During today's third quarter earnings call, Apple CEO Tim Cook revealed that Apple has purchased a total of 29 companies over the course of the last nine months, including five new companies after the end of the March quarter. Of the 29 companies purchased, some are known but many remain unknown.
Only two of Apple's newest acquisitions have been revealed, including LuxVue Technology in early May Spotsetter in June, leaving three unknown acquisitions. The May acquisition of Beats was not counted in the 29 company total because the deal, which was Apple's most expensive purchase to date, doesn't close until this quarter. After the Beats deal closes, the total number of acquisitions will rise to 30.
Earlier in 2014, Apple acquired SnappyLabs, a company that produced a burst-mode photo app, and Burstly, the company behind the Testflight iOS beta testing platform.
Many of the other acquisitions were made in 2013, and those purchases focused heavily on mapping. 2013 acquisitions included mapping companies BroadMap, Embark, HopStop, Locationary, and WiFiSlam, along with other notable additions like 3D company PrimeSense and Novauris, a speech recognition company.
The technology from Apple's acquisitions will undoubtedly make its way into future products and updates. For example, significant mapping updates are expected sometime after the launch of iOS 8, adding transit directions and improved indoor mapping techniques.
During the company's April earnings call, Tim Cook said Apple was "on the prowl" for additional companies to acquire and in today's call, Cook said that Apple is always looking at acquisition space and doesn't let "money burn a hole in our pocket."
