Posted on 04/16/2015 10:39:55 PM PDT by Up Yours Marxists
It really is amateur hour at Apple. The tech giant’s first major product line launch in years has gone badly wrong, with the original in-store sales date scrapped, and no word of when the Apple Watch will actually go on sale for people to, you know, buy.
Sales predictions, and online pre-order numbers look great, but that’s about the only thing that’s good about the launch of the first new product line to come from Apple under Tim Cook’s stewardship. Frankly, everything else associated with the launch has been a balls up from start to finish.
Here’s a product that the Cupertino-based company has described as its most personal yet. It’s so personal, that the only way you can buy it is online. The least personal shopping experience there is.
(Excerpt) Read more at betanews.com ...
Is the effin thing waterproof to 200 meters?
The Apple iPhone 5c was not a failure except in the minds of some idiotic analysts who claimed that the second best selling smartphone in the world could possibly be a failure. In the year they were being sold, the best selling single model of smartphone in the world was the Apple iPhone 5s, followed by the Apple iPhone 5c, the Samsung S5 was third and then the Apple iPhone 4s was fourth best selling smartphone. That is no way a failure.
Even in the first weekend of sales, The analysts who were claiming that were expecting Apple to offer the 5c as a very low cost iPhone, under $250 or even lower. When they didn't, pricing it only $100 less than the 5s, these analysts pronounced it a failure for not meeting their desired goal of becoming the number one seller. They were convinced that Apple could seize humungous market share if only they would compete on price. . . and they hung their hopes on the "low cost" iPhone 5c being the market grabber. It was only a failure for NOT beine the market share grabbing iPhone they wanted it to be, even though outselling every other smartphone except the iPhone 5s.
Earlier in the week, I posted an article about the possibility that Apple was shifting its primary sales focus away from per device profit, and more toward grabbing more marketshare with devices that generate less revenue per sale. In hindsight after Apple’s big reveal, I was dead wrong. It was just a theory, and one that seemed to make sense at the time. It was an opinion that many other tech bloggers and pundits shared. But that doesn’t make it any less wrong.The short version of what I thought would happen was that Apple would release a colorful new iPhone that would sell for much less than usual for an iOS device off contract. This phone would be more competitive in the rest of the developed world, as well as China and India, where the majority of users pay full price for unlocked phones. I wasn’t predicting a “cheap” iPhone, mind you. I knew it would be a high quality, well made device that would just have fewer features and cost less. In short, I was thinking of an iPhone that would replace the iPhone 4S at the low end of the line, while Apple would sell the iPhone 5 in the middle, and the new 5S at the high end.
As we now know, Apple had something very different in mind. The iPhone 5C is obviously not about marketshare. It is actually about taking Apple’s current profit per device strategy even further. The 5C actually ended up replacing the 5 in the middle of the lineup, $100 cheaper than the 5S with a two year contract, and priced at a higher than expected $549 off contract for the 16 GB model. This news was a big letdown to a lot of people anxious for a more affordable iPhone, but I believe that Apple will make a killing off the 5C in the end. Here are the reasons why — SOURCE:iSource— The iPhone 5C isn’t about marketshare after all — James Rogers — September 16, 2013
In the first quarter the iPhone 5s and 5c were available, the 5s sold 16.5 million and the 5c sold 11.6 million. Again, that is not the sign of a failure.
The Apple iPhone 5C is still being sold on the Apple Store and also in many 3rd world countries. That is not the sign of a failed model.
Sigh.
You probably also don’t view calling someone a “FUD spreader” just because they disagree with your assessment a pejorative either. Strike two on objective credibility.
Look - dayglored asked what I had seen that suggested the position in the article. I have reiterated the opinion pieces I have read on the net. I apologize that you disagree with those opinions, but I was answering dayglored question about what people have said Apple should have done differently.
FYI - here is another article that says this was a botched launch - http://bgr.com/2015/04/16/apple-watch-release-date-availability/
I’m sure you’ll just call that more FUD. Congratulations on your overuse of that acronym.
What you fail to grasp is...
1. My initial comment on this thread was specifically designed to address the misdirection posted. The post didn’t address the meat of the article, instead it was about record profits and money in the back. A billionaire can still have one start up facing business issues. In this case, I’ve seen several articles suggesting this wasn’t Apple’s smoothest launch. That is apparently anathema to you. You still haven’t been able to answer the question I have posed to you twice: has Apple ever done anything wrong, ever? Anything at all? (BTW, your continued choice to ignore this question is in line with the way a paid social marketer would act. Answering questions like that are not in their mandate.)
2. My point about customization was completely misconstrued. Go back and read it again. It’s about have base units for sale in the store, not about a lack of customization.
3. I don’t really care THAT much about the launch to debate this much further.
Apple Garage Band?
Apple Garage Band?
ROTFLMAO!
You do know you are trying to tell an ex-CEO about basic management techniques. . . without knowing what you are talking about, don't you?
No, it isn't ever easy to predict demand for a new physical product. "404 testing" might be an OK approach for an online website, it will not prove anything for sales of a product.
It certainly would be a failure for Apple. 404 testing is junk when you are talking about people buying a physical product from a company such as Apple which generates clicks for anything. You really don't know what you are talking about. People come to Apple doing Looky-loo on anything that just mentions Apple.
More information on a potential Apple Watch would not provide a damn clue about how many would actually plunk down $350, $1000, much less $10,0000 for any product. This again shows you are ignorant about physical Apple product sales. . . Apple has never polled the public on any future product sales.
Again, when you or Wayne Williams have managed a product roll out anywhere near the scale of any Apple product, or any product roll out for that matter, then you can start throwing brickbats. Since neither of you have ever done such a thing, you don't have a clue what you are talking about.
And once again, you are assuming facts not in evidence. . . that the product roll out has failed. I do not see any such thing. EVERY Apple roll out has resulted in delayed delivery of products because of very high demand for those products. The iPhone 6 and 6 plus went two to three months on some variations after launch day because of huge demand. . . and the Apple Watch has not even reached launch day yet. This is nothing new.
You have no idea in the world what Apple is doing. None whatsoever. Zip! Nada! None. In this instance, neither do I because it is an entire different beat of a product. But you are building a castle in the air on absolutely no foundation except this article written be a guy with no business acumen at all. . . but who has a reputation of writing FUD about Apple.
Look at BetaNews primary focus and it might give you a hint they are Windows and Android centered:
BetaNews Hot Topics:
Do you see Apple anywhere on that list? Or Economics or business management? I don't. Wayne Williams biography lists Windows PC magazines and Gamer magazines. . . not one thing about Apple. Why do you believe anything Williams writes about Apple products? I've looked back on his previous articles and he has found nothing he likes about Apple.
Now your paragon of Apple information, Wayne Williams, has come up with this gem of mis-information in his latest anti-Apple screed on the Apple Watch release date (emphasis mine):
"Apple always limits the availability of new products at launch, so it can create an inflated illusion of popularity. The more popular something appears to be, the more people will want it. The harder it is to get, the more desirable it becomes, and so on."— SOURCE: Apple Watch is coming… but when? [Update: not any time soon] —Wayne Williams — April 17, 2015, BetaNews
Let's examine that load of false BS that Williams just unloaded on his readers.
When the iPhone 4 was sold, Apple sold and delivered THREE AND A HALF MILLION in the three days (Friday through Sunday), which was a world record for any consumer product in history. One year later, with the release of the iPhone 4, Apple broke its own world record by selling and delivering FIVE MILLION phones. On the release of the iPhone 5 and 5C, a year later, over NINE MILLION were sold and delivered to end users during the first three days . . . plus some that were sold for later delivery. Where was the illusion of popularity??? Nine million sales in 3 days is not illusory When the iPhone 6 and 6 plus were released, sales and DELIVERIES to end users topped TEN MILLION in the first three days. . . again breaking the world record. Apple went on sell 75 million of this model in just one quarter.
Again, where is this mythical attempt to "create illusory popularity" and hence demand. The demand is already there. Apple doesn't have to work hard to create a non-existent "illusion of popularity." You don't have to create an illusion of popularity when iOS products have already SOLD over 1.1 BILLION units in various versions to a user base that has a 98% customer satisfaction rating according to J.D. Powers. The popularity already exists.
Wayne Williams has no evidence for such an absurd claim. It simply is not true. He is obviously is one of those suffering from Apple Derangement Syndrome and makes these claims up out of his navel, and believes they just have to be true, because he cannot grasp why anyone would possibly like any Apple product. Wayne is pouring out FUD as fast as he can dance.
He does provide this information from a leaked internal memo from Apple:
Update: According to a leaked internal memo from Apple’s retail chief, Angela Ahrendts, Apple Watch won’t be available to purchase in-store for a good while to come. Here’s what she said:This is probably something you would not have included in your prior “analysis” of Windows insults vs Apple insults. I would.Team,On behalf of Tim and the rest of the executive team, I want to thank you very much for making last Friday’s debut of Apple Watch unforgettable. The Previews going on in our stores and support from our Contact Centers are unlike anything we have done before.
The feedback from customers is overwhelmingly positive. They are excited about Apple Watch, and your teams are creating fantastic experiences for them. Customers who pre-ordered will start receiving deliveries next Friday as planned, and I know you will do a great job helping them get set up.
Many of you have been getting questions asking if we will have the watch available in stores on April 24 for walk-in purchases. As we announced last week, due to high global interest combined with our initial supply, we are only taking orders online right now. I’ll have more updates as we get closer to in-store availability, but we expect this to continue through the month of May. It has not been an easy decision, and I want to share with you the thinking behind it.
It’s important to remember that Apple Watch is not just a new product but an entirely new category for us. There’s never been anything quite like it. To deliver the kind of service our customers have come to expect -- and that we expect from ourselves -- we designed a completely new approach. That’s why, for the first time, we are previewing a new product in our stores before it has started shipping.
Apple Watch is also our most personal product yet, with multiple case and band options because it’s an object of self-expression. Given the high interest and initial supply at launch, we will be able to get customers the model they want earlier and faster by taking orders online.
I know this is a different experience for our customers, and a change for you as well. Are we going to launch every product this way from now on? No. We all love those blockbuster Apple product launch days -- and there will be many more to come. They’re the moments where you, our teams, shine. And our customers love them as well!
Apple Watch is an exciting new product and we are at the start of a very exciting time at Apple. You’re the best team on earth and you are doing an amazing job.
For customers who want to buy a watch, please continue to help them place their order online. Also make sure they know that, wherever they buy, Apple will provide them with a great Personal Setup experience -- either online or in our stores. This includes syncing their Apple Watch with their iPhone and teaching them about all the incredible features of their new Apple Watch.
Thank you very much again, and I look forward to seeing you soon.
No, I would and did. . . as a mild insult and attack. It is a mild rebuke. Yes, you have garnered that as you and one other are the only ones on this thread who are continuing to beat this dead horse. . . without any evidence that Apple has mis-managed a completely new product release which has a new product offering paradigm, when it has not even happened yet, and when you have nothing better to offer.
You don't use the products, you don't shop at the stores, you don't own the stock, and so far, I have seen you offer nothing positive in any Apple thread.. I refer you back to dayglored's list of why people who meet those criteria come on Apple threads for the reason you must be here, bolobaby. Everything I've seen you post about Apple on these threads has been negative or assuming the worst.
So what? You don’t have to be a customer or a fan to recognize money when you see it.
Wow... so... way too much to read there, so my response is based on not reading the entire book presented.
Again, though, you take an example I gave to show innovative ways to predict demand and make the ridiculous assumption that I would recommend that for the iWatch. *It was an example.* I’m sorry you failed to grasp that. You do make it sound, however, like the vaunted Apple has NO techniques in their quiver for properly forecasting demand.
So, according to you, we have the most successful company in the history of the world, with more money on hand than they can possibly count, but they can’t hire the right product and analytics people to figure out demand for a product?
Oooookay.
I did go back and skim through most of it, but, you wrote...
“You don’t use the products, you don’t shop at the stores, you don’t own the stock, and so far, I have seen you offer nothing positive in any Apple thread...”
Herein lies the problem. You’ve somehow lumped me into some group of people that I’m not.
I have repeatedly stated that we actually DO have at least two Apple products still in the house. I have repeatedly stated that I actually HAVE owned and used an iPhone in the past, but now prefer my Samsung. I have stated on a couple of occasions that I HAVE owned Apple stock in the past (but do not currently own). And while it is true that I’ve never been in an Apple store, I also don’t go shopping that much at all.
Also, my comments on this thread ALONE contradict your statement that I have nothing positive to offer about Apple. In this thread I have openly acknowledged that Apple is usually spectacular at product launches. I also indicated that their launches usually are accompanied by great logistics and optics. Hint: Those are compliments on the way they usually conduct business.
By comparison, despite me asking multiple times, “Has Apple ever done anything wrong?” you never deviate from the pro-Apple line, not even to acknowledge a single fault. They are the Jesus Christ of corporations according to your posts.
Now - for the sake of sanity, I give up, now and forever. I do not think you will ever stop long enough to realize that *I am not the enemy*. I am *not an Apple hater*. I am NOT any of the things you assume I am, despite my frequent corrections. I am simply someone who like to analyze things without Baghdad Bob glasses on.
I give up.
And you have been told, both by me and others, that I post both negative and positive articles on Apple. . . yet YOU ignore this and continue with the same litany above. . . repeatedly bashing me.
Well, I'm not one of those folks, so we can set that aside, you and I.
> 1. With previous launches, people actually left the store with the swag. It created great scenes on the street of people joyously opening their boxes or running around hold their box over their head like a trophy.
Yes. My uninformed guess is that Apple -may- have wanted that sort of scene, but couldn't pull it off for some reason. Maybe the product wasn't ready, and they felt they couldn't delay the launch sufficiently to cover it. Remember Microsoft's Vista debacle? They were many years late because of technical problems. But the reason that the Vista launch was considered flawed was not just that it was late, but the product was pretty egregious. If Apple's Watch is similarly egregious, we'll hear about it soon enough. But that hasn't come to pass yet. I'm holding the thought that they found it took longer than expected to get to a product that could be sold in quantity without serious problems. And that is the CORRECT decision, managerially. You don't release a crap product just because your calendar says you have to -- you take the heat and get it as right as you can.
I might have waited longer, so that people -could- leave the store with the swag. But I'm not Tim Cook.
> 2. Apple is touting the watch as an extremely “personal” device, but the only way to get one right now is to order it online - a very impersonal way of shopping.
I consider that a crap complaint. I order Chanel "Chance" perfume, an expensive and VERY personal gift for my fiancee, over the internet. You know what? It smells the same on her as if I had bought it at a fancy boutique in the Big City. The Watch might be "personal" but there are damn few who give a crap how they get it. This complaint is fantasy in the mind of the blogger.
> 3. The “try one on” process feels like a letdown. a) Because some locations don’t have the correct fit in style the consumer is really looking for and b) it creates a non-impulse buy scenario.
Not having enough product on hand is an error on Apple's part. They should have had a bazillion of these ready to go. They played it safe, in this case, an error.
> 4. There’s a bunch of complaints about the logistics being way too conservative. Something about only 200k units originally created or something. People think that the logistics will take too long to catch up to potential demand, which may temper *long term* demand.
Same comment as #3.
> Bottom line is that people (mostly Apple fans, actually) are asking “why would I rush down to the store to see something I can’t actually own right now?”
Yeah, that's valid I guess. I might feel that way myself, were I interested in a Watch.
> The thoughts I’ve read is that Apple would have been wiser to create a wide-appeal base unit that they could have put in the store, then allowed for customized options for the discriminating shopper.
That's not a bad idea. Matter of judgment, with 20-20 hindsight.
> Again - this is what I’ve read from the various articles where consumers are disappointed with the launch. I haven’t been near an Apple store in god-knows-how long.
Well, as we all know, the data you get from a survey depends mightily on whom you survey and how many of them you talk to. If you go by the "articles where consumers are disappointed with the launch", then by definition you're going to get the impression the launch was a failure. But it ain't over, and I have not seen a majority of Watch customers talking about how disappointed they are. Not yet anyway.
I'll wait for the launch to be mostly over before I evaluate it as a success or failure. Monetarily it's a screaming success, of course, but that's not what we're talking about. We're discussing "perception".
> (I also went to a mall for the first time in, like, three months this past weekend. Like I typical guy, though, when I go to a mall, it’s with a mission for a specific purchase.) There seems to be enough of these articles to support the notion that - *COMPARATIVELY SPEAKING* - Apple has not executed this launch as well as previous launches.
Well, for now I'll certainly agree that it's quite different from previous launches. And I would have done a few things more like in previous launches myself.
Let's see how it all shakes out. Apple customers vote with their pocketbooks like anybody else. If the Watch and its launch are a failure, it'll be obvious as hell in a few months at most.
But when you post the negative article, you put a positive spin on it, *always.* That's the part I see, at least, that drew out the Baghdad Bob comparison. For example, below are the last ten "negative" postings on Apple you put up. Virtually all of them are spun to the point where - when juxtaposed like this - modest men would be embarrassed at the transparency of it all.
Article: Lots of Apple Watch Listings on eBay Are Attracting Zero Bids
Your translation: "eBay Apple Watch profiteers are not finding it easy picking to sell Apple Watches for huge windfall profits to eager early adopters."
Spin: This is not a lack of interest, this is failed profiteering.
Article: iPhone, iPad and Mac bug could allow hackers to remotely launch DoS attack
Your translation: "Kaspersky "finds" an already closed vulnerability in iOS 8 and OS X. This vulnerability was closed in the OS X.10.3 and iOS 8.3 updates . . . and it was included in Apple's list of security fixes. Quite an amazing "discovery" on Kaspersky's part."
Spin: Apple didn't make a mistake originally, they FIXED one already. They are so far ahead of the game, that I should mock Kaspersky by putting their "finds" in quotes. (But... uh... if you haven't upgraded already... you might wanna.)
Article: Apple iCult spurns Steve Jobs values: Ex-employee reveals 'toxic culture' at headquarters
Your translation: A single source article written by a journalist who has never had anything positive to say about Apple based on a screed from a blogger, supposedly written by an ex-Apple employee castigating the horrors of working in the slave driven iCult Apple headquarters. "Is it a coincidence that the new Apple Campus looks like a giant spaceship?" (Ben) Farrell wrote. "Maybe the plan is for everyone to drink poisoned 'Kool-Aid' before ascending to the mother ship." It certainly is FUD SEASON! — PING!
Spin: PAY NO ATTENTION TO THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN. Obviously "FUD," your favorite acronym if the article is negative.
Article: Many Users Reporting Touch ID Not Working in App Store on iOS 8.3
Your translation: A small number of user of IPhone 5s, 6, 6plus and iPad Air 2 are reporting a minor bug with TouchID not working only with Apple's online store after upgrading to iOS 8.3. Anyone experiencing this? I just bought two iBooks using it with no problems PING!
Spin: Article says "many," but I will say "small" because I haven't personally experienced it! I will also be sure to categorize the bug as minor, even though "minor" bugs often go unreported. Stuff that affects user experience or blocks usage is actually categorized as Medium or higher in the IT world.
Article: Stanford Lecturer On Apple's Innovation Drought
Your translation: [Original Ping seems to be gone, but your comments speak for themselves. You dismiss everything in the article]
Spin: You basically dismiss the whole article.
Article: Italy prosecutors wrap up tax probe into Apple: sources
Your translation: "The Italian authorities have wrapped up their probe into Apple's tax practices. . . and found they are in compliance with the EU's Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development which established the rules of taxation between member countries. Italy was upset that the EU's taxation rules does not allow them to tax Apple unitarily in contravention of the EU laws — PING!"
Spin: This one is laughable, actually. The probe was for 2008-2013. Apple issued a statement about 2007-2009 and you twisted Apple's statement regarding that time frame to be the result of this investigation. Actually, with the inquiry complete, the article says they can now decide whether to prosecute. There is nothing in there that indicates a decision has been made by authorities that Apple was in compliance for the entire period investigated.
Article: Apple Posts Security Update 2015-003, iPhoto 9.6.1 Updates
Your translation: "Apple releases OS X 2015-003 Security update to fix a glitch in last week's Security patch OS X 2015-002. . . which did not quite get everything on all Macs. Also an update to iPhoto. — PING!"
Spin: Interestingly, you didn't have to spin this one too bad... because the very first lines of the article did it for you! "Don't these people ever rest???" It's not that Apple released something with a security flaw. It's that they fixed it. They're soooo diligent and lovely!
Article: Is Apple Cheating On The Dividends?
Your translation: "Another example of a CLICKBAIT article title that is not supported by the article itself. . . and this one did actual financial damage by implying evil intent to Apple in deciding the amount of the dividends the company pays. . . while the article is actually about Apple may be recalculating their dividend rate. Apple has been buying back stock as an alternate way of returning value to stockholders. The article is serious analysis, the title is FUD. — PING!"
Spin: The summary of the analysis actually indicates that Apple dividends ARE falling behind. Nonetheless, cue your favorite acronym - FUD!
Article: Apple Removes Intego's 'VirusBarrier' From iOS App Store, Says It's Misleading
Your translation: Apple is pulling iOS Anti-Virus apps from the Apple iOS App store because iOS is not susceptible to viruses. . . and the Apps only scan for non-iOS malware. . . and Apple decided that was misleading. — PING!
Spin: iOS is NOT SUSCEPTIBLE! LOL. Maybe current versions have patched, but not all devices are on the current version! 6 months ago - http://www.cnet.com/news/apple-ios-bug-lets-fake-apps-sneak-onto-iphones-ipads/ iOS was susceptible for this unknown threat then - who is to say what they don't know now?
Article: Chrome, Firefox, Explorer, Safari were all hacked at Pwn2Own contest
Your translation: All major browsers hacked in 2015 Pwn2Own White Hat Hacking including Safari, Internet Explorer, Chrome, and Firefox — PING!
Spin: Well, no real spin here, but a favorite tactic of the Apple crowd. When a vulnerability is exposed, be quick to point out that all the others have vulnerabilities too. (This tactic has extended to Tim Cook's support of the a certain "agenda." The default position is to say, "They all do it!" rather than say, "He does support that, and I *do* disapprove and think it is wrong.")
That's just the last ten. I could keep going back and it would continue on for as long as you have been social marketing... uh... posting here. How could /anyone/ possibly think you act like Baghdad Bob, right?
All reasonable observations with which I agree. Thanks!
Unfortunately, tonight I only have time for that comment/reply. I too am getting burnt out on this topic. And my VP Eng left me email earlier tonight requesting something which, because I'm traveling the next two days, I have to work on now, tonight. Damn.
So that's all from me on this one at least until the Watch launch gets further along. I am curious how it all shakes out.
'Night, all.
The approaches were not remotely similar. Yours was not dismissive.
Not one of my takes on those articles is false, bolobaby. I stand by them. . . and they were proved out in subsequent days. The only one in which my take turned out wrong was the one on Russian Siri . . . and i am still not convinced about that one. I have not seen proof from Russia or independent corroboration beyond the original video on YouTube. . . only reports that all seem to be coming from the same group. . . who are also it seems the source of the "quotes" attributed to Apple on Apple "fixing" a bug.
On your first example from the eBay article, I explained my position and it was backed up by other Freepers who found the same thing and even expanded on it. Nothing there.
Second article is exactly as I described it. Kaspersky "found" a vulnerability that Apple had patched. There is no other way to describe it. They have done this before. . . reported vulnerabilities that they claim to have FOUND after it is patched by the company involved, and implying they discovered it. I find it amusing and misleading. YOUR reading into my post that I implied that Apple did not "make a mistake originally" was neither in my statement nor need it have been. It is obvious that Apple had to patch the Kernel of OS X. YOU are the one needing to BASH Apple for making a mistake. I have never claimed Apple is perfect. Only you Apple bashers have ever claimed I have.
Third article. . . my take was also an exact description of the source article. IT WAS a single source screed slamming Apple without support or evidence. . . using innuendo and slurs. YOU are the one who apparently believes every word of it with your "PAY NO ATTENTION TO THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN" as if he is really there. . . yet again, no one came forward to corroborate this yahoo's claims. . . whose duties did not hold water with the position he claims to have held. I again stand on my analysis.
Next article on the "TouchID not working after update to iOS 8.3". Have you heard of ANY MORE COMPLAINTS????? Neither have I. Again, my analysis was right on the money, not yours. My experience with these articles trumps your desire that I should post these and be breathless with panic and claim that there is a huge serious problem. . . when my experience with these reports over TEN YEARS of posting these threads is that there simply is nothing to worry about. I said so.
Innovation Drought. . . yeah. . . one of the Apple Hate Brigade hit the abuse on my Ping to the list. . . why? I have no idea. But the guy demonstrated in his article he did not have even a basic grasp of Apple history, making egregious errors of dates, numbers, and even product names. It was amazing for a so-called Lecturer in business. . . but his so called expertise was that he had taken a company that already existed (and claimed he had founded it) from $4 million to $1.5 billion in 10 years. . . with a SINGLE product by merely acquiring other companies. He seemed to think that gave him some gravitas to tell Apple what they were doing wrong in innovation, when he had never innovated anything in his business career. . . and the commentary on his article from knowledgeable people called him on the same thing. I AM an economist and also an ex-CEO and am qualified to slap his poorly researched position down. . . which I did.
Apple's tax in Europe. . . I did not twist anything. Apple was cleared of wrong doing in Italy. They cooperated with the Italian authorities. Apple also issued a statement showing they had not changed their tax policies from their 2007-2009 policies. So there is nothing laughable about it. They were put under a forensic accountant microscope and passed. YOU are spinning. . . implying that the Italian authorities somehow missed something or were somehow bamboozled by Apple's 2007-2009 statement. Good Grief, you will grasp at straws to smear me. I have followed this case since it's inception. I know what i am talking about. YOU obviously DON'T.
Next article: Clickbait dividends. How else can you characterize this article. . . no one else every supported this bozo's thesis. Apple is under no obligation to issue dividends at all. . . and under Steve Jobs did not. The facts are that Apple has returned more capital to stock holders in the form of dividends and stock buy backs (more than $225 billion in the last three years) than any company in history. This bozo is complaining because they have not done more? Other analysts came to the same conclusion I did. . . clickbait FUD. . . not worth the time to respond.
Then you attack my comment on Apple removing anti-virus from the iOS store. And use what you call an exploit you obviously do not understand at all as an example of "fake Apps sneaking on to iOS" as an example of iOS not being safe. No, bolobaby, that was not what happened. It was that they used a FEATURE of iOS to sneak fake apps on by convincing Chinese users to sign-up with FAKE APP STORES using the iOS BUSINESS feature that allows a business to download custom apps for their employees onto iPhones. It requires the user to ACTIVELY turn on that feature. No anti-virus could stop that. It was neither unknown, nor malware. . . just some unscrupulous Chinese retailers convincing customers to buy grey market iPhones they had turned that feature on that hooked up to their app stores. SHEESH! There is NO malware in the wild for iOS phones, iPads, ZIP, None.
This is what I mean by you spreading FUD when you post. You don't know the facts around what you post. . . but you post anyway.
And finally you attack me for posting correct data that rebutted another Freepers claim that Apple ALWAYS lost the white hat contests. . . since lately that simply is not true. I posted the accurate facts and YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT???? Wow!
I post the FACTS and link to them. I post my opinion, but you don't want me to have an opinion because it differs from your distorted hate opinion. That seems to be a fact too. Well, too bad. I stand by my facts, my knowledge which i have gained through experience and study, and my opinions gained also from experience and study. Yours seem to come from myth and spreaders of Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt. Most of the time, easily rebutted.
The members of the Ping list seem to appreciate my considered opinion on these threads. I get it that you don't. Great. Have a nice weekend.
“The members of the Ping list seem to appreciate my considered opinion on these threads.”
Could you add me to this Ping list please? You know what you’re talking about.
Thanks for the vote of confidence, tech guy. I appreciate it. You’ve been added to the Apple/Mac/iOS ping list. Enjoy.
The watch is a failure when it’s touted as the end all be all prop-up for 2015 by a listless, non-diversified single product corporation run by a militant hippy queer.
You can be sure that any company doing that will fail.
And there you have it.
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