Apple agrees to buy headphone maker Beats for $3bn

Beats headphones are already sold alongside Apple products

Apple has confirmed it will buy headphone maker and music-streaming service provider Beats Electronics.

The deal is worth a total of $3bn (£1.8bn), and is thought to be Apple's largest acquisition to date.
As part of the acquisition, Beats co-founders Jimmy Iovine and Dr Dre will join the technology firm.
Apple boss Tim Cook said the deal would allow the firm to "continue to create the most innovative music products and services in the world".

The Beats deal is totally in character for Apple: everyone is puzzled”

Benedict Evans Technology analyst

In a statement, Apple said it is paying an initial $2.6bn (£1.6bn) for Beats, and approximately $400m (£239m) "that will vest over time".

Beats was founded in 2008 by music producer Jimmy Iovine and hip-hop star Dr Dre and until recently was best known for its headphones.
It started a subscription-based music streaming service earlier this year.
Apple has its own iTunes store, the world's largest music download service, and launched iTunes Radio last year.
But despite having been an early pioneer of digital music, the Californian firm has been facing increased competition from subscription services such as Spotify, Pandora and Rdio.

Leo Kelion Technology desk editor

There had been speculation that Apple might drastically cut its offer price for Beats or pull the deal altogether, after a video of Dr Dre describing himself as hip-hop's first billionaire leaked online.
But the deal has now been confirmed for only $200m less than what had originally been reported.
The press release announcing the tie-up mentions Beats' "premium sound entertainment," but there has been criticism of its headphones' sound quality.
However, there's no doubting their popularity or the skill of Beats' co-founders Jimmy Iovine and Dr Dre in building up the brand.
It's questionable whether Apple's co-founder Steve Jobs would have been willing to share the limelight with two such outspoken personalities.
But the challenge for the more reserved Tim Cook is to bring the two firms' very different cultures together, and to make the most of the Beats brand, as he delivers on a promise to launch new products this year.

However, Beats' music service only has about 110,000 subscribers, compared with Spotify's 10 million.

'It's the people' The deal with Beats also marks a departure for Apple, which has a reputation for developing new products in-house, rather than buying up smaller firms - a method preferred by rivals Google.
But in an interview with the New York Times, Mr Cook hinted that Beats' founders may have been part of the attraction.
"Could Eddy's team [Eddy Cue, Apple executive in charge of iTunes] have built a subscription service? Of course," he told the newspaper.
"You don't build everything yourself. It's not one thing that excites us here. It's the people. It's the service."
"These guys are really unique," Mr Cook added. "It's like finding the precise grain of sand on the beach. They're rare and very hard to find."
The Apple boss also said that Dr Dre and Mr Iovine would be coming up with "products you haven't thought of yet".

Apple released this picture of Beats founders Jimmy Iovine and Dr Dre posing with Mr Cook and Mr Cue

'Everyone is puzzled' However some analysts remain baffled by the acquisition.
Technology writer Benedict Evans tweeted: "If you think Apple's lost it, Beats deal is confirmation. If you don't, it's… perplexing. Few really convincing rationales."
He added: "The Beats deal is totally in character for Apple: everyone is puzzled."
Beats co-founder Jimmy Iovine, who made his name as chairman of the Interscope Geffen A&M record label, welcomed the deal.
"I've always known in my heart that Beats belonged with Apple," he said.

The deal is thought to have made Beats co-founder Dr Dre the first hip-hop billionaire

"The idea when we started the company was inspired by Apple's unmatched ability to marry culture and technology.
Apple analyst Jim Dalrymple hinted that it may be Mr Iovine's talent that the technology firm is after.
Writing on his website The Loop, Mr Dalrymple said: "In my opinion, Jimmy is going to play an important role going forward.
"Maybe not that you always see, but he'll be there".
As well as headphones, Beats sells earphones and portable speakers, and has even developed partnerships with carmakers and computer manufacturers to include its BeatsAudio software technology in their products.
The company's flagship products have also received several celebrity endorsements, with stars including Lady Gaga, Lil Wayne and Nicki Minaj designing their own customised Beats headphones.
Subject to regulatory approvals, Apple said it expects the deal to close in the fourth financial quarter of this year.

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Libya general's forces bomb Islamist camp

General Khalifa Haftar says he is fighting "terrorism"

Libyan forces loyal to a renegade general have bombed government-funded Islamist militia in the eastern city of Benghazi.

Witnesses say aircraft targeted a base of the February 17th Brigade, one of the main armed groups in the area.
General Khalifa Haftar, a former army chief of staff under Col Muammar Gaddafi, has launched several recent attacks in Benghazi and Tripoli.
He accuses the government of supporting terrorism, which the authorities deny.
Gen Haftar's actions have been backed by an array of armed groups, including military forces in the east as well as some members of the air force.
The central government has called his assault an "attempted coup", but some government officials say they back the operation.
Legacy of violence Libya is still in turmoil three years after the fall of Gaddafi - with political, religious and political factions locked in disagreement about the country's future.
There are almost daily assassinations, bombings and kidnappings.

Mohamed al-Zahawi says the attacks against his group are a "crusade"

Gaddafi's rule left Libya with few institutions, and in the absence of a fully functioning army and police, the government funds some armed groups to fulfil a security role in the country - including the February 17th Brigade.
The brigade is a powerful force known for its close ties to the hardline Islamist group Ansar al-Sharia.
In a news conference on Tuesday, Ansar al-Sharia's commander Mohamed al-Zahawi described the military operations against his group and others in Benghazi as a "crusade".
He accused Gen Hafter of being backed by foreign powers, and warned the US against any intervention in Libya.
The state department in Washington is now urging US nationals to leave the country immediately because of Libya's political instability.

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US must show restraint abroad

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President Barack Obama has promised a new US foreign policy based on "collective action" with allies abroad.

The US would still lead, he told graduates at the US Military Academy at West Point, New York, but would avoid the "costly mistakes" of the past.
He announced a $5bn (£3bn) fund to fight global terror and promised the US "must not create more enemies than we take off the battlefield".
Under attack for a weak foreign policy, he hailed progress in Ukraine and Iran.
"Sceptics often downplay the effectiveness of multilateral action. For them, working through international institutions, or respecting international law, is a sign of weakness. I think they're wrong."
The end of the combat mission in Afghanistan at the end of the year would free up resources to tackle emerging threats elsewhere, such as a new $5bn "terrorism partnership fund" to help other countries fight extremists.

Katty Kay, BBC News, Washington
In his 2009 Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, Barack Obama shocked Europeans with his stress on the justification of US military force. Today there is a very different emphasis.
Instead, Mr Obama focused on US-led international action - diplomatic efforts in Iran and rallying the world to put pressure on Russia for their actions in Ukraine, despite an unclear outcome there. The US president doesn't discount unilateral force entirely, but argues for the strength of other methods, especially led by the US.
But Mr Obama ducks the trickiest moment of his foreign policy - the red line in Syria and the decision to go to Congress for a vote on force, which ultimately fell apart. This is unsurprising, as the American public has zero interest staying a day longer than planned in Afghanistan, much less committing to another large-scale military mission.
The speech reflects the confusion of a country that is fed up with intervention but still likes the idea of being the world leader.

The money would go towards missions such as training security forces in Yemen, supporting a multinational force to keep the peace in Somalia, working with European allies to train a functioning security force in Libya, and helping French operations in Mali, he said.
Turning to the civil war in Syria, he promised to "ramp up support" for those in opposition to the regime of President Assad, although he did not give details about what that would mean in practice.

There were once more than 100,000 US troops in Afghanistan - down to 10,000 by January

The cash will be used to tackle Islamist threats in parts of Africa

His speech attempted to recast US foreign policy as one which would use military force when necessary but primarily acts on a platform of international consensus.
"We must broaden our tools to include diplomacy and development; sanctions and isolation; appeals to international law and - if just, necessary, and effective - multilateral military action.
"We must do so because collective action in these circumstances is more likely to succeed, more likely to be sustained, and less likely to lead to costly mistakes."
In the wide-ranging address to West Point graduates Mr Obama touched on a range of foreign policy issues, such as:

• "a strategy that involves invading every country that harbours terrorist networks is naïve and unsustainable"
• small-scale capture and drone operations by the US military would continue to be used, but with increased transparency
• US leadership had helped bring Iran to negotiate on nuclear issues and isolated world opinion against Russia in the Ukrainian crisis
• praise for the United Nations and Nato, which he said was "the strongest alliance the world has ever known"
• "American influence is always stronger when we lead by example", he said, while criticising domestic politicians for denying climate change and refusing to sign a UN maritime treaty
• a continued push to close the US military prison at Guantanamo
• US should focus on development and education as "no American security operation can eradicate the threat posed by an extremist group like Boko Haram"

Obama addressed members of the US Military Academy

The address is the first of a series of speeches from the president about foreign policy over the next 10 days, in an attempt to respond to critics who say current US foreign policy is weak.
On Wednesday, the top Republican on the Senate's foreign relations panel said there was "an extreme indecisiveness and cautiousness" about Mr Obama "that just worries people".
"I'm not for policing the world but I do think that our lack of leadership has created a vacuum and I think that into that vacuum problems are being created," Senator Bob Corker said.

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Education changes could cost more, says union leader

Sally Hunt says the "American dream" has become an "English nightmare"

College and university education in England could cost the public more than the old system despite a tripling in tuition fees, a union leader says.

University and College Union general secretary Sally Hunt will tell her annual congress in Manchester that funding is a "disastrous mess".
Institutions can now charge students up to £9,000 a year for their tuition.
The government said its funding changes had put universities on a sustainable footing and improved student life.
Privately-funded Ms Hunt says the point where the new system will actually cost the public purse more than the old one is not far away.

UCU warned time and again that for-profit education would lead to the kind of free-for-all we saw in America and the many problems it created”

Sally Hunt University and College Union general secretary

She is also critical of the decision to allow more privately-funded colleges into the higher education system, saying the "American dream" has become an "English nightmare".

In some cases, she says, attendance is so poor lectures are being given with nobody in them apart from the tutor.
She will tell the conference that the coalition's record on education is "lamentable".
Ms Hunt is expected to say: "Lecturers sometimes joke that this would be an easy job without the students.
"But some of the for-profit colleges at the centre of the scandal about poor standards and little attendance by students, this seems to have been taken literally.
"Lectures with literally no-one in them except the tutor. Paid for by the taxpayer.
"UCU warned time and again that for-profit education would lead to the kind of free-for-all we saw in America and the many problems it created. Poor attendance, huge debts, low standards."
Election issue She will add: "Despite the tripling of tuition fees, experts now think we are not far away from the point when this new system will actually cost the public purse more than the old one.
"Meanwhile, the further education loans system has been completely abandoned for apprenticeships and is running woefully under target for other adults."
She said all this meant funding must be an issue at the general election.
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills said swift and decisive action was being taken against private colleges where evidence of abuse of the system was found.
A spokesman said: "Our reforms have put universities on a sustainable footing and this is driving up the quality of the student experience as well as stimulating economic growth.
"Through these reforms we are protecting those on lower incomes, and people from disadvantaged backgrounds are now applying in record numbers.
"Private colleges have an important role to play in providing students with an alternative to university. Where standards are not being met we are taking action."

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