Apple Squeaks Out Good Quarter on Subscriptions; Samsung Takes Big Hit With Memory Sales Down; Verizon Rolls Out 5G to 4 More Cities; China May Beat Emissions Pledge

Apple put up a record profit for their 3rd quarter with $10 billion on $53.8 billion in revenue. According to macrumors.com, they barely beat last year’s quarter at $53.3 billion. iPhone sales were softer, but Apple saw a nice increase in its services revenue…up 16% for the quarter. For the first time in years, the iPhone amounted to less than half Apple’s revenue. Another bright spot was Mac sales, which were up. With a new Mac Pro that is configurable again, and new MacBook Pro and MacBook models, Apple expects to see that trend continue. Also, in the services area, the Apple credit card will be out in a couple weeks, and the company expects to see its streaming TV business to add to their services revenue. Apple is looking to hit revenue of between $61 and $64 billion in their 4th quarter.

Samsung profits in the second quarter took a huge 50% drop, primarily due to lesser memory demand, and slower sales of its flagship smartphones. Zdnet.com reports that Samsung said operating profit was 6.6 trillion won, a drop of 56% from a year ago. The memory business remained the biggest segment of their tech business. Their mobile business was also down at 1.56 trillion won…it was 2.67 trillion last year. Samsung said sales had dropped on their high end Galaxy models, and competition in the medium and cheap phone segments ate into profits. With new Galaxy models in the mix, they expect things to pick up through the holidays.

Verizon is full speed ahead on rolling out 5G. Engadget.com says the carrier has added service in Atlanta, Detroit, Indianapolis, and Washington, DC. As with earlier cities, the 5G service is only available in limited areas, typically around public spaces like stadiums, parks and college campuses. In the nation’s capitol, coverage areas include landmarks such as the White House, George Washington University, the National Mall and Ronald Reagan National Airport. Verizon already had 5G in select areas of Chicago, Minneapolis/Saint Paul, Denver, and Providence.

Like a little positive news, you say? With their huge population and rapid economic development the last 20 years, China has become the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gasses (although on a per capita basis, theirs are half of those of the US). According to arstechnica.com, China pledged in the 2015 Paris agreement to have their emissions peak and stabilize before the end of the agreement’s window in 2030. Now, a study indicates that they will peak in the early 2020’s. Chinese researchers say that there is still more the country can do to beat the numbers even more. China has been building out solar installations at a multiple of what the US has been doing, for example, and has the capacity to increase its renewable energy output further.