Apple's Endgame

So, here we are. Apple announced hardware via internet and called everyone in for services… Was the latter part of the presentation awkward? Yes. Could it have been planned in a more effective way? Probably. However, we got what we got and we must understand that Apple does not act without a plan. Here is my analysis of the true importance behind the event this past Monday:

The Mac, the iPod, the MacBook Air, the iPhone, the iPad, the Apple Watch these are all attempts at products to drive the business. Some way more successful than others, they all have made what Apple is and will continue to be today. You see, there is a commonality amongst those products… They are not services. And THAT is exactly what Apple told the world on Monday: services are the future.

Does this mean that it is THE END for iPhone, Apple Watch, etc. etc.? HELL NO! It means that the market is the market! And the iPhone is stagnating and decreasing in sales, the Mac, iPad and even Apple Watch cannot sustain the Apple company economy, so there has to be a plan B to be able to prepare for the future.

For the last 3 to 5 Apple Keynotes I have commented either here on the blog or in the AppleWorm Podcast that if there is a crazy exponential growth in Apple quarterly reports that NO ONE is talking about enough IT IS SERVICES. Apple Music especially has proved over and over again that people like and trust Apple in software services as much as any other, if not more. The growth of Apple Pay, Music, Cloud, App and Mac App Stores and even Apple News, directed them to focus on services.

Put Yourself Out of Business, before someone else does it for you.

iPhones are nice, iPads are nice and MacBooks are nice; and I do not believe they will just be discontinued. However, I now know that services in the Apple way (privacy, ecosystem and ease of use) is what will move them to the next stage of their growth.

The Apple Card showed me that they are not afraid of getting in a business that people do not love: owing/debt. Apple Pay paved the way, proved and implemented a SAFE mechanism for finance necessary to implement the new service. The risk here is their approach: no fees means higher interest rate and a variable one at that, so that late payments means more interest gained per payment. They say they have the perfect information presentation to the consumer to make your financial life a healthier one… Here is the difference between theory and practice: they have experience in stats to help with health is one thing; with finance, it is a completely different ball game.

Apple News showed me how easily they could setup a #1 news app to have bases to move on forward. So much so, that once they felt the comfort to transition into adding more news outlets and subscription options like the Magazines that are now a part of the “plus” $9.99 individual or family plan.

Apple Arcade is a tricky one; the population of gamers around the world has many options and many GREAT options. The fact that Apple has a billion players TODAY does not mean that will stay, grow or disappear on its own: this is a risk that will educate them. Opening opportunities to create and subscribe to a growing ecosystem means they have to maintain or even elevate the level of gaming quality they already have. I think it is a great idea in theory, let’s see it now in practice.

FINALLY, Apple TV and TV Plus showed me that in a world of IPs and IP claims, original content could sooner than later become currency. Apple TV and the TV app were the experiment to extend the ecosystem and have reach into the market before going in blind and depending on other platforms. Which by the way is the most underrated announcement in my opinion: the TV app experience playing well with others (LG, Samsung, Sony, Roku, Nvisio, Fire, etc.) that is amazing and necessary! This is a service much like the gaming one; it depends on an audience-to-quality ratio.

You guys KNOW how much I support Apple, but you also hopefully have learned that I can accept my bias and understand the other side and see the validity in reasonable criticism towards Apple and their business, not haters and bullies. So in theory Apples Endgame makes sense to me, the keynote proved to me that they are willing to look at themselves and bet on the future even when they are the present. Let’s see where this bet takes them.