Apple On Top

I was lucky-I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I started Apple
in my parents garage when I was twenty. We worked hard. In ten years, Apple had
grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2 billion company with over
4,000 employees. We had just released our finest creation-the Macintosh-a year
earlier, and I had just turned thirty. And, then I got fired. How can you get
fired from a company you started?": That was Steve Jobs at the Stanford
commencement address way back in 2005.

From the turbulent 1990s to the iPhones and iPads to personal health
problems-Steve Jobs has always surprised everyone time and again with his
ability to bounce back. This time, his company pulled another surprise. Apple
became the world's biggest technology company in terms of the market value on
May 26, 2010, overtaking Redmond giant-Microsoft. Apple's shares

leapt as much as 2.8 percent in NASDAQ that increased its market value to about
$229 billion as against Microsoft's $219 billion. This could be a brief swell,
but it shows how these two fight over a thin line that separates them now. The
last time Apple overtook Microsoft in terms of the market share was in 1989. So,
it's after two decades that Apple saw Microsoft in its rear view mirror again.

Battle Heats Up

While the market share goes up and down, but it clearly points out at the
growing clout Apple is having on the market, thanks to its very consumer focused
devices like iPads that's making Apple's revenues soar. While from a sales
perspective Microsoft calls the shots; and going by the numbers for the latest
quarter, Microsoft made about $14.5 billion while Apple made $13.5 billion.

While this development might be a 'day's glory' for Apple, it's an
achievement and a dividend for the hard work it did in the last two years in
terms of very innovative products that has captured the masses. The speed at
which Apple launched its products also stunned the market and its rivals. The
company, which has already delayed the international iPad launch by a month,
says that it continues to have difficulty meeting demands. "Demand continues to
exceed supply and we are working hard to get this magical product into the hands
of even more customers," says Steve Jobs, CEO, Apple.

With iPads, Apple came much closer to the masses. With iPad, Apple took a
different strategy of a low cost model and attempted a new device category-it's
a tablet, eReader and a netbook all rolled into one ultra-small form. And it is
this compact yet functional device that connected with consumers in such a big
way. It also shows how innovation drives Apple and its shift from just a PC
company to a larger player in the technology space.

With iPads not yet making a big mark in the emerging geographies like India,
it is a market still untapped by Apple for its computing products. Analysts
expect that Apple would aggressively tap into the big potential emerging markets
like India-just like Nokia did with its mobile phones-and that would ensure a
much bigger market and some innovative country specific products made to suit
the unique requirements.

The road ahead for Apple looks bullish.

Shrikanth G

Source: DQ