The video says it all.

From a press statement Apple released regarding US government requests for personal information:

conversations which take place over iMessage and FaceTime are protected by end-to-end encryption so no one but the sender and receiver can see or read them. Apple cannot decrypt that data.

So in short, Apple has reiterated (as of June 2013) that FaceTime calls and iMessages are secure and private, even from Apple.  Even they cannot decrypt these communications.

The Verge and several other sources are reporting that you can now make free audio phone calls to your Facebook friends if you live in the US or Canada. You and the person you are calling will need to download Facebook Messenger for the iPhone.  After that, it’s free audio calling. Plus free texting from app to app. You can’t beat free.

Apple released a commercial to highlight Facetime on the iPad and iPad Mini. Note the emphasis isn’t on the technology or megapixels or anything technical. Facetime is only good as a technology because of how it connects people, and this is a perfect example of how Apple gets it.

It’s a big week for Facetime with the announcement that in iOS 6 (coming Fall of 2012) Apple will allow Facetime calls to be placed not just over wi-fi, but also over cell phone calls. From Apple:

FaceTime now works over cellular networks as well as Wi-Fi, so you can make and receive FaceTime calls wherever you happen to be.4 You can even make and receive FaceTime calls on your iPad using your phone number. That means you can use FaceTime wherever you are, on any device. And never miss another wink, smile, air kiss, or eye roll.

Apple has announced that they will begin including Facetime HD cameras with 3X more resolution than previous Facetime Cameras, starting today.

New on the scene today: Sidecar App to place VOIP (Voice over Internet) calls with a bunch of nifty features.  Here’s the rundown:

Available for free for iPhone and Android.  US and Canada only for right now.

More PR after the jump…
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Via The Verge who spotted the news on iDevice, this news arrives:

An apparently new warning message, first spotted by iDevice, shows up if users try to disable 3G data while on a FaceTime call. “Disabling 3G may end FaceTime,” it reads. “Are you sure you want to disable 3G?” Since the call is still running over Wi-Fi, disabling it does nothing, but re-enabling it afterwards gives a similar message. “Enabling 3G will end your phone call. Are you sure you want to enable 3G?”

Video calling over 3G on Facetime has got to be one of the most requested features we’ve clamored for since its debut. Looks like it’s just waiting in the wings.

Google has announced Hangouts on Air, a way to live stream and record a group video conversation from different video feeds. Just a few years ago, it would have cost tens of thousands of dollars in hardware to accomplish something like this, but now it’s free and it couldn’t be simpler. The video above gives you the quick overview on how to do it. This is going to open up all sorts of possibilities for video podcasts, archive-able teaching, webinars, roundtables, world-wide meetups and lots of things that people have never even imagined because of the previous technical obstacles. I can’t wait to see what comes of it!