“Come see our latest creation.” Thus reads the Apple invitation appearing in reporter’s inboxes on Monday. The e-mail — with the text displayed against a splashed-paint background — invites reporters to a Jan. 27 event at the Yerba Buena Gardens in San Francisco.
The Financial Times reported some weeks ago that Apple would announce on Jan. 26 a long-rumored tablet computer. Monday’s invitation — one day later than the Times reported but in the same location — indicates the newspaper had the story right and Apple may announce the tablet next week.
Of course, it’s not over ’til the fat lady — or in Apple’s case, skinny CEO Steve Jobs — sings, and it’s worth remembering that Apple has yet to announce a product. “Until Apple actually shows us a new product on Jan. 27, the tablet is still a rumored product,” Tim Bajarin, principal strategist for Creative Strategies, pointed out.
New York Times, too?
But with at least half a dozen tablets demonstrated at the Consumer Electronics Show earlier this month, “there is clearly a strong industry push to make tablets the next major mobile computing platform,” Bajarin said.
New York magazine has reported The New York Times is close to announcing a new pay model for the newspaper’s online offerings. A few years back the Times tried to charge for select content, such as its most popular columns, but abandoned that effort.
The magazine reported Chairman Arthur Sulzberger Jr. is set to make the decision within days or weeks, fueling speculation that the announcement will come at Apple’s event. Back in October, Times Executive Editor Bill Keller made reference to an “Apple slate,” which most Apple tea readers took to mean that Apple and the Times were cooking up some sort of content deal for the tablet.
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