Displaying items by tag: Apple

(San Francisco)

In what could be a major development for super power Apple, it was reported yesterday that the company was inching towards “Apple Prime”, or some sort of bundled service model similar to Amazon Prime. The company may combine news, magazine articles, and television into a single bundle. Some analysts say Apple needs to increase its service-based revenue, such as that built on monthly subscription fees, in order to continue to expand.

FINSUM: If Apple wants to keep growing at 5%, it needs to add the equivalent of a Fortune 200 company every year. That is a huge revenue goal, and this could be a way to do it.

(San Francisco)

Apple is set to release, not one, not two, but three new iPhones later this year. Bloomberg describes the phones this way, saying “the largest iPhone ever, an upgraded handset the same size as the current iPhone X and a less expensive model with some of the flagship phone’s key features”. The iPhone X has not sold as well as forecast, and there has been consumer pushback on price, which may have led to the change in lineup. “This is a big deal”, says a venture capitalist and Apple commentator, “When you have a measurable upgrade in screen size, people go to update their phone in droves. We saw that with the iPhone 6, and we think this is setting up to be a similar step up in growth”.

FINSUM: We think this is a smart strategy, but we are surprised that Apple is caving in on pricing.

(San Francisco)

It is hard to overstate how well Apple is doing right now. Despite flat volume in phone sales, the huge prices of its devices mean not only are its revenue and profits surging, but it now commands its largest ever share of the smartphone market (51% globally). The company’s first quarter revenue was up 13% from last year, with net income hitting a jaw dropping $20.1 bn in the first quarter. Apple now commands 76% of all smartphone revenue in the US.

FINSUM: Apple’s ability to compel consumers to pay exorbitant prices for its product is a sign of strength for the overall business. Imagine if the iPhone X had actually been a hit?

(New York)

Goldman has been trying intensely for the last few years to develop a much bigger consumer side of its business. The bank has debuted consumer savings products and tried to extend its reach into consumer products generally. Now, it might be take a huge step. The bank is reportedly in talks with Apple to provide point-of-sale financing to customers who are buying Apple’s products. The bank sees an opportunity to provide lower interest financing than credit cards, where most people charge such purchases. The deal is not closed, and could still fall apart.

FINSUM: There is a whole slew of interesting considerations here. For one, will using Goldman Sachs for financing hurt Apple’s image? Two, is Goldman trying to make a push into credit cards with this move?

(San Francisco)

One doesn’t quite know how to feel about the news, but the gut instinct is that it is negative. Apple’s earnings came out yesterday, and the company reported its greatest profit ever. But guess what, sales came in weaker than expected for the new flagship iPhone X. iPhone sales dropped 1% in the fourth quarter (the most important time of year), which has scared many into thinking the new phone has not sparked the next replacement “super cycle” that the company and analysts hoped. Apple did mention that the quarter was a week shorter than in the previous year, and that iPhone sales would have been 22% higher had they been equivalent.

FINSUM: Okay so the note about the length of quarter is relevant, but the overall impression is that the iPhone X has failed to live up the hype. And it makes sense to us—have you heard any friends raving about the new iPhone? We certainly have not.