Good customer service reaps a customer that makes a lifetime of iPad purchases. Assuming their prices keep up with inflation than every two years that's $500 i

Good customer service reaps a customer that makes a lifetime of iPad purchases. Assuming their prices keep up with inflation than every two years that's $500 in today's dollars to Apple for say, 50 years. Your iPad purchases, when you are happy, is thus worth $12,500 to Apple, not counting all your friends, parents, lovers, and kids that you start on Apple. It's not that every product you purchase from Apple has to have this good customer service cost built into it, because you're not going to need a new screen for each. It's that they can justify the cost of good customer value by taking it from your lifetime value to the company if they keep you a happy customer. Or something like that. cf Nordstrom.