Recently, I have read an interesting article in daily newspaper "The Wall Street Journal" posted by Yukari Iwatani Kane. According to him Apple Inc. reported a 26% increase in its quarterly profit, besides that, the demand for Apple's premium products have been largly unaffected by the souring economy. Its revenue rose mainly benefited from solid Macintosh computer sales, iPhone and a new iPod Nano.
And here comes a question: do you thing innovativeness of Apple Inc. have brought about competitive edge and made the company unbeatable?
24 comments:
Posted by: Adilet Mamytov
Hi Maruf, I've read your article, and i do agree with you. Apple inc. is doing good even at bad times. I support your point of view regarding the "innovativeness" of Apple inc. Customers are always willing to purchase new models of Apple Inc. products.
Hi there. Nice article you have pasted here. I didn’t know that Apple doing well while other companies such as Nokia, Sonyericsson having taught time to get back there market leader title. But do not agree that Apple’s innovative creativity helping them to make profit while others loosing, the main reason of doing so is because apple doesn’t depend on outside market/ economy and its most profit made inside of the USA which helps then to gain more profit. Just like coke and Pepsi’s war where Pepsi won because it’s not depend worldwide market hence coke’s 70% profit comes from outside of USA.
Hi. Your blog quite impressive I liked it but I guess you just wrote as Apple companies fan point of view not as commentator which will judge equally. The main reason is Apple having very small market share compare to other Giants such as Nokia, Samsung or Motorola. Anyways tank you.
Ya, that is true Apple has and will have the best design and they always ahead in terms of design compare to their competitors. They were one of the first who designed and produced a phone with 16Gb capacity and with slim, wide screen. They are the best!!! and see you handsome
Apple has niche market and for that niche market there are No1 and they are No1 for making stylish and design phone. Even Nokia and Samsung cant bit them for design and price as well.
The main reason why Apple's innovations is bad for design is that they’re a highly idiosyncratic organization. As such, it’s nearly impossible to copy them, because no other organization has the elements that allow Apple to product great design. This means that when others do try to copy them, they focus solely on the superficial aspects of the design.
I would argue that the main reason Apple is not so good is because they’re so secretive about their work. So, while they benefit design because they demonstrate the value and power of design in the marketplace, they prove a detriment to design because they don’t share how they achieve such brilliance.
The Macintosh -Changed everything
iMac -Fantastic design
iPod -Simplicity and great function
Nano -same but really tiny
iPhone -yeah, cool phone
MacBook Air -cool design not what I was looking for
3G iPhone -Where? I don't see that in any store
thank you guys for your comments
I wouldn't say Apple is innovative, but they do make hardware thats easy to use and stylish.
The achilles heel of most technology companies is that the human interface portion of their products are never well thought out.
When Steve Jobs launched the iMac in 1998, he was quoted as saying, "these new product lines give people what they want most, a lightning fast laptop and a striking new consumer Macintosh." Judging from current performance of apple inc,Jobs is correct in this assessment.His strategy is speed, look, and brand building, which are really the main drivers for his consumers.Jobs' strategy to capture market share in the personal computer industry amounted to success because he focused on the right aspects.
Going international is not an adequate reason for its success,apple makes most of its profits from the US markets,and not oversees.
What makes Apple really stands out is it's marketing. The company simply seems to understand what will get people excited about its products, and then it executes on that vision. You don't see the company mainly talking about features or technology, but about how the computer will make your life better.Apple is a company that takes complex technology and makes it easier and simpler to use.
And finally,apple's ceo,steve jobs,is the engine of its success.Jobs has so effectively turned his charisma and personality traits into the business processes of Apple.This natural competency goes a long way towards overcoming the serious disadvantage & challenges(like the current crisis) the company might face. Apple's CEO is a mass of contradictions: A man sensitive to the needs of users and oblivious to those of employees. A respected marketer and an overrated hype machine. High priest of innovation and dark lord of secrecy.Whatever the case, he got the company moving like no other.
The article you posted is really nice.Apple inc.have a good value in the market and they are doing really well business with their competitors.But Nokia,Sony Ericson is still leading the market place.
They have it all, the design, the quality and the brand. Talking about Apple Inc. as a whole, they have established a very good brand name in the market that makes people long to have a product from them. The only reason that stops people from getting them is the price of their products. Only people who are capable can afford their products.
They have gone a long way to reach this stage and Apple Inc.'s innovations on products are unbeatable. I believe they create a whole new look from things that is common that helps add value to the product like the laptops and phones.
With the economy downturn that is taking place in the world, it might affect the sales of Apple Inc. but it certainly has brought a competitive edge on their products in the market with unbeatable innovations.
Yes it's true that Apple has its competitive advantage as its 'more than just a software ' its more of a image now, based on the article (http://www.technewsworld.com/story/33061.html?wlc=1225912119)
(Have you noticed that Apple doesn't live by the version-three rule? In the PC industry, there is this rule that some of the branded vendors take three tries to get something right. Apple often gets it in one try. The first iteration might not be perfect, but it is often so close to the ideal that the difference is insignificant. I'm clearly one of those folks who wish this rule didn't apply so well to companies other than Apple.)
In my opinion that the company is not unbeatable , yes it may be at the top of the industry but they may encounter some hiccups along the way such as they may have a lot of advantages but Apple still managed to lose a large amount of profit, and its market share dwindled from 8% to 3.4% from 1995 - 1998 The company also slipped in the education sector during this time by as much as 14% per year. In order to understand why Apple was losing so much ground, we must look into the power of suppliers and buyers in the industry. Most notably on the suppliers' side are microprocessors and operating systems, where Intel and Microsoft are the dominant names. Because of their quasi-monopolies, which enable them to control commodities and manipulate pricing, these two suppliers have tremendous influence. Buyers, who also have strong influence because of the wide array of products available, were drawn to the Intel/Windows package ("Wintel") because of the brand names, lower costs, and the wide proliferation of the products. Apple, however, chose to implement a PowerPC/MAC OS combination over the standard "Wintel" package. The main fallacy in Jobs' outlook was following this proprietary strategy. As a result, Apple's reach to customers diminished. In 1998, Macintosh's operating system market share was at 5% compared to Microsoft's dominance of almost 90%. based on the article (http://www.echeat.com/essay.php?t=26317)
I agree that Apple have a great competitive edge against other company such as the way the products are designed and the quality of it. Even though Apple has a great competitive edge against other companies, that doesn't mean they will still remain unbeatable. They will sure face some difficultly in the future if they don't focus in improving in their products.
of course Apple Inc. brought competitive advantages even I did not know much about their products but as I know, Apple Inc. have advanced technology and so many people want to buy their products not only because of their technology but also their design and efficiency of product. Although Apple Inc. brought competitive advanatges but it does not means they unbeatable because in every business competition is very high, therefore they must keep change and advance their technology.
Nice article about the apple Nic they are trying to do best and they strat doing best with facing their competitor.Now a days apple is thert for other competitor. Because they are doing well.
Cool bro, you are touching the today’s controversial issue. For any economy in order to prevent from busting there is the need of entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship in the sense of coming up with innovation and creation. Let’s just compare these two together. Have you noticed the impact of nanotechnology on the medical science? The electrical batteries and balloon system injected to the cardio system of our heart is the avoidance of how created technology helped the societies. Creation is the intensive strategy since the global market has been saturated and it’s not that easy since it requires more tacit knowledge but innovation may help to penetrate the markets by adding value on our products as Nike and Apple have done through their new marketing strategy.
In addition you need to see Quantum of Solace to get the clue on how brands can bee valued by advertisements as bond’s (I call it supper phone) was Sony Ericson!!!
Thanks Brad for your comments and I will definetly check out the new BOND movie!!!!
HI like your topic and i am a fans for Apple products.and I have to use Apple long time ago, my mp3 and telephone also the Apple products.how to discuss Apple the only different i thinks is Apple products is more beautiful design.
Hey Murphy, Apple Inc. the quirky Silicon Valley company that became an icon of personal computing, has risen to its greatest heights in the decade since Steven P. Jobs returned to its helm and opened horizons beyond the desktop.
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/apple_computer_inc/index.html
Therefore,I think that Apple Inc. innovativeness have brought the competitive edge and made Apple Inc. as an unbeatable company in today's business world.However,Sony Ericsson, Dell,Nokia and Toshiba are also great competitors towards Apple Inc. for their reasonable price and great features and functions that almost same as Apple Inc.
Nice article man…! Apple has the great technology and the iPhone Developer Program provides a complete and integrated process for developing applications for iPhone and iPod touch. It is my fevered brand also.
OK for a company that looked doomed a decade ago, it has been quite a comeback. Today Apple is literally an iconic company. Look at your iPod: the company name appears only in the small print. Some of the power of its brand comes from the extraordinary story of a computer company rescued from near-collapse by its co-founder, Steve Jobs, who returned to Apple in 1997 after years of exile, reinvented it as a consumer-electronics firm and is now taking it into the billion-unit-a-year mobile-phone industry. But mostly Apple's zest comes from its reputation for inventiveness. In polls of the world's most innovative firms it consistently ranks first. From its first computer in 1977 to the mouse-driven Macintosh in 1984, the iPod music-player in 2001 and now the iPhone, which goes on sale in all over the world now.
Apple has prospered by keeping just ahead of the times and always bring out something new and amazing to the world.
Reference:
http://www.economist.com/opinion/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9302662
Yes, Murphy its true that Apple Inc. since its beginning in 1976 to 2008 current year had gain huge achievements.The only black eye Apple received in 2007 was for the Apple TV, everything else the cutting-edge technology company did in 2007 turned into gold, and profits for the computer and new technology company. Here are the top 10 most notable achievements of Apple in 2007.
10. A Company by Any Other Name
In January of 2007, Apple Computer changed its name to Apple. While this seems like a simple and meaningless change, it was really one of their achievements for 2007. The dropping of the word "computer" from the name signals a strong move by the technology company to expand into other consumer gadgets and daily technology devices.
The iPhone was only the beginning of what we will see from Apple, as they continue to challenge the status quo and think outside the computer box.
9. MacBook Pro Still Strong
With all the advancements and new products the technology company achieved, their other products still get good reviews. One of the top computer review publishers still gives the MacBook Pro an "Excellent" rating. (CNET.com)
8. Safari for Windows
Mid-way through 2007, the technology company gave Windows users a gift: a beta version of Safari for Windows. Within two days of its release, more than one million users downloaded the free browser.
7. Mac OS X Leopard
Despite the fact that the new Mac OS was delayed, the company reports sales of two million copies of Mac OS X Leopard in its first weekend.
6. iPod Nano
The new iPod Nano benefits from the new gadget cuteness factor. In addition to being adorable and colorful, like new tech gadgets should be, the iPod Nano offers a better experience for the end-user.
Who wouldn't want pocket-sized video? Not only is the display larger, it is also 65 percent brighter according to the company's web site. Even the materials have been upgraded, and the new iPod Nano is made of "anodized aluminum and polished stainless steel."
5. All-in-One Mac
The All-in-One Mac is an affordable, sleek, fast machine that could easily grace a desk, or a TV stand. The monitor is big enough for movie watching, and the computer itself is everything a modern desktop should be: sleek, smooth, and powerful.
4. iPod Touch
The iPod Touch integrated iPhone touch technology into its interface. The iPod Touch was released in September of 2007, just in time for holiday shopping. This new iPod also allows wireless access to the iTunes store.
3. Apple Stock Tops $200
Apple investors are partying hard with the realization that the stock has doubled in the past year. (Source: Apple stock charts for January 2007 and January 2008)
2. "Fourth quarter revenue of $6.22 billion."
Revenue like that are an incredible achievement for the company, or for any company. The reported profit for that quarter according to the company's web site, was "$904 million, or $1.01 per diluted share."
1. The iPhone
Why is the iPhone the number one Apple achievement of 2007?
Is it because it was the most popular Google search term in 2007?
Or because the only new gadget that out sold the iPhone in North America was the Blackberry? (Computerworld)
Or maybe Apple iPhone is number one because everyone, including Gen-Y wants one. According to Macworld, the iPhone was on the top of the Christmas wish lists of 13 to 25-year-olds in the United States.
Maybe it was the multi-touch function that made iPhone soar to the top.
All of these reasons have made the iPhone Apple's number one greatest achievements in the year 2007, as well as being one of the top achievements by Apple of all time.
Sources
Apple.com, http://www.apple.com
CNET.com, http://cnet.com
Computerworld, http://www.computerworld.com
Forbes.com, http://www.forbes.com
Google http://www.google.com/press/zeitgeist.html
Technology Marketing Corporation, http://www.tmcnet.com
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