Boy, Tim Cook sure did choose a neat moment to talk about Microsoft and other Apple competitors and what he believes is a lack of innovation from other technology companies.
The Apple CEO gave these statements to Bloomberg, and they were published yesterday.
Call it sweet, sweet coincidence, but Microsoft had also scheduled its financial analyst meeting yesterday, and took time out to respond to Cook’s outburst.
Qi Lu, the executive vice president at Microsoft commented on his company’s approach and clarified that Redmond was not actually copying Apple. During the Q&A session that followed the keynotes, Lu said that what Microsoft is doing right now is nothing but driving innovation.
If anything, Windows 8.1 is proof of it, the executive said:
“One is we’re gaining share. Number two, we’re driving innovation. So we have a set of product ideas we think truly differentiate our search experience. In Windows 8.1 we’ll deliver; they haven’t tried it. We have a complete new way of seamlessly integrating search with information on the devices.”
However, Lu did admit that while Microsoft is still looking for profitability, the company is also focused on innovation and wants to revolutionize technology as much as possible while reaching this goal:
“Your question is about the profitability. For my organization we’re hard-core. Essentially we’re absolutely committed, always monotonically making progress towards profitability, driving always to. Volumes we’re gaining share, we obviously have more volume.”
So that’s that, I guess.
To be brutally honest, Apple is focused more on refinement than innovation. And the same can be said for Microsoft in many aspects. Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 may not exactly be innovative products, but with each passing update they are being refined and optimized.
There still is place for innovation in technology, lots of it, true. But it often comes down to offering a silky smooth user experience, while at the same time making technology accessible for everyone.
All Comments
Cook just doesn’t want to what happen to Apple in the PC market to happen in mobile. They were “first” there, but other companies came in and took up the market. People are willing to buy phones and tablets in high volumes at high prices. If that ever changes, and people start keeping phones and tablets as long as they keep say a laptop or start finding Apple’s prices not worth the money, those guys are in trouble.
Well Ray, that’s already happening or changing. Apple has being surpassed by Samsung in the mobile and tablets high end business, even when it comes to revenue and profitability. Even Microsoft has a chance now to surpass Apple, even if this is in market share only. It is already a fact that Windows phones are overtaking the Iphone in different markets around the world. WP is second in market share in South America, Russia, India, Mexico and so. In some countries like Sweden or Finland WP is number one, even in the business community. The prognosis for Microsoft WP is to overtake the Iphone market share globally by 2016 or 2017. If the new Iphones can change this development is a big questionmark, since Timmy Cookie is still ignoring the emerging markets. Google is going down the low cost road mostly and has surpassed Apple, at least in global market share.
Microsoft and Nokia are targetting every end (high, middle and low end), which is a threat to the Iphone, especially in emerging markets. In the PC market it’s just like you said: Microsoft has overtaken Apple’s Imacs and has since grew their market share to 93% of the PC market. The last 10 years we have seen no real change in the dominance of Windows PC in the global market share. This means that Apples I-Mac sales have suffered just as much as Windows PC’s from the economic crisis. Apple has 6%. Apple is not really innovating, that’s why the Iphone 5 did not sell very well. The 5S en 5C are not very innovative and they are copying a lot from say Nokia. A new and faster chip is not really innovative, neither is a new slew of color phones or new colored interface. It’s getting harder for Apple to really innovate.
iOS7’s flat design is a joke. It copies win8’s flat design and is worse. But I am sure those iSheep will still praise iOS7s flat UI.
Well Ray, that’s already happening or changing. Apple has being surpassed by Samsung in the mobile and tablets high end business, even when it comes to revenue and profitability. Even Microsoft has a chance now to surpass Apple, even if this is in market share only. It is already a fact that Windows phones are overtaking the Iphone in different markets around the world. WP is second in market share in South America, Russia, India, Mexico and so. In some countries like Sweden or Finland WP is number one, even in the business community. The prognosis for Microsoft WP is to overtake the Iphone market share globally by 2016 or 2017. If the new Iphones can change this development is a big questionmark, since Timmy Cookie is still ignoring the emerging markets. Google is going down the low cost road mostly and has surpassed Apple, at least in global market share.
Microsoft and Nokia are targetting every end (high, middle and low end), which is a threat to the Iphone, especially in emerging markets. In the PC market it’s just like you said: Microsoft has overtaken Apple’s Imacs and has since grew their market share to 93% of the PC market. The last 10 years we have seen no real change in the dominance of Windows PC in the global market share. This means that Apples I-Mac sales have suffered just as much as Windows PC’s from the economic crisis. Apple has 6%. Apple is not really innovating, that’s why the Iphone 5 did not sell very well. The 5S en 5C are not very innovative and they are copying a lot from say Nokia. A new and faster chip is not really innovative, neither is a new slew of color phones or new colored interface. It’s getting harder for Apple to really innovate.
come on now. Apple had the ribbon first! Who is more innovative isn’t the question for me, it is which product fits my needs. There are many examples of art that is extremely innovative that I wouldn’t want on my wall.