Apple holds big plans for 'iPhone University' on college campuses

Posted:
in iPhone edited January 2014
Two weeks before the iPhone went on sale last June, Apple Inc. flew representatives from five universities -- including four of the nation's top-tier schools -- out to its Cupertino campus to cement deals for a new educational learning initiative dubbed 'iPhone University.'



It was the first of several baby steps towards a much larger goal of helping to reestablish the company's brand in the educational sector and instate the then fledgeling touch-screen handset as a staple of higher learning for years to come.



In addition to participating delegates from such prestigious universities as Harvard, MIT, Stanford, and Yale, were those from a little-known school by the name of Abilene Christian University (ACU), situated about two and a half hours west of Dallas/Fort Worth and comprised of a student body of roughly 5000.



The concepts discussed at the gathering were similar to those that exist with today's iTunes University programs where students can download to their iPods or computers lectures and associated materials to bolster their education. But unlike the primarily software-driven iTunes effort, "iPhone U" would let participating students download class presentations directly to their handsets over WiFi rather than require a transfer from a host computer.



For the past six months, the five schools have had the opportunity to serve as anchors for the pilot program, according to those familiar with the matter. Apple is said to have provided iPhones and iPod touches for the pilot under a loaner agreement, while also helping the universities to more closely meld their campus networks to their existing iTunes University services, which reportedly serve as the backbone of iPhone U.



On Tuesday, the initiative bore its first fruits, with ACU leading the charge by announcing that come this fall, all incoming freshmen would be provided with either an iPhone or iPod touch as part of a new learning experience called "Connected."



"At ACU -- the first university in the nation to provide these cutting-edge media devices to its incoming class -- freshmen will use the iPhones or iPod Touches to receive homework alerts, answer in-class surveys and quizzes, get directions to their professors? offices, and check their meal and account balances," the university said in a statement.



In addition to those functions, ACU said it has already developed more than 15 other useful web applications for use on the Apple devices as part of its vision to "Connect" every student, faculty, and staff member. In a subsequent posting to its mobile learning website, the school offered a demonstration video portraying fictional, yet conceivable day-in-the-life account that highlights some of the potential benefits of its ideal mobile wireless environment.



ACU, according to those familiar with Apple's plans for iPhone U, is destine to become just one of dozens of universities that will eventually gain aid from iPhone maker in deploying similar services on their campuses. In addition to the first five pilot cases, the company is said to hold considerable list of additional schools that have made proposals to join a second, and much broader phase of the iPhone U initiative set to begin shortly, if it has not already.



Interestingly, while Apple is said to have invited representatives from each of the first five schools to its home base last Spring, its decision to try out the iPhone with higher education wasn't entirely deliberate. The Cupertino-based company reportedly scheduled the first meetings in response to proposals from the schools themselves just after the iPhone's January announcement, suggesting that the strategy was more of a reaction to the advent of the game-changing device.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 39
    Why does it seem as though Apple is very quickly turning into Microsoft?
  • Reply 2 of 39
    This is great!



    So, maybe it is time for Apple to focus on getting 802.1X authentication on the phones. If you are at a University like mine who uses PEAP authentication for campus wide wireless (many use this), then you still are unable to sign onto that network.
  • Reply 3 of 39
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by freethinker View Post


    Why does it seem as though Apple is very quickly turning into Microsoft?



    Why do you ask that? Microsoft focuses on business, Apple focuses on people.



    This is actually quite brilliant, and is a perfect use for any iPhone-like device. University campuses are perfect places to leverage the technology.
  • Reply 4 of 39
    gqbgqb Posts: 1,934member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Matthew Yohe View Post


    This is great!



    So, maybe it is time for Apple to focus on getting 802.1X authentication on the phones. If you are at a University like mine who uses PEAP authentication for campus wide wireless (many use this), then you still are unable to sign onto that network.



    You beat me to this comment.
  • Reply 5 of 39
    gqbgqb Posts: 1,934member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by freethinker View Post


    Why does it seem as though Apple is very quickly turning into Microsoft?



    You should probably wait a post or 2 before joining in on the knee-jerk Apple bashing.
  • Reply 6 of 39
    wilcowilco Posts: 985member
    The GPS should help students find good hiding places the next time a nerd with a gun starts shooting up the campus.
  • Reply 7 of 39
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by coolfactor View Post


    Why do you ask that? Microsoft focuses on business, Apple focuses on people.



    This is actually quite brilliant, and is a perfect use for any iPhone-like device. University campuses are perfect places to leverage the technology.





    Your premise is unsettling. Apple is a major corporation that uses slave labor like conditions in China to produce it's technology. How do you allow for or purport that Apple itself is people centric? Maybe people centric for White, higher income (and children thereof) Western males? It makes me uneasy when I see a corporate hegemony anywhere and especially in Academia. That is not to say that Microsoft is any better. It is to say though that corporations are profit driven entities and none should be given a free pass nor be immune from criticism.
  • Reply 8 of 39
    I'm in college and I have an iPhone. It seems like an alright idea, but how many schools DO have the endowments large enough to pay not only for iPhones/iPod touches for all of their students but also for video cameras/audio recording hardware to video/audio tape their lectures. I've only ever had one teacher to videotape his lectures, and no one watches them afterwards anyways. I would love to go to lecture from my bed and all, but we haven't even come far enough with the IPhone to get on the network!
  • Reply 9 of 39
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by freethinker View Post


    Your premise is unsettling. Apple is a major corporation that uses slave labor like conditions in China to produce it's technology. How do you allow for or purport that Apple itself is people centric? Maybe people centric for White, higher income (and children thereof) Western males? It makes me uneasy when I see a corporate hegemony anywhere and especially in Academia. That is not to say that Microsoft is any better. It is to say though that corporations are profit driven entities and none should be given a free pass or immune from criticism.



    Free pass to what?



    I don't know if you noticed but when the corporate world is doing bad the whole economy is doing bad. Who benefits from that? Maybe we should take your approach in the educational world. Everyone moves at the pace of the slowest student. No one moves ahead of anyone else. All equally bad. Maybe that's a better world...



    Nothing is ever going to be fair. I'm not saying I support corporation taking advantage of poor countries and bad labor conditions but present an alternative instead. What if no production at all was done in China to produce products you could afford (I guess you're using some of these products since you're on this forum...). Would the conditions be better in China with no money at all flowing into the country... I think you're comment is a bit naive and idealistic.



    Communism is also a nice thought...as long as it stays that way...a thought.



    /Mikael
  • Reply 10 of 39
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by wilco View Post


    The GPS should help students find good hiding places the next time a nerd with a gun starts shooting up the campus.



    Totally inappropriate.
  • Reply 11 of 39
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by freethinker View Post


    Your premise is unsettling. Apple is a major corporation that uses slave labor like conditions in China to produce it's technology. How do you allow for or purport that Apple itself is people centric? Maybe people centric for White, higher income (and children thereof) Western males? It makes me uneasy when I see a corporate hegemony anywhere and especially in Academia. That is not to say that Microsoft is any better. It is to say though that corporations are profit driven entities and none should be given a free pass nor be immune from criticism.



    um, not to be nitpicky, but is Apple targeting females in a negative context? Judging from your post, they are explicitly out to help white males and their offspring. How does that work? From what you said, I would agree that they may be out to screw the chinese (of course, since their china wages are in line with the local economy, I'm not clear on the problem there...), but I'm not sure who else they're screwing.



    could you please clarify your statements? If Apple is in fact acting in an unethical manner, then as a stockholder and customer, I would be very interested in hearing real details with citation of appropriate sources, not random bashing.



    although random bashing is fun.
  • Reply 12 of 39
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    Interestingly, while Apple is said to have invited representatives from each of the first five schools to its home base last Spring, its decision to try out the iPhone with higher education wasn't entirely deliberate. The Cupertino-based company reportedly scheduled the first meetings in response to proposals from the schools themselves just after the iPhone's January announcement, suggesting that the strategy was more of a reaction to the advent of the game-changing device.



    Sorry Kasper, I just can't get seem to past the purpose of the last statement.



    In particular, what did you mean by, "… its decision to try out the iPhone with higher education wasn't entirely deliberate?" Do you mean that it wasn't done consciously and intentionally, or without careful consideration?



    What did you mean by, and how did you come to the conclusion that, "The Cupertino-based company reportedly scheduled the first meetings in response to proposals from the schools themselves just after the iPhone's January announcement, suggesting that the strategy was more of a reaction to the advent of the game-changing device?"



    I find your concluding paragraph seems to imply that there is something nefarious in nature by this strategy.



    If you were just trying to say that this initiative came about in response to requests from university to discuss some of the implications that they have identified by the advent of this newly introduced technology, then why not just say so.



    I personally am pleased that if this strategy was in response to customers' calls and not just out of the geniuses of the marketing department, as it does help to contradict Apples' often maligned character of not listening to its customers.
  • Reply 13 of 39
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by freethinker View Post


    Your premise is unsettling. Apple is a major corporation that uses slave labor like conditions in China to produce it's technology. How do you allow for or purport that Apple itself is people centric? Maybe people centric for White, higher income (and children thereof) Western males? It makes me uneasy when I see a corporate hegemony anywhere and especially in Academia. That is not to say that Microsoft is any better. It is to say though that corporations are profit driven entities and none should be given a free pass nor be immune from criticism.



    I'll just assume, then that you are accessing this message board from a device not created by a large corporation. Perhaps you built it yourself, from indigenous twigs and berries.
  • Reply 14 of 39
    gqbgqb Posts: 1,934member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by freethinker View Post


    Your premise is unsettling. Apple is a major corporation that uses slave labor like conditions in China to produce it's technology. How do you allow for or purport that Apple itself is people centric? Maybe people centric for White, higher income (and children thereof) Western males? It makes me uneasy when I see a corporate hegemony anywhere and especially in Academia. That is not to say that Microsoft is any better. It is to say though that corporations are profit driven entities and none should be given a free pass nor be immune from criticism.



    Did someone just buy you a Noam Chomsky book for your birthday or something?

    I haven't heard this much dogma packed into one phrase since the last Berkeley City Council meeting.

    Take a breath dude.
  • Reply 15 of 39
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Abster2core View Post


    Sorry Kasper, I just can't get seem to past the purpose of the last statement.

    I find your concluding paragraph seems to imply that there is something nefarious in nature by this strategy.



    I don't think he's implying anything nefarious by Apple at all. It's okay, I think he agrees with you and is trying to avoid accusations from people sensitive to Apple acting like a greedy corporate monster. He's pointing out that Apple hasn't sought out to be a big brother presence on the universities, the universities approached Apple.
  • Reply 16 of 39
    Is this service service somehow tied to the iPhone? Seems to any PDA/laptop/cell phone that meets the min requirements should be able to connect and access these services. I don't see why you would need an iPhone/iPod specifically.
  • Reply 17 of 39
    Forget class docs and lecture recordings via your phone. Payment transactions via mobile phones is where there's a ton of money to be skimmed --not only on campus, but nearby at retailers, bars, etc. Already happening in test situations on certain campuses. University of Whomever partners with a bank to provide students with a free iPhone and student $$$ account management & transactions via the phone and UW gets a cut of the fees for providing the captive audience.



    gc
  • Reply 18 of 39
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by freethinker View Post


    Your premise is unsettling. Apple is a major corporation that uses slave labor like conditions in China to produce it's technology. How do you allow for or purport that Apple itself is people centric? Maybe people centric for White, higher income (and children thereof) Western males? It makes me uneasy when I see a corporate hegemony anywhere and especially in Academia. That is not to say that Microsoft is any better. It is to say though that corporations are profit driven entities and none should be given a free pass nor be immune from criticism.



    How much alcohol have you had this morning?
  • Reply 19 of 39
    Just a bit of clarification... Apple is still "Cupertino-based", right?
  • Reply 20 of 39
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by freethinker View Post


    Your premise is unsettling. Apple is a major corporation that uses slave labor like conditions in China to produce it's technology. How do you allow for or purport that Apple itself is people centric? Maybe people centric for White, higher income (and children thereof) Western males? It makes me uneasy when I see a corporate hegemony anywhere and especially in Academia. That is not to say that Microsoft is any better. It is to say though that corporations are profit driven entities and none should be given a free pass nor be immune from criticism.





    Your first post made it seem like you were making the classic (maybe clichéd) comparison of two companies that have had fundamentally different approaches to creating and marketing technology. But apparently it was an angsty critique of capitalism. Technology can be people driven in the sense that it does a good job of filling a need (real or perceived) that its user has regardless of how the supply chain is managed. But please let us know the steps you are taking to cleanse your life of products made in China. I am sure you'll be a beacon of enlightenment. Thanks for posting!
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