egan from Facebook, and U.S. Federal Trade Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter.

Apple Sells Privacy at the CES

The panelists all called for stronger Federal legislation for privacy. Currently, states in the U.S. have many different rules for privacy. The European Union has a common standard (the General Data Protection Regulation GDPR). Ms. Hovarth said:

“In the United States, I think we need to book that model as well – strong federal privacy law that is consistent across all 50 states, where every consumer, regardless of where they live, is entitled to the same strong protections.”

This indicates that technology giants are considering privacy issues seriously. Before now, privacy issues were viewed at the state level as well. In a world where privacy doesn’t exist, new laws need to be created to address issues. 

The European Union has always been the gold standard for privacy. Their model is the gold standard for everyone else. The United States due to its federal structure has left issues such as consumer privacy to states to handle.

This has caused problems. Big technology companies now realize this. They want a common framework that can deal with privacy issues. Slaughter agreed when she said:

“There is a very real – and should be appreciated – fear that we will be living in a universe where companies are not only navigating the intricacies of CCPA, but also slightly different laws in other states, or even worse, fundamentally incompatible laws.”

The CCPA is the California Consumer Privacy Act. It is seen as one of the strongest privacy laws in the U.S. currently. The model which has so far helped a great deal still has issues. 

Apple’s Airplay Becomes King of the CES

Apple didn’t come to the event with new toys. They came with partnerships. Samsung stole the show with its Sero TV that wowed many with its vertical abilities. Consumers can now view videos both in portrait and landscape modes. The TV also pairs seamlessly with the galaxy using touch. However, it also integrates with Apples’ Airplay 2. This allows it to work well with Apple devices. Although integration is quite manual for now. It will change over time though. Apple had also made a surprise entrée last year too. Sony, LG, and Vizio all made announcements that Apple’s Airplay would be integrated into their TVs as well. This shows that Apple has been at the CES although it was not officially part of it. 

Apple, though, is maturing. We may yet see growth in software services from them. This will cause stiff competition for software service providers. This is something that will be interesting to watch in the new decade. As Apple returns to the CES, we should expect more surprises this year!