The step is certainly relevant for European developers. To date, Apple’s most important on-site offerings of this type have taken place on other continents and therefore far away – or were tied to individual events such as WWDC, labs or regional sessions. A fixed location, on the other hand, offers a permanent point of contact, even outside of important major events. At the same time, Berlin will become a visible European hub for Apple’s app ecosystem.
Amazon wants Apple’s Globalstar shares
In April it was announced that Amazon was taking over the satellite provider Globalstar, with a financial volume of around $11.5 billion. This affects Apple directly, because on the one hand it is the most important customer due to the SOS function of newer iPhones, and on the other hand Cupertino holds shares in the company. However, the often-quoted 20 percent does not concern Globalstar itself, but rather only investments in the company through which the satellite network is being expanded.
According to the FCC documents now filed, Amazon also plans to fully take over Apple’s shares. The documents state that the newly founded Amazon subsidiary “Grapefruit Acquisition Sub II” will receive Apple’s voting and equity shares in “Globalstar Licensee” in a further step. In practice, this means keeping Apple as a contractual partner, but only as a customer. According to the announcement made in April, this will not change anything for users; instead, Amazon and Apple want to cooperate closely.