How to Milk an Apple
"Going by the numbers, Apple Computer Inc. (AAPL) appears headed for trouble again. While CEO Steven P. Jobs engineered a remarkable comeback after retaking the helm in 1997, one-time expenses, such as plant closures, have pushed the company into the red for two quarters running. For the one ended Dec. 28, Apple reported a net loss of $8 million on revenues of $1.47 billion, vs. a profit of $38 million a year ago. Worse, Apple's share of the U.S. PC market is hovering around 3.5%, according to IDC analyst David Daoud. That's down from 13.4% a decade ago and 4.2% in the year after Jobs returned.
But fear not, Mac faithful: Apple may never again pose a threat to Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and its PC allies, but its niche is safe. In the $160 billion PC market, a 3% market share should be enough to fund Apple's research-and-development push. So long as Macolytes keep paying Apple's high prices, its 28% gross margins should far exceed PC rivals--especially if it keeps expanding its portfolio with non-PC products such as the iPod MP3 music player. 'The battle for market share ended 10 years ago,' says UBS Securities analyst Don Young. 'But there's a place in the PC world for an innovation leader,'" writes Peter Burrows for BusinessWeek....more [BusinessWeek]
Sometimes I just have to wonder what my fellow Mac users did to get so angery. So this writer puts out a story that is positive about Apple making it even though it has a low market share. The key is, as long as Apple can make money, and as long as software gets developed, their fine. So what do my fellow Mac users do, they go into a spittle spraying rage attacking the author since they either can't read, or can't accpet simple facts. Some decided that saying the iPod was non-PC meant that the author didn't understand that that the iPod can be used with a Windows machine.
Please read the article next time and try to actually understand it before you react, sheesh...mj
10:42:55 PM 
|
|
