6 ms·

Seems a repeat of what we have seen at Microsoft, HP, and many other companies. Apple has become too reliant on iPhone and unsure how to look beyond it. Eithe

Seems a repeat of what we have seen at Microsoft, HP, and many other companies. Apple has become too reliant on iPhone and unsure how to look beyond it. Either they would have to shake the leadership team up like Microsoft or split the company up.

laichzeit0 10y ago
An honest question. Why? Does Apple not make enough money, do they need to grow?
- dx034 10y ago
  No, but without new ideas they'll soon start to shrink. Apple is in a very fast business, not coming up with new ideas means losing business very quickly. They could of course just enjoy sales from the iphone and live off past innovation, but that would mean that they could cut costs by at least 50% and fire most of the workforce. Don't know if that's what they want.
- SyneRyder 10y ago
  They're a public company. If the company isn't growing, there's little incentive to hold the stock. (The current 2% dividend is a pitiful return, you can get that level of return from an Australian savings account.) If they're not growing & the dividend isn't big enough, then the stock price (and hence company value) will start falling as people cash out. If Apple can take themselves private again, there will be less pressure on them to keep growing.
  - laichzeit0 10y ago
    If as you say the stock price falls, Apple could just buy back their own stock. They have a huge cash reserve. What I'm getting at is I think everybody is overly concerned that Apple isn't releasing any "new" devices. They don't really have to. Looking at market share, they completely dominate on the products they already have. If anything, they can sit back, wait for the "next big thing" and do what Apple typically does best: Copy it, and make it so much better.
- arvinsim 10y ago
  Apple is a publicly traded company after all.
Cthulhu_ 10y ago
But they do, and they have. The iPad was huge and sold very, very well, and still is one of their top products, even though the market has become saturated because newer iterations aren't as big steps forwards as it was with the iphone, and people are less likely to upgrade ipads because they don't need to (and there's less incentive like with the 2-3 year phone plans). And the Mac has always been their core product, especially since Apple's comeback with the imac. It's no longer their main source of income, but it's a very strong brand that had consistently been getting more and more market share over time. It probably didn't have the huge margin and volume of the iphone, but it'd be a critical error if they were to discontinue it. They should invest more in it, I think; rebrand the new Macbook Pro to just Macbook, come out with a new line of Pros that are bigger again (with pro hardware and features, for the discerning user), update the Mac Pro, etc.
- neolefty 10y ago
  And before the Mac they had a revolutionary product too ...
exodust 10y ago
Aren't they allowed to sit on the iPhone? Why must they come up with amazing new stuff when they've already got a mountain of cash and loyal fans who love the point release updates? In other industries like cars, the manufacturers don't necessarily create hugely different models every year, but only small improvements on last year's model, and they seem to do okay. Personally I think the touch-bar thing on the Mac is unremarkable, even a gimmick. Why would anyone want the furniture moving around on their keyboard? I could be wrong, I suppose if it's highly customizable then it will be handy for programmable shortcuts.
- PerryCox 10y ago
  > Aren't they allowed to sit on the iPhone? Why must they come up with amazing new stuff when they've already got a mountain of cash and loyal fans who love the point release updates? Apple cannot rest on their laurels because if they stop innovating Android manufactures will implement all of their features and sell the phones for cheaper than an iPhone. The Google Pixel is a killer phone and could easily steal some iPhone market share if a new iPhone does not keep iterating with new features. If Apple keeps removing two features for every new one that they add, that's going to upset some customers.
  - pjc50 10y ago
    Phone markets aren't really about features; Android phones already out-feature (although not out-perform) iPhones all over the place. It's the usability and image that Apple sells on. And Apple believe - sometimes correctly - that removing features improves usability. Or at least keeping them coherent.
- Someone1234 10y ago
  To rephrase what you said to make a point: > Aren't they allowed to sit on the Apple II? Why must they come up with amazing new stuff when they've already got a mountain of cash and loyal fans who love the point release updates? Last time Apple built the entire company around a single product (Apple II) they almost went bankrupt.

laichzeit0 10y ago

An honest question. Why? Does Apple not make enough money, do they need to grow?

dx034 10y ago
No, but without new ideas they'll soon start to shrink. Apple is in a very fast business, not coming up with new ideas means losing business very quickly. They could of course just enjoy sales from the iphone and live off past innovation, but that would mean that they could cut costs by at least 50% and fire most of the workforce. Don't know if that's what they want.
SyneRyder 10y ago
They're a public company. If the company isn't growing, there's little incentive to hold the stock. (The current 2% dividend is a pitiful return, you can get that level of return from an Australian savings account.) If they're not growing & the dividend isn't big enough, then the stock price (and hence company value) will start falling as people cash out. If Apple can take themselves private again, there will be less pressure on them to keep growing.
- laichzeit0 10y ago
  If as you say the stock price falls, Apple could just buy back their own stock. They have a huge cash reserve. What I'm getting at is I think everybody is overly concerned that Apple isn't releasing any "new" devices. They don't really have to. Looking at market share, they completely dominate on the products they already have. If anything, they can sit back, wait for the "next big thing" and do what Apple typically does best: Copy it, and make it so much better.
arvinsim 10y ago
Apple is a publicly traded company after all.

Cthulhu_ 10y ago

But they do, and they have. The iPad was huge and sold very, very well, and still is one of their top products, even though the market has become saturated because newer iterations aren't as big steps forwards as it was with the iphone, and people are less likely to upgrade ipads because they don't need to (and there's less incentive like with the 2-3 year phone plans). And the Mac has always been their core product, especially since Apple's comeback with the imac. It's no longer their main source of income, but it's a very strong brand that had consistently been getting more and more market share over time. It probably didn't have the huge margin and volume of the iphone, but it'd be a critical error if they were to discontinue it. They should invest more in it, I think; rebrand the new Macbook Pro to just Macbook, come out with a new line of Pros that are bigger again (with pro hardware and features, for the discerning user), update the Mac Pro, etc.

neolefty 10y ago
And before the Mac they had a revolutionary product too ...

exodust 10y ago

Aren't they allowed to sit on the iPhone? Why must they come up with amazing new stuff when they've already got a mountain of cash and loyal fans who love the point release updates? In other industries like cars, the manufacturers don't necessarily create hugely different models every year, but only small improvements on last year's model, and they seem to do okay. Personally I think the touch-bar thing on the Mac is unremarkable, even a gimmick. Why would anyone want the furniture moving around on their keyboard? I could be wrong, I suppose if it's highly customizable then it will be handy for programmable shortcuts.

PerryCox 10y ago
> Aren't they allowed to sit on the iPhone? Why must they come up with amazing new stuff when they've already got a mountain of cash and loyal fans who love the point release updates? Apple cannot rest on their laurels because if they stop innovating Android manufactures will implement all of their features and sell the phones for cheaper than an iPhone. The Google Pixel is a killer phone and could easily steal some iPhone market share if a new iPhone does not keep iterating with new features. If Apple keeps removing two features for every new one that they add, that's going to upset some customers.
- pjc50 10y ago
  Phone markets aren't really about features; Android phones already out-feature (although not out-perform) iPhones all over the place. It's the usability and image that Apple sells on. And Apple believe - sometimes correctly - that removing features improves usability. Or at least keeping them coherent.
Someone1234 10y ago
To rephrase what you said to make a point: > Aren't they allowed to sit on the Apple II? Why must they come up with amazing new stuff when they've already got a mountain of cash and loyal fans who love the point release updates? Last time Apple built the entire company around a single product (Apple II) they almost went bankrupt.