Los Angeles, U.S.A. — 15% of online buyers intend to purchase the iPad Mini immediately after its launch, according to the latest poll by Bizrate Insights, a company that tracks consumer sentiment across its network of online buyers. The top reason cited for not purchasing is a lack of a defined need, as reported by over 39% of respondents.

Bizrate Insights launched questions on purchase intent of and primary reason for not purchasing the iPad Mini on October 23, 2012. The survey is being conducted via the Bizrate Insights survey platform and offered to online buyers immediately after purchasing from the Bizrate Insights Network of over 5,200 ecommerce retailers in the US and Canada. The purchase intent question was answered by 705 online buyers and the reason for not purchasing question by 582 online buyers as of 5:15pm PT on October 24, 2012.

“Bizrate Insights harnesses its ability to tap into and broadcast consumer sentiment on current and relevant topics to help ecommerce grow,” stated Hayley Silver, Vice President of Bizrate Insights, a division of Shopzilla, Inc. “Some have interpreted the initial percent of intended iPad Mini buyers as low and others as high. For context, we saw a lower number in 2011 around the introduction of the iPad 2—with the same top reason cited for not purchasing. These numbers today would indicate that Apple has another huge hit on its hands.”

About Bizrate Insights

With over 16 million surveys collected in 2011 from over 6,300 retailers worldwide, Bizrate Insights is a source of verified customer-generated seller ratings and reviews in North America, helping both online retailers and consumers make informed decisions. Bizrate Insights’ core solutions are free, allowing retailers of all sizes to build best-in-class customer experiences, gain competitive intelligence, and attract more qualified traffic from top search engines. Visit www.bizrateinsights.com to learn more about our solutions, used by over 40% of Internet Retailer Top 500 retailers, as well as thousands of smaller boutiques.

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Hamburg, Germany — With their first iPad app, the German start-up company Frankbooks enables users to communicate with other readers, as well as with the author or a particular character from the novel via an integrated Facebook plugin. Users can take part in the story and in return join a global reader’s circle within the app – which allows them direct access to the novel’s author.

This new way of social storytelling allows authors to create advanced narrative structures by combining some of their story’s character(s) with interactive Facebook accounts. In addition to this users can benefit from the e-book’s enhanced content (photos, maps, videos).

As well as to readers, the app will also appeal to authors considering similar projects, but who do not want to spend high amounts on programming. Using Frankbooks software, however, they will get the opportunity to participate in the fast-growing market of enhanced e-books at a reasonable price.

“Readers have become used to extra features besides the core text, such as interactivity and social media. Soon they will be a regular part of e-books,” says Frank Habbe, founder of Frankbooks.

The first e-book, Pocket Money, is a novel about a young man who accidentally comes into possession of a bag full of cash. On the run from his pursuers, his journey takes him through Northern Germany

In addition to over 230 photos, maps and links, the app also contains Facebook entries from one of the story’s characters, to which users can post their comments. Pocket Money is available on iTunes – find out more when visiting character Kristina Taschengeld on Facebook.

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Beijing, China — Tipard Studio, the top-ranking provider of professional DVD/video converters and transfer software, newly updated their iPad 3 Transfer Platinum. With this essential and outstanding application, users can easily manage their iPad 3 (The New iPad) files and rip DVD movies to iPad 3.

Tipard iPad 3 Transfer Platinum is a professional iPad 3 manager, which can Transfer music/ movie/ Pictures/ TV Shows/ Podcasts/ iTunes U/ eBooks/ Camera Rolls/ Ringtones/ SMS/ Contacts/ Voice memos/ Camera shot files from your iPad 3 to PC or iTunes for backup. Moreover, you can add movies, songs, photos, ringtones, ePub and PDF files from PC to iPad 3 without complicated syncing. With the Back up function, you are enabled to copy messages from devices to PC or import contacts exported from Incredimail.

Apart from the basic transferring function, Tipard iPad 3 Transfer Platinum can also rip DVD movies or convert a vast range of audio/videos to iPad/Pod/iPhone compatible music/movies, including M2TS, MTS, AVI, MPEG, WMV, DAT, TS, MPV, NSV, MOV, QT, H261, H264, WMA, AAC, AIF, AIFF, AC3 and so on. Moreover, you can create customized iPhone ringtones from various audio/videos. Plus, numerous editing functions are provided for you to make personalized videos to share with your friends or family on your iPad 3.

More practical managing functions are updated to bring you better user experience. With ID 3 function, you are allowed to add your photo to be the album cover, input the Artist, Composer, Album name, song name, composing time and add lyrics to every song. With My Cache function, you do not need to keep your iPad 3 connecting to PC with this iPad 3 transfer converting unsupported file to device compatible format. My Cache function can save the output file on PC. With preview function, you can preview music/movies/photos with a built-in resizable media player. More interesting features are waiting for you to have a try.

In a word, Tipard iPad 3 Transfer Platinum will be your best assistant in your multimedia life. It is available for only $45. For more details and to get the free trial version, please visit: http://www.tipard.com/ipad-3-transfer-pro

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Redwood Falls, U.S.A. – When Minnesota Farmfest launched in 1981, cell phones were two years away from even being sold commercially. Technology has not only changed the way farmers grow and do business, it has enhanced the flow of information and many are taking full advantage of it. For this year’s Minnesota Farmfest, an iPad app was created to showcase new products, provide information on exhibitors and their booth location as well as provide a schedule of special events.

“Our digital team did a great job creating this iPad app,” says Raymond Bianchi, vice president and group show director of IDEAg. “Minnesota Farmfest’s GOLD and SILVER sponsors now have a unique and extremely attractive way to market their products to our audience.”

The iPad app was developed by the Cygnus Business Media Digital Group specifically for the event. To download the app, users can log onto itunes.com and search for Minnesota Farmfest.

Within the app is a new product showcase featuring these GOLD Sponsors and their product: Jamesway Farm Equipment’s PUMPELLER Hybrid Lagoon Pump, which is much more efficient to agitate tough lagoons; Novozymes Bioag Ratchet, a foliar applied LCO Promoter Technology that enhances plant growth and photosynthesis; and Ziegler Ag Equipment, showcasing the new Caterpillar MT700D Series tractor, a machine that lowers soil compaction and moves easily through mud.

Minnesota Farmfest SILVER Sponsors are also included in the iPad app: Mathews Company, manufacturers of high quality, innovative agricultural equipment, SFP’s More Than Manure, the first and only fertilizer manager proven to reduce nitrogen loss and phosphorus fixation in manure, and Ag Alternatives’ Y-Drop, a new system of fertilization that compliments any conventional management system.

Minnesota Farmfest kicks off Tuesday, August 7th at the Gilfillan Estate, seven miles southeast ofRedwood Falls, Minnesota.  In addition to political forums, issues affecting farmers will also be debated.

For more information, log onto http://www.ideaggroup.com/farmfest. Registration is sponsored by NAPA Auto Parts. Qualified attendees can register for free admission at www.IDEAgGroup.com/Farmfest.

Image Courtesy of   USDAgov

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Since introducing its iPhone app giving customers the convenience to make payments anytime, anywhere just over two years ago, Mercedes-Benz Financial Services (MBFS) has received over $50 million in payments via mobile channels — and the number is growing.

In October 2009, Mercedes-Benz Financial Services became the first captive auto finance company to introduce an app for customers with iPhones to enable them to make monthly payments.

That innovation was quickly followed in early 2010 with the launch of a mobile version of mbfs.com, accessible from all smart phone devices and capable of accepting monthly payments on loans and leases. In 2011, the first full year that both mobile channels were available, the company received $38 million in payments.

In mid-2010, Mercedes-Benz Financial Services became one of the first companies in the world to adapt the consumer-oriented Apple iPad to a business application by making the MBFS existing dealer portal, MB Advantage, available on the iPad, thus introducing mobile capability to more than 350 Mercedes-Benz dealerships in the U.S.

“A significant portion of our customer base quickly adopted mobile technology as a preferred method of making payments and communicating with us,” Michael Kanzleiter, Senior Marketing Manager for Mercedes-Benz Financial Services, told members of the International Motor Press Association recently at its monthly meeting in midtown  Manhattan.

The company’s mobile payment channels, including the apps for iPhone and iPad and the mobile website, experienced a 127% growth rate in 2011, reflecting customers’ rapid adoption and the growing acceptance of doing business via mobile channels.

In fact, nearly 40% of the total retail portfolio of 511,000 customers is managing their accounts with MBFS online, self-service methods including mbfs.com, the My MBFS app, and the mobile website.

Kanzleiter said Mercedes-Benz Financial Services is enhancing the existing app for the iPhone and iPad, enabling customers to obtain monthly payment estimates on new Mercedes-Benz vehicles, and even request a quote from a local dealer. Customers will select their Mercedes-Benz model, choose a retail or lease product and term, and the app will provide general payment information.  Customers can provide an email address and phone number to request additional information from a local dealer.

Mercedes-Benz Financial Services Mobile Strategy Chronology

• MBFS launches iPhone app for customers to manage accounts, October 2009
• MBFS launches smartphone capability to manage accounts, February 2010
• MBFS pilots MB Advantage on iPad to 40 dealerships, May 2010
• MBFS launches iPad rollout to all 356 dealers, October 2010
• MBFS launches customer signature capability on iPad, October 2010
• MBFS has received approximately $54 million as of year-end 2011 in retail lease/loan payments from iPhones and smartphones via a payment channel established October 2009.

DDCoral / Shutterstock.com

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Fake Apple stores have begun popping up in China, fooling not only the customers, but the workers as well. The quickly developing country is renowned for creating and selling remake products, however this is more than a step up from product recreation.

A blogger who goes by BirdAbroad found the store, located in China’s Yunnan province in the city of Kunming. The blogger says that the first giveaway was the glowing apple outside the storefront. Instead of standing alone as it should, the words Apple Store accompanied it, giving away its mirage of reality.

Inside all things would appear fine, exactly identical to any authorized Apple store found across the world. However, the blogger admits that upon closer inspection little things including paints jobs and intricate staircases appear to be unprofessionally done.

In a recent update from BirdAbroad, she explains that many different media outlets have been able to contact workers or managers from the fake store. The Toronto Star said they spoke with a manager who claims that while they now know they are unauthorized, the products they are selling are real.

BirdAbroad has also begun taking heat from the population of Kunming, as well as other cities across China. She has recieved many different complaints about her blog and posts commenting on the fake apple store.

Some are looking for a public apology for mudding their good name, while others are irritated at the ongoing attention to knockoff production in China. They are saying, “shanzai is unstoppable in China;” shanzai, meaning knockoff.

Regardless, while the store is unauthorized, and there remains to be confusion on whether the products are real or not, many citizens in Kunming are saying that they don’t mind the knockoff store.

BirdAbroad quoted someone saying, “Apple deserves to have shanzhai stores, since their products are absurdly expensive, despite being made right here in China.”

1000 Words / Shutterstock.com

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