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Apple didn’t always place privacy so front and center. Most iOS privacy features only appeared in iOS 6, and only after some very public (albeit overhyped) abuses by certain apps. OS X only gained location privacy in Lion, and a full privacy center in Mountain Lion. Apple provided nearly no security or privacy details on iCloud until earlier this year. Apple still owns an advertising network.
The issues of safety and security—and by extension, privacy—provoke visceral emotions in people. Apple has always tried to build an emotional connection between its devices and customers. With its increasing focus on privacy, it’s clear that Apple not only sees privacy as important to maintaining this bond, but as a means of differentiating itself from the competition. For a variety business and technical reasons, it’s an advantage that will be hard for Apple’s competition to duplicate.
Veeerrryyy interesting!
Comments at the source point out that Apple hasn’t advertised this, and the article points out the creepiness factor of targeted advertising. That “creepiness” seems, IMHO, to be the way to point out the problem if AAPL does publicly promote this "advantage that will be hard for Apple’s competition to duplicate.” But before they do undertake that, "Apple still owns an advertising network” would, IMHO, have to go.
The other problem is, of course, that while all of us want privacy, some of “us” are also terrorists whose privacy is a danger to us.

The other problem is, of course, that while all of us want privacy, some of “us” are also terrorists whose privacy is a danger to us.

Why do you consider that to be a problem. It's simply the price of freedom. The threat posed by your own government is far greater than the threat posed by a few demented hate filled religious fanatics. In the 20th century over 60,000,000 people (some say 80,000,000) were deliberately killed by their own governments, and if 0 and his fellow Democrats could get away with it they would have a final solution to the white middle class gun owner problem implemented PDQ.

I'll take my chances with the terrorists over tyranny any day.

“The other problem is, of course, that while all of us want privacy, some of “us” are also terrorists whose privacy is a danger to us.”

Here’s the problem I have with that statement, and the approach taken after 9/11: the terrorists who committed those acts were foreign nationals. Not a single American was involved. The organization(s) responsible were clearly of foreign origin.

Surveil foreign nationals all you want. Send operatives to their countries. If actual evidence points to an American, get a search warrant. There was never even a need for the massive airport security theater which bedevils Americans to this day, at a great cost to the economy. What was needed was a laser focus on those actually likely to commit terroristic acts. Who knows, they might even have caught a few more terrorists!

A focussed effort like that would have been far less costly, far less intrusive, and far more effective. Of course, it wouldn’t have been an excuse to vastly expand government, and condition citizens to accept constant intrusion into their private matters...