A cool new iPod Nano, revamped iTunes, innovative home content sharing, and digital LP technology stole the show at Apple’s “It’s Only Rock and Roll” conference today. Steve Jobs himself appeared at the San Francisco event, much to viewer’s delight.

Here’s a summary of the Apple show, based on what the folks at Engadget reported on their liveblog:

First, Steve Jobs himself appeared on state. He recounted a few key Apple sales statistics (we have included all the stats in the entire presentation below):

–30 million iPhones sold in just over 2 years
–75,000 apps in the App Store
–1.8 billion apps downloaded by users
–100 million iTunes accounts, all with credit cards
–220 million iPods sold to date
–Latest market data gives iPod 73.8% share
–20 million iPod touches sold
–21,178 entertainment titles (games) in the App Store
–100 million iPod nanos sold

New Software/Hardware:

iPhone OS 3.1
–This free upgrade is available today

–Apple has applied Genius technology to Store apps. Genius can reccomend apps to you based on what you own.

–Adding more than 30,000 ringtones to the Store, for $1.29 a pop

iTunes 9
–Home sharing. You can copy songs, TV shows, and other content between up to 5 computers in your home. You’ll see everyone’s content, then drag and copy it to your own library. (Apparently this means that one person in your home can buy an app, and everyone else can have it, too.)

–New: Genius Mixes, a DJ-like program that plays mixes from your library. Like having a personalized radio station.

–Improved syncing. You can now sync by artist, genre, playlist, etc.

–Manage apps in iTunes. You can now move apps through iTunes and arrange your home screens there.

–Better Store. A cleaner design, new artist and movie pages, new integration with Facebook and Twitter,

–iTunes LPs. iTunes has essentially imported the classic LP–with illustrations, lyrics, photos, writing, even interviews–onto iTunes. You can now see and browse entire LPs through iTunes.

iPod Nano
–Each new nano now comes with an 8GB (video) camera in back. You can send videos to YouTube, watch them on your iPod, and send them to your computer.

–New features: Genius mixes, FM radio, pedometer (syncs to Nike), voiceover, microphone/speaker.

–Nanos now have a larger display.

–New prices: 8GB — $149. 16GB — $179.

New iPod Touch prices
64GB — $399
32GB — $299
8GB — $199

iPod Classic
160GB (new capacity) — $249

iPod Shuffle
–Now with snazzy new headphones, which all have the controller for the shuffle.

–Shuffle voice will now inform you when it closes the airlock, and when the battery is full.

–New colors: pink, silver, blue, green, black. Special edition: polished stainless steel.

–2GB — $59; 4GB — $79

Price Drop on Current iPod Models
Apple dropped prices on its current models earlier today. The 8GB iPod Nano and 120GB iPod Classic dropped $20 in price; the 8GB iPod Touch costs $40 less; the 16GB Nano and 16GB Touch are $50 cheaper, and the 32GB Touch is a whopping $120 less.

Demos include new iTunes, new games for iPod Touch, LPs, and more. Please see Engadget for details.

Security expert Charlie Miller is sharing the details iPhone hack today at the annual Black Hat security conference. The iPhone virus takes control of the device through SMS messages. All an attacker needs is a person’s phone number. Once they’re in, they can send the viral SMS to everyone in the person’s address book. Miller and his colleagues claim to have told Apple about the iPhone virus about a month ago, according to Engadget, but Apple hasn’t reacted yet. CNET has more:

Here’s what happened: While I was talking on the phone to Charlie Miller, his partner, Collin Mulliner, sent me a text message from his phone. One minute I’m talking to Miller and the next minute my phone is dead, and this time it’s not AT&T’s fault. After a few seconds it came back to life, but I was not able to make or receive calls until I rebooted.

In the more recent research, Android-based phones were found to be similarly susceptible to an SMS attack, only an attacker could temporarily knock the phone off the cell network but not take control, according to Mulliner, who’s getting his PhD at the Technical University of Berlin. Google patched the hole last week within a day or two of being notified of the problem, he said.

Apple might want to think about patching at this point.

Today at WWDC 2009, the new iPhone 3GS, which hits stores on June 19, stole the show. Equipped with video, voice control, a 3 megapixel camera, and other cool features, the 3GS is another homerun by Apple. Below is a review of some the WWDC keynote’s highlights, as noted on Engadget’s liveblog:

iPhone 3GS

The iPhone 3GS is supposed to be twice as fast as the 3G. Its 3 megapixel camera comes it autofocus and auto white balance. All you have to do is tap what you want to focus on. It takes macro shots from as close as 10cm.

It also shoots video, with audio. You can edit and share videos with a tap of your finger, as well as scrub along with them.

Comprehensive voice control, a built-in digital compass, and Nike+ support are other neat features. You can also invert black and white, zoom in displays, and read text through the 3GS. All 3GS phones will also come with hardware encryption. With 23% less packaging, the devices are greener, too.

Costs: $199 for the 16GB 3GS. $299 for the 32GB 3GS. And only $99 for the 3G.

The iPhone 3GS hits the market a week from today, releasing in more than 80 countries by August.

iPhone OS 3.0

AT&T support will be ready “by the end of the summer,” whatever that means. No mention of partnership with AT&T. You can now rent and buy movies from iTunes on your iPhone. It has new parental controls, and tethering, which lets you share a connection with your computer. Find My iPhone feature lets you located your iPhone remotely, then send it a message, make it audio alert, or wipe out its data. Other features: New HTML support for audio and video tags. AutoFill feature now live. The new OS also supports more than 30 languages.

OS 3.0 is free for iPhone users and $9.95 for iTouch users. It releases on June 17.

MacBook Pro

Apple released a new version of the 15-inch MacBook Pro. It uses the same non-removable battery as the 17-inch version. They replaced the ExpressCard slot with an SD slot. With (up to) 3.06GHz Core 2 Duo CPU, and 8 gigs of RAM, it’s also Apple’s fastest notebook ever. It costs $1,699. The 17-inch now costs $2,499. New: A 13-inch MacBook Pro, starting at $1,199.

MacBook Air

Pricing now starts at $1,499; $1,799 with SSD configuration. It also comes with the new SD slot and, like the MacBook Pro, a standard backlit keyboard. It also has a FireWire 800 port.

Snow Leopard

The new, improved version of Leopard has Exchange support, runs 45% faster, and saves 6GB of disk space after installation. A new feature, called Expose, zooms out your open windows when you click and hold on an application. Snow Leopard also uses AI for text selection. The trackpad now has handwriting recognition.

An upgrade to Snow Leopard costs $29 ($49 for a family pack), available in September.

Safari 4

Safari 4 for Leopard, Tiger, and Windows ships today. They’re calling it the fastest browser on any platform. Expose gives you several new ways to find and sift through content. For example, you can drop images directly into an email message. Another example: you can view your history in a cover flow. Another new feature is crash resistance. If a plugin crashes your browser, your windows will stay intact, all you have to do is reload the page. In Quicktime, you now get a visual timeline of your video, as well as trim and share features.

**
With affordable iPhones, Apple is on fire. Competitors (Blackberries) have some serious catching up to do.

Today at 10am PST, Apple SVP Phil Schiller’s WWDC 2009 keynote will finally reveal the new iPhone (or not). Live TV coverage of the event isn’t permitted, so you’ll have to catch live streams via blogs and tweets. Here are a list of prominent WWDC 2009 liveblogs and twitterers:

Liveblogs
Engadget
CNET
Slashgear
Technologizer
Macworld
Macrumors
Ars Technica
Gizmodo
CrunchGear

Twitter
@macrumors
@macjournals
@mmilian (LA Times)
@theappleblog

Find more keynote twitterers here.

If you can’t attend E3 live, then live coverage will have to do. Many websites offer detailed coverage of the event, which lasts through June 4, but four of them are exceptional:

1. G4

Website: g4tv.com/e3

G4TV offers liveblog video and written coverage, including keynotes. Additional coverage, which runs live 22 hours a day, includes press conferences, first-time demos, game debuts, and the ever-important booth babes. You can also find news, trailers, screenshots, photos, tweets, and new games by platform, publisher, and developer on the site.

2. Gamespot

Website: e3.gamespot.com

Gamespot runs continual updates on new games, behind-the-scenes video demos, press conferences, and their live stage show. Each live broadcast is archived, so you can see it anytime you want. A floor map and virtual booth/video tours give you an up-close-and-personal look at the conference’s layout. Also includes live Twitter and photo updates.

3. IGN

Website: e3.ign.com/

IGN’s complete coverage suite includes a liveblog, press conference livestreams, an E3 news ticker, tweets, trailers, email updates, reader polls, and live updates listed by console.

4. Wired Game|Life e3 Coverage

Website: Wired.com/gamelife/tag/e3

Wired’s Game|Life E3 coverage features expert commentary by Chris Kohler, Nate Ralph, and Chris Baker. Aside from a written liveblog, YouTube broadcasts, and iTunes podcasts, you’ll find analysis, gossip, predictions, rumors, leaks, and all the informal info that makes coverage more entertaining.

5. e3 insider

Website: e3insider.com

E3 Insider, E3’s official coverage site, livestreams press conferences. It also shows trailers and interviews. Its offerings are more limited than some of the sites in this list, but it’s worth a look if you need an info fix and the other sites’ load times are slow.

OnLive, a new service that replaces video game consoles like the XBox and PS3 with a small online device, was announced at today’s Game Developer Conference. OnLive will offer hi-res video games over your broadband connection, opening doors for video game downloads, multiday online rentals, and other exciting options. InformationWeek reports:

A startup company called OnLive is trying to disrupt the gaming industry by delivering high-end games through the cloud to a computer or Internet-connected television.

For the game publishers, the service could open the door for another revenue stream without the costs of shipping and manufacturing games on disks. The service already has the backing of Atari, Eidos, Electronic Arts (NSDQ: ERTS), Take-Two Interactive Software, THQ, Ubisoft, and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. These companies plan to launch titles on OnLive at the same time as the console and PC counterparts.

OnLive is a spinoff from San Francisco-based Rearden Companies, a multimedia powerhouse that develops products and services for companies in the entertainment, communications, multimedia, and consumer electronics industries. The man behind Rearden is former Apple engineer Steve Perlman, best known as the founder of WebTV.

The product and technology sound groundbreaking. Perlman will reveal more today at the conference, at 7:15 PST. Stay tuned.

South by Southwest (SXSW) is a unique event that combines music, film, and digital media into one massive, 4-day series of events. Each of the three South by Southwest event categories have their own conferences, festivals, and trade shows, so participants need to register for one of three themes.

This year, SXSW takes place in mid-March, and will probably see more than 10,000 attendees. In 2008, the event made the city more than $110 million in revenues. That’s a lot of people spending a lot of money–and looking for a lot of opportunities. There are many ways you can make that $400 wristband pay off.

But scale is only one of the things that makes South by Southwest a must-do for anyone with a business related to film, music, or the Internet. Gurus, conferences, tradeshows, talks, parties, and shows offer unbeatable opportunities to advance your network, company, and internal creativity. Here are 5 ways that attending South by Southwest can help your business:

1. Be Seen

Last year, South by Southwest (SXSW) saw more than 10,000 attendees from around the world. That many people in one place–most of whom have clearly defined interest niches–are a marketer’s dream. Setting up a trade booth at SXSW is a key way to make yourself visible in the industry, find customers, make new contacts, and scope the competition. SXSW organizers also offer marketing, sponsorship and advertising opportunities, which anyone with a budget should not pass up.

Hundreds of panel discussions also take place, enabling you to present your product or service to leaders in your industry. In the evenings, South by Southwest participants host an enormous number of concerts, networking events, and parties. It would be amazing if you don’t come out of SXSW with a promising number of new contacts and prospects.

2. Network

Working your social skills at SXSW can pay off handsomely. The sheer number of events, talks, concerts, and parties at South by Southwest means that making contacts is more than inevitable. Take a big stack of business cards and/or have your PDA ready for a healthy expansion of your network. People find business partners, clients, industry contacts, and new friends at breakneck speed here. You can cover every level of your businesses in one place.

3. Spur creativity

Not only does South by Southwest encourages, coalesces, and catalyzes cutting-edge ideas and concepts. When you cram 10,000 creative people into one happening city, great things can happen. Be inspired by industry leaders, discuss new services, products, and concepts with your peers, or get ideas from the items people display in the trade show. The energy and excitement of SXSW can rev your business out of a holding pattern and inspire something completely new. In times of recession, when motivation hits a lull, this kind of environment can save you.

4. Get to Know Your Industry Intimately

If you’re in the music, film, or generally-defined interactive online category (read: you have anything to do with the Internet), you will find unparalleled opportunities at South by Southwest. SXSW offers firsthand exposure to cutting-edge trends, innovations, experts, and competition. By the end of SXSW, you’ll have what amounts to an education on every aspect of you industry. You’ll be able to rattle off the who’s who, what’s what, and where’s it happening in your industry. The many panels, parties, and other networking opportunities at SXSW will ensure that you are personally with acquainted industry players, too. Your business can benefit greatly from this new information. For example, you can find areas to expand into. You can see where it’s time move your focus. You’ll become a smarter competitor.

5. Get on the Cutting Edge

Companies have a habit of unveiling their latest and greatest creations at South by Southwest. Twitter, for example, launched here in 2007. Everyone from startups to major players wow audiences with the latest products. Attending SXSW is witnessing digital evolution as it happens—you can’t get more cutting-edge than that. South by Southwest puts you ahead of the curve, which is exactly where you want to be as a business.

Dates for this year’s South by Southwest (SXSW), which takes place in Austin, TX:

SXSW Interactive: March 13-17, 2009
SXSW Film: March 13-21
SXSW Music: March 18-22

Supervision of financial institutions is expected to be high on the agenda.

Who will supervise in this new world order? How much power does that entity have over the world economy? How does it enforce its laws, and where do violators get incarcerated? Though the full extent of the financial crisis remains unknown, one thing is almost certain: International regulatory bodies will become more powerful than ever.

Dull, that is, both in form and in content, according to a couple of reports. This was Steve Ballmer’s first keynote at the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), which takes place in Las Vegas today. However, Ballmer wasn’t on fire, and neither were Microsoft’s products.

This Wired report, as tweeted on Consumer Electronics Insider, highlights the main points of Ballmer’s preso:

–Windows 7 beta will be available for free download in a couple of days. The best part of Windows 7 is that is rescues users from the devil Vista, which eats up RAM, is incompatible with alomst everything–and everyone–else, and has more pop-ups than a porn site.

The report says that Microsoft listened to Vista critics. Windows 7 will be leaner, faster, and with less annoying pop-ups, it says.

–Another announcement had to do with Windows Live, used to access email, calendars, documents, etc. from anywhere on the Web. Windows Live is now out of Beta. The report says that Windows Live anticipates an OS-irrelevant future, and is designed in part to keep users out of Google’s applications–eg. Gmail.

–Microsoft also presented a flexible gaming display, which the Wired reporter thought was a fake. He did, however, laud the $8 billion Microsoft put into R&D last year.

In sum, the report says, Microsoft is playing catch-up. I agree. It went from market innovator to monopolist to pack runner. With an R&D budget that big, you’d think they could come up with something more innovative, instead of loosely following Google and Apple’s leads.

Scared of more regulation at home? Those fears might prove moot if global discussions give international economic regulators teeth.

From the Wall Street Journal:

A planned international summit on the financial crisis is turning into a debate over the future shape of capitalism, with European leaders favoring greater international oversight of markets, and U.S. officials preferring the current model of national regulation.

Administration officials also question whether a global regulator could regulate more efficiently than national ones. “It’s hard to imagine a super-regulator providing more oversight and supervision than German banking regulators, and yet they were surprised by the failure of their banks,” said a senior Bush administration official. “Being smarter and better doesn’t require a global finance cop.”

Europeans, meanwhile, appear to be worried that keeping a volatile United States in the world’s top financial position (this is the article’s take, not mine) will make for unstable global markets. France’s Nicholas Sarkozy, in particular, sounded interested in establishing a new world financial order to the tune of “we got into this mess together, let’s get out of it together.”

These discussions are about global economic regulation. The mere fact that world leaders are getting together to talk world regulation make domestic policies (nationalization, etc.) look tame.

I’m not enthused to hear about global economic regulation, even if it’s currently just talk. I don’t see many benefits to it. And we can’t vote on it–leaders engage in these practices unilaterally.

Scary.