On Thu, Jun 21, 2012 at 4:43 AM, Alan Bourke <alanpbou...@fastmail.fm> wrote: > > The difference is that Microsoft had and has a virtual monopoly on the > desktop. Apple does not have anything like a monopoly in the mobile or > any other space.
Well, I think, too, it is a matter of deciding what business you are in and making it clear how other companies can engage with you. Until recently, AAPL was "Apple Computer" a company that made computers and included software on them. The iPhone/iPod/iPad were still primarily (premium-priced, beautifully designed) hardware, although the add-on market (iTunes) turned into a monster of a moneymaker and transformed the company. But they have been focused on being the hardware designer for the digital lifestyle. MSFT, Micro... what? Micro... SOFT started as a software company writing BASIC interpreters, reselling XENIX and occasionally dabbling in hardware (add-on boards for mice, CPM cards, then mice and keyboards), but it's been software, especially Windows and Office, that has been the vast majority of MS's revenue. They've diversified into lots of things, as an enterprise of their size should, from MSN to Hotmail to Azure. They sell development tools to get OEMs to write apps that run on their OSes, but the focus has been licenses for their OS and Office products. So add-on markets for Apple have been focused on accessories for their hardware and apps that run on their hardware and software. Microsoft third-party markets have been apps that run on their OS, and hardware that hosts their OS. Apple tried going the OEM route, licensing their hardware to run their OS. It didn't take long for them to realize they were giving away their specialty and diluting the value of their products. It will be interesting to see what comes next. -- Ted Roche Ted Roche & Associates, LLC http://www.tedroche.com _______________________________________________ Post Messages to: ProFox@leafe.com Subscription Maintenance: http://leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profox OT-free version of this list: http://leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profoxtech Searchable Archive: http://leafe.com/archives/search/profox This message: http://leafe.com/archives/byMID/profox/cacw6n4uxzbzfam+_pju7aeedimq4yymqtzzo0apnmj3gg2h...@mail.gmail.com ** All postings, unless explicitly stated otherwise, are the opinions of the author, and do not constitute legal or medical advice. This statement is added to the messages for those lawyers who are too stupid to see the obvious.
