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Today’s topics include the persistent rumor that the iPhone 7 will come without a headphone jack, the cyber-attack on Citrix’s GoToMyPC remote desktop access service that forced password resets, the introduction of more robust Lightning Customer Communities to Salesforce and Samsung’s $1.2 billion investment in the Internet of things.
Apple’s next iPhone will probably have the same screen sizes and overall design as existing iPhone 6s models, but will likely drop its long-present headphone jack and instead require headphones to use the phone’s existing Lightning connector.
The smartphone maker will apparently only make small changes to its existing iPhone 6s models instead of major redesigns every two years, and the removal of the headphone jack will be a first step toward that new strategy, according to a June 21 story by The Wall Street Journal.
The removal of the headphone jack will allow the phones to be thinner and will also improve their water resistance.
Users of Citrix Systems’ GoToMyPC remote desktop access service were forced to change their passwords following what company officials called a “very sophisticated password attack” in which hackers tried to use usernames and passwords leaked from other Websites to access GoToMyPC accounts.
Citrix security officials responded by forcing all users of the service to reset their passwords. The company first issued a notice June 18 and users connecting to the service this week were notified that their passwords were no longer operational and they would have to create new ones. Damage caused by the attach was minimal, according to an updated notice Citrix issued this week.
The most critical brand differentiator today isn’t price or even product features, but customer experience. Indeed, research firm Gartner has called customer experience the “new competitive battlefield.”
With that in mind, Salesforce.com has updated its Community Cloud offering with Lightning Customer Communities, which builds on the Community Cloud Salesforce introduced in 2013 to enable companies to create online spaces where customers can ask questions, find answers and engage with a like-minded community.
Salesforce makes it possible for a company to add a tab or a link to its Website that leads to a page that feels like just another part of the site, but actually is hosted by Salesforce.
Samsung over the past couple of years has pursued its ambitions to be a significant technology provider for the Internet of things by buying companies, building up its developer program, rolling out its Artik IoT cloud platform, helping launch standards groups and ensuring all its products will be IoT-enabled within five years.
Now the company wants to grow its presence in the IoT market in the United States, pledging to spend $1.2 billion over the next four years on R&D and investments in the country.
The investment was announced June 21 during an IoT-focused forum in Washington, D.C. At the event, Samsung Vice Chairman and CEO Oh-Hyun Kwon reiterated the importance of the IoT to the company’s future and the need to ensure that its IoT development efforts remain focused on helping people improve their lives.