Apple

Apple is rolling out its iTunes Match service to several new countries today, including Austria, Greece, Italy, Portugal and Slovenia. A full report on the launches was first revealed by MacStories. Even though iTunes Match is now live in Italy and terms of service have been changed to include Match in other countries, Apple has yet to update its official iTunes Match availability document.

iTunes Match was first launched in the US in November 2011, followed by further rollouts in December and January. The service is now officially available in 37 countries around the globe including Australia, Brazil, the UK and others. Although Japan was rumored to be getting the service in February, Apple has yet to launch it there.

Apple has just announced that the 2012 Worldwide Developers Conference will kick off on June 11 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. Tickets for the five-day conference can be purchased via Apple's website for $1599. Apple will publish all technical sessions on their Apple Developer website for developers who can't afford a ticket or are unable to attend the conference this year.

“We have a great WWDC planned this year and can’t wait to share the latest news about iOS and OS X Mountain Lion with developers,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “The iOS platform has created an entirely new industry with fantastic opportunities for developers across the country and around the world.”

Developers are hoping that Apple will preview iOS 6 at the event.

The Etch a Sketch is making a big comeback... Not only did it see a boom in sales after the famous Mitt Romney aide gaffe, but it's now a stylish iPhone case. The iFoolish iPhone protector keeps your iPhone safe from scratches while allowing you to keep notes or doodle to pass the time.

The 3.7-inch retro red case comes equipped with a drawing pen and an Etch a Sketch-like "magic drawing board" for nostalgic adults, or youngsters who are lucky enough to own an iPhone. The iFoolish iPhone case weighs 70 g (2.4 oz) and requires no app, setup or battery power to use.

iOS fans watch out. Apple has just launched updates to their own mobile applications, iBooks and Cards. Although the iBooks update is relatively minor, version 2.1.1 will solve an annoying problem that some users have experienced. The main bug addressed by the update is an issue where iBooks prompts you to sign in with your Apple ID at unexpected times.

Fans of Cards will be happy to install version 1.1 which brings all kinds of new options. Not only are there now letterpress cards specifically designed for Mother's Day coming up on May 13, but Apple has added additional cards for birthdays and more. Other improvements include new Get Well card designs.

UPDATE: The U.S. has officially filed an antitrust lawsuit against Apple as well as publishers Hachette SA, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin and Simon & Schuster. - via Bloomberg

UPDATE 2: The Department of Justice has released a PDF of their complaint. It's a really interesting read!

The Department of Justice plans to launch an antitrust lawsuit against Apple and five major publishers for alleged price-fixing. In March the The Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. Justice Department warned Apple and the publishers that it planned to sue them for raising the price of electronic books. The Justice Department believes that Apple violated federal antitrust laws by jointly raising the prices with the five publishers.

"The Justice Department is investigating alleged price-fixing by Apple and five major publishers: CBS Corp’s Simon & Schuster Inc, HarperCollins Publishers Inc, Lagardere SCA’s Hachette Book Group, Pearson and Macmillan, a unit of Verlagsgruppe Georg von Holtzbrinck GmbH. A lawsuit against Apple, one of the parties not in negotiations with the Justice Department for a potential settlement, could come as early as Wednesday but no final decision has been made, the people said."