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Study: 38% of iPhone customers come from RIM, Android
With sales of iPhones still booming, you might be wondering where all of those customers are coming from. Philip Elmer-DeWitt at Fortune is citing an April survey by the Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) that shows that more iPhones were sold to consumers leaving Apple's competitors than to owners of earlier iPhone models. Data from CIRP indicate that 42 percent of iPhone buyers in April were switching from another smartphone, up from 36 percent in February. 38 percent of those buyers were switching from either Android or BlackBerry -- that's up from 29 percent in February. Buyers who were coming from a feature phone or who had never owned a mobile phone before accounted for 24 percent of the buyers, while 34 percent were upgrading from an earlier model of the iPhone. Just after the iPhone 4S launched last October, that number was at about 71 percent.
Considering how Tim Cook is changing Apple
Adam Lashinsky, Sr. of Fortune takes an interesting look at Tim Cook and how the new CEO is changing Apple. He spends a great deal of time writing about Cook's business practices and the philosophy that'll shape the Apple of the future. Lashinsky writes, In general, Apple has become slightly more open and considerably more corporate. In some cases Cook is taking action that Apple sorely needed and employees badly wanted. It's almost as if he is working his way through a to-do list of long-overdue repairs the previous occupant (Jobs) refused to address for no reason other than obstinacy. He also talks about Cook's relationship with Apple employees and presents Cook as a much more approachable leader than Steve Jobs who was "simultaneously revered, loved, and feared." You can read the entire article on Fortune's website.
Apple climbs to 17 on Fortune 500 list
Fortune released the Fortune 500 list for 2012, and Apple is now in the top 20 of the list of the largest U.S. corporations in the #17 spot. That's a vast improvement from last year's ranking at 35. Apple has a way to go to get into the top five, which is populated by such famous names as Exxon Mobil, Wal-mart Stores, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, and General Motors. HP was the top tech business in the list at #10, while perennial Fortune 500 place sitter IBM came in behind Apple in the #19 spot. Somewhere, Steve Jobs must be smiling... In Fortune's industry grouping for "Computers, Office Equipment", HP took the top spot, Apple the second place, and Dell, Xerox, NCR and Pitney Bowes followed the leaders. In case you're wondering where old arch-rivals Microsoft and Dell showed up, they were at spots 37 and 44 respectively. Intel was out of the top 50 in spot number 51, and Google followed the pack in the #73 spot.
Survey: 24% of Americans plan to buy the new iPad in the next three months
While all surveys should be viewed with a skeptical eye, a recent study from Baird Equity Research should make Apple watchers happy. As reported by Fortune's Philip Elmer-DeWitt, the survey of 488 "younger, tech-savvier" online respondents by Baird showed some surprising results. The first result showed that 24 percent of respondents plan to buy the new iPad. If that result is applied to the entire American population, then Apple had better get the plants in China and Brazil fired up, because they'll need to produce about 75,180,000 iPads just to keep the US market happy. The next surprising result of the survey showed that 29 percent of international respondents planned to purchase the new iPad within the next three months. That figure should also keep the Foxconn factories working overtime. Other information points provided by the survey include that 48 percent of existing iPad owners plan to purchase a new iPad, including 35 percent of those who already own an iPad 2. 15 percent of the US respondents said that they'd like to purchase the newly discounted iPad 2, while 28 percent said that they would purchase an iPad instead of a laptop. Sure, 488 respondents is a small sampling, but the numbers certainly point towards a banner year for iPad sales.
Apple Stores and Microsoft Stores by the numbers
TUAW readers know from a series of posts we've run over the years that Microsoft has been opening self-branded stores throughout the U.S., usually just a stone's throw away from well-trafficked Apple Stores. Fortune's JP Mangalindan took a metaphorical bullet for the sake of a story and visited both the Microsoft Store and Apple Store in Santa Clara, California. What the reporter found was that while Microsoft is doing its best to emulate the look, feel and success of the Apple retail outlet, there are differences in the way that things are done. Mangalindan obviously had fun with his visits, listing the number of customers (14 at the Microsoft Store, 40 at the Apple Store), the number of employees on the floor (11 for Microsoft, 35 for Apple), and such questions as "Employees who said I wouldn't like the laptop I was looking at" (1 at the Microsoft Store, 0 at the Apple Store). My favorite part of the article was the response Mangalindan received from employees at each store when he told them that he was also looking at Macs -- "We're priced more competitively. What about this Ultrabook from ASUS? It's slim, light, and sexy" -- or at the Apple Store, also looking at PCs -- "Bro, they may be cheaper, but Apple's all about quality. Our customer service can't be beat. [fist bump]" While we've seen no definitive word on exactly how successful Microsoft's retail strategy is, we know that Microsoft is being almost fanatical about moving into the retail arena. TUAW has heard multiple accounts from Apple Store employees who have been approached by Microsoft to switch teams and go to work at Microsoft Stores; in some cases, the Microsoft offers have reflected dramatic bumps in salary over the comparable positions at the Apple stores. Have you had a good, bad or indifferent experience at either an Apple or Microsoft Store? Let your fellow readers know about it in the comments below.
Apple is Fortune's Most Admired Company for fifth year in a row
For the fifth year in a row, Apple has taken the honors as Fortune's Most Admired Company. Apple aced out Google, Amazon.com, Coca-Cola, and IBM. Those companies that took second through fifth places respectively. Fortune cited Apple's stellar financial performance during the last year as the main reason for the company coming in at number one on the list: "The company's annual revenues climbed to US$108 billion, led by an 81% increase in iPhone sales -- a jump that doesn't factor in the runaway success of the iPhone 4S -- and a 334% spike in iPad sales, due in no small part to the revamped iPad 2. Increased sales across the board explain why shares soared 75% during the company's fiscal year to $495." This year's win ties General Electric for the number of appearances at the top of the Most Admired Company list. One more win in 2013 will put Apple at the top of the heap for years to come. You can read about Apple's wins in 2011 and 2010 by clicking these links.
Gazillion shutting down Fortune Online
Gazillion's new Fortune Online title is headed for the scrap heap, according to our friends at Joystiq. The Diablo-style browser MMO was born of a desire to simplify dungeon crawling for casual gamers, but apparently it's taking too much time (and too many resources) away from Gazillion's Marvel projects. "We will continue delivering and refining content for Super Hero Squad Online, along with building and developing the Marvel Heroes game," a Gazillion spokesman told Joystiq. The firm also denied speculation that it is preparing for a Disney acquisition, and it declined to announce a timetable or job losses resulting from the Fortune closure. [Thanks to Space Cobra for the tip!]
Inside Apple describes Scott Forstall as Apple's CEO-in-waiting
Apple CEO Tim Cook is an excellent business manager and responsible for much of the company's success in low-cost manufacturing and skinny inventories. But as we saw with Cook's first product announcement on October 4, he lacks a lot of the charisma that marked the Steve Jobs era. A new book is now saying that senior vice president Scott Forstall is the most likely person on the Apple executive team to become CEO after Cook's reign ends. The book by Adam Lashinsky, Inside Apple: How America's Most Admired -- and Secretive -- Company Really Works, is a deep dive inside of the operation of the company by a Fortune magazine columnist. The book is scheduled to be released next week (appropriately during Macworld | iWorld) and is based on scores of interviews with "collaborators, competitors, and former employees." Lashinsky notes that Forstall has many of the traits that would make him an excellent choice for the next CEO. He's young (currently 43), comfortable on stage, worked at Jobs' NeXT before moving to Apple, and shares the Jobs obsession with small details. One entrepreneur told Lashinsky that Forstall is "...a sharp, down-to-earth, and talented engineer, and a more-than-decent presenter. He's the total package." Of course, it could be years before Cook decides to step down, but in the meantime Forstall has time to hone his skills and build even more influence inside the company. Considering that he runs the highly-successful iOS software division, that influence is accumulating quickly.
Grand Central Terminal Apple Store previewed for media, opens Friday
Apple previewed its latest retail development for the press today. The Grand Central Terminal store in New York City, opening Friday, will be among the largest Apple stores in the world; it overlooks the Main Concourse from the East and North East balconies of Grand Central Terminal. %Gallery-141279% Check out the gallery of inside shots above, courtesy of NPD's Ross Rubin. He reports that the store includes an "express checkout" area ("like an Apple Store inside the Apple Store") and dual Genius Bars. Business Insider posted some nice shots of what the store looks like on the inside and Fortune has a video walkthrough, embedded below. As an extra bonus to commuters, Apple is providing free Wi-Fi throughout the terminal. Also, the store will be the first to offer 15-minute Express Workshops of "tips and tricks in a streamlined format to serve customers on a tight schedule," according to a press release issued by Apple this morning. The Grand Central Terminal store opens to the public this Friday, December 9, at 10 AM. Over three hundred Apple employees will be on hand to help the expected rush of holiday shoppers. Normal business hours will be from 7 AM to 9 PM, Monday through Friday; Saturday 10 AM to 7 PM, and Sunday 11 AM to 6 PM. Our own Mike Rose will be scoping out the opening; if you see him on Friday, say hello (he'll be the guy in the TUAW t-shirt).
Steve Jobs in 1995: "I've got a plan that could rescue Apple"
Yesterday we told you that Fortune was publishing a Kindle ebook called "All About Steve." The ebook is a collection of 17 stories and interviews with Steve Jobs drawn from Fortune's articles. Now, while it's nice that Fortune is collecting all their interviews in one place, its no shock they are doing this either. After all, its previous Kindle-only, Apple-themed title, "Inside Apple," landed on the Kindle top ten bestseller list and earned a boatload of money. For those of you who don't want to shell out $10.99 for an ebook of reprinted articles, Apple 2.0 editor Philip Elmer-Dewitt has pulled some choice clips from some of the Fortune interviews. The best quote, however, is one that have heard before. In 1995 Steve Jobs told Fortune's Brent Schlender, "You know, I've got a plan that could rescue Apple. But nobody there will listen to me..." As was always the case, Steve Jobs wasn't just blowing smoke. Just two years later Jobs was back at the company and led the greatest turnaround in corporate history. Apple was transformed from a company on the brink of self-destruction into one of the most respected, recognizable and valuable companies in the world.
Fortune publishes 'All About Steve' ebook featuring Jobs
If you can't wait another two months for Walter Isaacson's official Steve Jobs biography, Fortune has you covered with All About Steve, a collection of 17 stories drawn from Fortune's articles. Available as a Kindle ebook at a list price of US$10.99, the collection features stories that "are the product of deep reporting" according to Fortune's description, including some which are the product of interviews with Jobs himself. While this ebook is available exclusively from Amazon, it's not just viewable on Amazon's own Kindle. Downloading the free Kindle app for the Mac or iOS devices will allow you to read All About Steve on the Apple hardware of your choice. As this collection is "drawn from the pages of Fortune" it's unlikely to contain any brand-new content, but it should nonetheless be a diverting read for those interested in the man who played such a huge role in reversing Apple's fortunes over the past decade. Meanwhile, Walter Isaacson's biography of Steve Jobs should be released on November 21.
Fortune story goes 'Inside Apple'
Although subscribers to the print edition of Fortune magazine can get the full issue on their iPads this month, the rest of us may have to wait a bit -- or head to the local newsstand -- to read Adam Lashinsky's feature 'Inside Apple,' which relays several previously-untold anecdotes and company traditions. Fortune's Philip Elmer-DeWitt over at Apple 2.0 has the preview, noting these tidbits: Steve Jobs apparently tore the entire MobileMe team a new one in a town hall meeting after the flaky, foulup-filled launch of the .Mac replacement alongside the iPhone 3G in 2008. "You should hate each other for having let each other down," he reportedly said, along with several less-printable comments. Teambuilding 101! Jobs holds "Top 100" offsite meetings for staff, which impacts both the lucky few and the ones who don't make the list. There's a core team of engineers and scientists, the "band of eggheads," who were hired before Jobs took his second leave of absence for medical treatment... and they've got an important job to do. Sounds like an engaging story; we'll be sure to check it out.
Time Inc., Apple to offer free iPad downloads to print magazine subscribers
After months of speculation, Time Inc. has finally inked a deal with Apple that will allow print magazine subscribers to access the company's iPad editions for free. Beginning this week, subscribers to print versions of Sports Illustrated, Fortune, and Time will be able to download the iPad counterparts at no cost, directly within the magazines' apps. Today's deal comes just a few months after the company struck a similar arrangement with HP, but iPad users, unlike TouchPad readers, still won't be able to purchase exclusively digital subscriptions to Time Inc.'s stable of publications. It's no secret that Time Inc. wants to incorporate digital subscriptions to its iPad model, but negotiations have hit some roadblocks, largely thanks to disputes over how Apple shares subscriber data. Publishers say they need that data to apply the TV Everywhere model to magazines, but Apple thinks subscriber information should only be shared on an opt-in basis. We don't really expect Apple to budge any time soon, but execs at Time Inc. seem optimistic, telling the Wall Street Journal that today's deal proves that the two parties are "moving closer" on the issue -- apparently not close enough, however, for Apple to comment.
Analysts release their Q2 2011 earnings estimates
Apple will announce its quarterly earnings after the bell closes on Wednesday, April 20. The Cupertino company will unveil sales figures for the newly launched iPad 2 and possibly the Verizon iPhone. Long lines and delayed ship times indicate the iPad 2 is selling well, but early estimates suggest the Verizon iPhone is not selling as strongly as expected. Before Apple makes these figures official, analysts are weighing in with their preview of Apple's completed quarter. In previous quarters, blogger analysts and professional analysts differed greatly in their prediction of Apple's sales figures. This quarter, though, the two groups are in relatively close agreement. According to the predicted figures compiled by Fortune, Apple's revenue will beat its guidance of US$22 billion and land between $23 and $24 billion. iPhone sales are expected to hit the 16 to 18 million units sold mark, iPods 9.82 to 9.96 million, iPads 6.2 to 6.7 million, and Macs 3.6 to 3.7 million. For additional details, point your browser to Fortune's website where you can find a detailed chart listing the previews from approximately 50 analysts. Be sure to mark your calendar for 5 PM on Wednesday, April 20, as we will be covering Apple's earning conference call. Join us as we discover how these estimates compare to Apple's reported numbers.
Dell to trial mushroom-based packaging on servers, hugs IT hippies
We've already seen Dell embracing the bamboo woods to package its products, so what's next for Round Rock's green fingers? Mushrooms, apparently. Unveiled at the Fortune Brainstorm Green conference yesterday is a biodegradable cushioning tray, which is grown -- yes, grown -- out of a mold stuffed with old cotton hulls, mushroom spawn, and nutritious agricultural waste. While it does take about five to ten days for the mycelium (aka mushroom root) to form the desired shape, the merit of such process is that all the energy required for the manufacture is provided by the recycled waste, thus reducing other energy dependencies. What's more, this fungal packaging has already passed Dell's extensive lab tests "like a champ," and it'll soon be trialed on Multipack packaging shipments for the PowerEdge R710 servers. If you want to thank Michael, he'll be in his usual tree house.
Fortune Online video dev diary details classes
Judging by a new (and slickly produced) dev diary video, Gazillion is spending a fair bit of money on its new Fortune Online MMORPG. The video features a mixture of in-game footage as well as commentary from producer Ricardo Mendoza, design director Adam Maxwell, and senior content designer Chris Holtorf. Most of the discussion is focused on two of the game's classes, the Master of Arms and the Disciple of the Dragon, which belong to the Warrior and Guardian archetypes respectively. What's an archetype? "Fortune Online has several classes that you can choose from but we've done something to sort of simplify it for more casual players. We've boiled them down into very basic archetypes," Maxwell explains. Check out the full video after the cut.
Fortune says Apple tops them all!
This tidbit of news is not a surprise, but it's sure nice to see. For the 4th straight year Fortune says that Apple is the world's most admired company, as it "continues to set the bar high for high tech companies across the board." Citing nearly doubled profits from a year ago, launching the iPad and iPad 2, and working with Verizon to sell the iPhone 4 on their CDMA network, Fortune also praises Apple for doing so well while Steve Jobs has been on medical leave. Apple's success is a welcome relief from the years in the 1990s when the company was seemingly wandering in the wilderness and survival was not a sure thing. The Apple of today is not only advancing profits in a weak economy, but beginning to define the future of computing to the degree that competitors are mostly copying Apple products rather than bringing new and unique innovations to buyers. Congratulations, Apple!
Time inks deal with HP to bring magazine subscriptions to the TouchPad
Time Inc. has been trying to work out a deal on tablet magazine subscriptions for some time now, and it's just made a fairly big move in that direction with the help of HP. It confirmed at its "Think Beyond" event today that it has teamed up with the publisher to offer subscriptions to some of its magazines on the TouchPad when it launches this summer. That will apparently include Sports Illustrated, Time and People initially, with Fortune and other Time Inc. titles to follow further on down the road, according to AdWeek. Still no word on pricing, but HP promises they'll deliver an "immersive reading" experience. Update: Palm's Lisa Bewster has confirmed via Twitter that this deal also involves Time getting its big wish: subscribe to the print magazine and you'll get full access to the tablet version. For more on all of HP's webOS announcements today, click here!
HTC Evo's battery deflects a bullet, earns 'Life Saver' badge (video)
We knew the HTC EVO 4G was a pretty super phone, but we didn't know it was an actual superhero. A nightclub valet in Atlanta was recently the victim of two disgruntled patrons' wrath, falling in the middle of a five-shot bullet volley, but luckily for him, he had his EVO in his chest pocket. While the phone's glass shattered on impact, its battery did not and absorbed much of the impact of the one bullet intent on ridding him from this mortal coil. The fortunate chap is still with us, uninjured but stupefied by the event, and he promises he'll never buy another brand's phone again. See the video report after the break.
'Can Apple maintain profitability?' Yes.
Seriously? This is the question of the day? When people are still voicing serious and legitimate concerns about the rest of the economy? We're talking about a company with enough money in the bank to make a Goldman Sachs-sized investment in Facebook if it wanted to, more than triple the amount Dell had in the bank at the end of the last quarter, plus more than five times the amount HP had too, while we're at it. Let's look at a number for a minute: Apple has 51 billion dollars in cash. That's 51,000,000,000 bucks. Or, approximately the amount of money it takes to fill a vault-slash-swimming-pool. Who has that kind of money these days and didn't get it via government bailout? Apple, that's who. What is its secret? It made that money the old-fashioned way, by selling new-fashioned things. In a time when few companies are profitable and everyone's excited about a flat line since it isn't a downward curve, Apple is making money iHand over iFist. One could presume from this that analysts and others who watch CNBC professionally would be excited about a company with growth and profitability in the current climate. However, that's not the case. Remember when Apple wasn't doing well? Those bygone days when people may have actually believed the name of the company was "Beleaguered Apple Computer?" Well, once Uncle Steve made his return in 1996, that started to turn around. Apple Computer started making things that start with "i," and in 2001 with the launch of the iPod, Apple was officially cool again. You know, unless you were an analyst on Wall Street, in which case Apple wasn't cool, it was just less lame than before. But seriously, have you seen what sort of stock prices Dell and HP have these days? Now those are tech companies. I call shenanigans! Now, instead of being impressed with profitability, the question is "Oh sure, you're all profitable, but can you stay that way?" Apple hasn't proven that yet? Explain to me how making ANY money in a time of unprecedented financial volatility is something that gets played down. What will it take before Apple gets a fair shake? A brand new device that sells a million units in three months? Try two and a half. A new version of the same thing released a year later, how long did that take to sell a million? Three days. Find and replace "Apple" with a non-tech company in some of these articles and see if it still makes as much sense. Just the iPhone product line by itself is bigger than Coca-Cola, but Apple still gets dismissed like this? Someone needs to have a little heart-to-heart talk with some of these guys. Apparently they've all had their heads down in their BlackBerrys for so long that they don't realize it's cool these days to carry around something Designed In Cupertino. Clearly a lot of other people have figured it out -- what's stopping Wall Street from seeing the light?
