Here’s a round-up of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) news stories from this week. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares ended the week at 241.62 (as of 8/27/2010).

Weekly News Roundup: Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Monday 23 August

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) iTV has been given rave reviews by Digg cofounder Kevin Rose. Kevin Rose, cofounder of Digg, made two bold predictions about Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) forthcoming iTV. According to an article on CNNMoney.com, Rose is predicting that the iTV will replace cable TV as we now know it.

“Say goodbye to your monthly cable bill,” he quips cheerfully. Instead of buying a cable TV package, users will handpick TV stations using their iPhone or iPad. However, the uninitiated user might find this non-traditional system daunting.

Tuesday 24 August

A decision should be made later as to the legal status of Paul Divine, ex-Apple Inc. manager who has been accused of selling the company’s secrets to suppliers.

Paul Devine, the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) supply manager jailed on charges of selling company secrets to Asian suppliers in exchange as much as $1 million, asked a federal judge to release him on bail. Prosecutors object to Devine’s release, saying he is a flight risk. A decision will be made today in a bail hearing.

Wednesday 25 August

Paul Shin Divine, the manager who was arrested for receiving large amounts of money as kickbacks, was reported to have stored the cash in shoe boxes.

The latest report also says that the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) manager has misused his role in the company to collect some confidential info, and has sold it to some supplier to win negotiations with Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) on several significant contracts.

Thursday 26 August

Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is expected to slash the price of its iTV television box by as much as 66% and offer television show rentals for dirt cheap at 99 cents apiece as it tries to follow through on CEO Steve Jobs’ vision of Apple products dominating the living room.

The new 99 cent price tag on TV shows from Disney’s ABC and News Corp’s Fox could come as soon as Wednesday following an Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) press conference.

Friday 27 August

Reports say that Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has stopped doing business with a small Silicon Valley design firm of 50 employees that had helped design Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) products for over a decade.

With SurfaceInk now marketing its own 12.1-inch tablet computer, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) may want to keep its operations confidential from SurfaceInk.

We’ll be keeping a close eye on the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) stock price for developments over the next few weeks.

Here are a number of tech-related stock briefs which will affect stock prices as trading continues. The following stocks should see some movement: Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL).

Here is a more detailed look at the news that will affect each company when trading continues.

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Beating Nintendo Co’s Wii, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Xbox 360 has reached the top on sales, for the first time in three years.

The latest model equipped with a Wireless Internet interface has received a lot of attention since its debut.

The record sales of 443,500 units was the highest recorded volume since September 2007, as per the reports of New York based researcher NDP Group Inc.

Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC)

Though a similar announcement came back in May, nothing regarding the upcoming Medfild chip platform for smartphone has been revealed by the company yet. It is reported that the Medfield platform will be an improved and more power efficient version of the Atom processor.

It has been a long kept desire for Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) to come up with some power-efficient chips that would help them enter the Smart phone arena. Most smartphones at present make use of the chips by ARM.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

A Wall Street analyst asked Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) to return cash to investors through an open letter to Steve Jobs.

He wanted Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) to return a share of its ‘excessive’ cash pile to its share holders, for he has suspicions as to what the company will do with that cash.

The success track of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has lead to a $4.1 billion earning in just three months, and has prompted this reaction from analysts.

We could see more movement when trading continues for Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL).

Here’s this week’s run-down of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) news briefings. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares ended the week at 249.9 (as of 7/16/2010).

Weekly News Roundup: Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Monday

This weekend marked the opening of Apple Inc’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) second retail store in China. This one is located in the Pudong area of Shanghai, and featuring the world’s largest pieces of curved glass, and is similar in appearance to Apple Inc’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) flagship store in Manhattan. In a powerful expansion strategy, the company hopes to have 25 stores in China by the end of 2011.

Tuesday

A new version of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) handset with Wi-Fi wireless Internet capability received a Chinese license last week, according to a notice posted on China’s Telecommunication Equipment Certification Center website. The notice suggests that the Wi-Fi phone could soon be available for sale in China, though it will likely be the 3G or 3GS model – not the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone 4.

Wednesday

A Consumer Reports review found fault with the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone 4 antenna design, and said because of that, Consumer Reports couldn’t recommend the phone.

Friday

A much-hyped press conference included the announcement that Apple Inc would offer free covers for its iPhone 4, as testing reveals issues with its antenna performance.

We will continue checking the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) share price for developments over the next few weeks.

The widely labeled “tech industry” is no doubt the most fierce and competitive corporate battlefield on the planet today. Billion dollar companies can crumble in seconds and once invincible monopolies can become irrelevant within a few technological breakthroughs. Today it is companies like Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) and Facebook commanding people’s time and money but a brief historical look at Yahoo (NASDAQ:YHOO), Nokia (NYSE:NOK), and MySpace reveals what can happen when companies lose focus even for a split second.

With every press release, partnership, new service and product announcements – the balance of power is re-evaluated and company stock holders get into nail-biting mode wondering if this is the day that their beloved company becomes a dinosaur near extinction.

Apple Inc is Future Proof (NASAQ:AAPL)

Apple Inc, despite its 21% stock price jump in the past 3 months and repeated announcement of milestones and new products – hasn’t been immune to criticism and doomsday naysayers either. Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) particularly has been hot on the heels of Apple with its Android OS, Google TV, Google Editions, AdMob, and new iTunes “killer” among some of the ways that the company is battling with Apple, either directly or indirectly. This has led some to even claim the “end of Apple“.

But one thing that stock holders of Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) know is that Apple has something that other rival tech companies don’t. Unless Apple commits a grave mistake or the brain of Steve Jobs is taken hostage by Google-controlled micro organisms – Apple will continue to dominate the market that it has taken a commanding grip of. The reason is because Apple – through a troubled history with the ‘evil’ Microsoft, a superhero figure in Steve Jobs, and a consistent devotion to revolutionizing the much loved consumer gadgets sectors – has created a fan base that is not too unlike a cult. Apple has indeed transcended pop culture to become a phenomenon like no other company before it. Like the love a fan has for his hometown sports team, or the faith that a religious person has for his beliefs – Apple’s fan base is ready to defend Steve Jobs words and the consequential product releases no matter the apparent flaws, oversights, or weaknesses.

Perhaps Apple “fan boys” as they are referred by those against the Apple movement are not completely in the wrong. Sometimes great things, people, ideas – despite short term setbacks and falling short of being ‘perfect’ – need to be protected so that the long term ideals and existence of the subject in question are not put under threat. Whether warranted or not, Apple has achieved this competitive advantage and therefore barring consistent departures from what made them loved in the first place, they will continue to be a big player in the cutthroat tech market. This is something that no other company can claim. Therefore the next time you question Apple Inc’s (NADSAQ:AAPL) future – make sure not to compare Apples to oranges.