

Apple Study: 8 easy steps to beat Microsoft (and Google) - bjonathan
http://www.slideshare.net/misteroo/apple-study-8-easy-steps-to-beat-microsoft-and-google

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cageface
As Apple's indie sheen fades and they're increasingly perceived as just
another big consumer electronics company people are going to start feeling
less and less comfortable about being locked in to the whole Apple ecosystem.

If kids haven't decided Apple is the establishment yet they will soon.

~~~
Anechoic
_people are going to start feeling less and less comfortable about being
locked in to the whole Apple ecosystem._

What is this lock-in that people keep talking about wrt to Apple? I can export
my iCal data with .ics files. I can export my Address Book data with standard
.vcf files. iTunes uses MP3, AAC and WAV files. iPhoto handles jpg, tiff, and
png files. Mail.app grabs mail over IMAP and/or POP and data can be exported
as mbox files. iTunes plays nicely with my Nokia E71. DRMd video files from
the iTunes store are the only thing I can think of that can't be easily used
outside of Apple products, but at least I have the alternative of using those
videos on Windows (and it doesn't affect me since I don't buy videos from the
iTMS).

The thing that keeps me "locked in" to Apple's products is that I like them
better than the alternatives. But the moment that stops, there's nothing
keeping me from moving over to Windows, Linux, *BSD, etc.

~~~
cageface
_DRMd video files from the iTunes store are the only thing I can think of that
can't be easily used outside of Apple products_

That _is_ the lock-in. A lot of people are pretty heavily invested in DRM'd
Apple content now. They're not going back to Windows and they're sure as hell
not going to Linux.

~~~
glhaynes
Where's the legal non-DRM alternative for purchasing TV shows and movies,
though? (The illegal ones of course run fine on Macs.)

What do you mean when you say they're not going back to Windows? -- if they're
not, it's because they've switched to the Mac and like it better, not because
they're locked in, since their iTunes stuff plays just fine in iTunes for
Windows.

~~~
cageface
There isn't really a good non-DRM alternative and the longer Apple rules this
market the less likely it becomes that there ever will be one. Personally I
think subscription services are the future here though.

I'm sure that many people that switched from Windows to Macs are enjoying the
experience. The point is that what they did voluntarily today they may be
compelled to continue doing in the future because it's too expensive to
switch. A lot of people enjoyed life on Windows at first too and realized much
later they were trapped.

~~~
protomyth
It is really stretching it to say Apple rules the market for video, and going
back to Windows from the Mac is fine for iTunes content.

~~~
cageface
Who even comes close to Apple for downloadable video sales?

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borisk
And in a few years, after Android destroyes Apple stock value, the same slides
can be reused with few changes to explain what is wrong with Apple.

~~~
Jun8
That's not a foregone conclusion! Google has a great platform but has shown
weakness in a lot of areas (UI, fragmentation, infighting with Chrome OS,
market, etc.) in pushing it. Some of these are being addressed now, some not.

Google's ChromeOS-Android waffle cost them a huge lead in tablets. If they do
the same in the TV domain and let Apple dominate it with their upcoming new
Apple TV things would not look well.

~~~
protomyth
Two more areas where Apple trumps Google: retail stores and customer service.
I can talk to a human by calling Apple, and the effect of having product in a
store is very powerful.

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jasonlotito
"App Store contributed to only 1% in profit!"

I see this, and I can't help but feel the App Store is being looked at in the
wrong way. The App Store isn't a separate product. It's a feature of the iOS
system. Remove the App Store, and the iPhone and iPad become much less
appealing. Yes, maybe directly the App Store contributes only 1% of the
profit, but the App Store itself contributes to a lot more than just 1%. I'd
say it's probably the most essential piece to all the other products right
now.

~~~
maukdaddy
Yes, exactly right. Too many people are looking at the App Store in isolation,
without realizing the value it brings to the entire "system". The fact that
almost all competitors are rushing to implement their own "app store" shows
that it brings more value than a simple 1% of revenue.

~~~
xaine
one must take into consideration the advertising value the app store brings
into the equation

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krmmalik
Fantastic. And i agree.

Apple is going after the economic chain by acquiring the value elements of its
suppliers , as opposed to reducing costs.

------
GrandMasterBirt
I love #9: You can't afford to make a mistake.

Look Steve Jobs has set up the chess board very well. He attacked in all the
right places and his SPEED was incredible. By the time the market had any
chance to react even slightly BOOM new revolutionary product. iPod finally got
some competitors... BOOM iPhone. The tried this with the iPad but... not cheap
enough means that Android can fill the needed gaps since android does not have
the Apple Markup. As more and more developers flock to Android Apple will
lose.

The thing is that Apple makes it's money in a correct way. Just use our damn
products because our hardware is where the money's at. Apple does not have the
insane-o license checking for their operating systems, a battle that microsoft
is fighting, and an uphill battle it is. They make 40% on iMac, 22% on iPhone,
they don't care about the rest, the rest is to boost these numbers.

The problem was that a mistake was made. The iPad is too expensive and there
is no iPad lite. If there was a 300 dollar iPad and a 500 dollar one, then
android would have gotten shot in the kneecaps and would be dragging it's
useless bottom across the moble battlefield... Apple tried the leap of iPod ->
iPhone -> iPad, but the last leap was not as grand.

Yet they did succeed in one area. MS is dead. We are just waiting for the
vultures. Unless Steve Jobs switches to Microsoft, all hope is lost. Why?
Because windows is irrelevant. Windows 7 is CATCHING UP to Mac OS. And that is
the CORE of Microsoft. MS Office is available on mac yet again, Steam (games)
just moved to mac and is promoting mac development. Pretty soon people will
simply jump ship with MS. Now apple does not allow Mac OS to be installed on
non apple machines because... 40% of their revenue is in the apple hardware.
If Mac OS was released as available on all hardware, nobody would by mac
hardware... its expensive. We can't all afford the apple premium. It'll be the
super upper class hardware that dell offers, but it's not. Apple will be
forced to make up profits on the iPad/iPod/iPhone sales, which it can't. So
apple does the right thing: Compete on less fronts with vendor lock-in.

O well. Farewell Microsoft, we hardly knew ye. All Hail Google.

~~~
protomyth
"The iPad is too expensive and there is no iPad lite" - this is were the
Android people go off the rails. Comparing the iPad to the Mac for pricing is
off base, compare it to the iPod. The original iPod was $399 and has spawned
other, lower cost models. The $499 price on the iPad doesn't leave a whole lot
of room for competitors to make a profit and Apple is now set to buy parts in
large quantities with cheaper, custom silicon.

