iPhone - Orphan, no longer.
13/05/08 23:16 |
Apple
A little while
ago we discussed the possibility that the iPhone may
become isolated because of Apple's original lock-in
with AT&T.
Apple's uncharacteristic public acknowledgment of the vast unlocking community and admission that a 'significant number' of iPhones have been sold for unlocking seem to back up our original speculation that isolation, not 10 million sales, was the only road the iPhone could travel if something wasn't done.
The iPhone SDK and Apple's ability to convince others that what's good for Apple is good for them has already started to turn the tide...
Apple's uncharacteristic public acknowledgment of the vast unlocking community and admission that a 'significant number' of iPhones have been sold for unlocking seem to back up our original speculation that isolation, not 10 million sales, was the only road the iPhone could travel if something wasn't done.
The iPhone SDK and Apple's ability to convince others that what's good for Apple is good for them has already started to turn the tide...
Four very
interesting things have happened since the release of
the iPhone:
1) Apple announce lock-in deal with AT&T
2) Apple announce a web based pretend SDK for iPhone
3) Apple notice that the US mobile phone industry is different from everywhere else and quietly announce they are not 'married' to the one carrier model
4) Apple notice most people noticed that a web SDK just isn't going to cut it and make a real SDK.
The first two are interesting in that most people were surprised by the choices that Apple made - personally I can see the merit in the single carrier model, for the companies, not the consumer. With hindsight, this is really the only way to break in to this market (tick for Apple - clearly a success so far). I can also see the merit in the web SDK model, again with hindsight as my trusty ally it's obvious why they went this way. Zero cost, zero effort, zero exposure. It was a no brainer, but it was still wrong.
If history can teach us anything about how Apple works, it can teach us that no matter what happens - Apple always spin the right way. Case in point is AppleTV Take 2 - They thought they had a winner on their hands and it didn't go to plan, a little 'hobby' here, a pinch of stacking with iPod sales there, add some 'We listened to our customers', BOOM and we have AppleTV Take 2 but Apple come out smelling sweet.
Point 3 and 4 are classic examples of this exact masterful spin that make Apple so interesting to watch.
Once Apple was in shiny-happy-land with the iPhone in the US, they decided it might be time to start addressing the whole '10 million sales', '1% of the market' thing. So they hopped on a plane to Europe and started talking American to Telcos who only spoke 'rest of the world' with limited success. On the plane back to Apple HQ, Steve and Phil were chatting about how marketing phones just isn't the same as iPods and they might have to start to Think Different.
Turns out that some of the telcos played nice but in some countries, there were laws against that kind of crazy long term lock-in business in others - but Apple still found a way to make it work. Casually dismissing the single carrier model was as simple as Tim Cook brushing off a question in a conference call. But that's all it took - it was picked up by everyone that mattered, simple and effective, "scrolls like butter".
In point 1 it was the only way, in point 3 it was just another way.
By the time we got to March 2008, Apple was about to deliver on number 4 in dramatic fashion - delivering the SDK the masses were demanding. When Scott Forstall described the iPhone OS as 'the most advanced platform for mobile devices' the transformation from potential orphan to mobile platform was complete.
Four easy steps to turn mistakes into magic, if you ever needed any proof that Apple was knows exactly what they are doing - this has to be it.
The iPhone was in very real danger of being stuck in a very American problem but Apple not only had the wisdom, they had the guts to make the hard decisions when they needed to be made. The success of the iPhone and the future of their mobile platform depended on it.
With WWDC08 only 3 sleeps away and some large hurdles overcome, we can't wait to see where too next for the iPhone!
Zillatron
1) Apple announce lock-in deal with AT&T
2) Apple announce a web based pretend SDK for iPhone
3) Apple notice that the US mobile phone industry is different from everywhere else and quietly announce they are not 'married' to the one carrier model
4) Apple notice most people noticed that a web SDK just isn't going to cut it and make a real SDK.
The first two are interesting in that most people were surprised by the choices that Apple made - personally I can see the merit in the single carrier model, for the companies, not the consumer. With hindsight, this is really the only way to break in to this market (tick for Apple - clearly a success so far). I can also see the merit in the web SDK model, again with hindsight as my trusty ally it's obvious why they went this way. Zero cost, zero effort, zero exposure. It was a no brainer, but it was still wrong.
If history can teach us anything about how Apple works, it can teach us that no matter what happens - Apple always spin the right way. Case in point is AppleTV Take 2 - They thought they had a winner on their hands and it didn't go to plan, a little 'hobby' here, a pinch of stacking with iPod sales there, add some 'We listened to our customers', BOOM and we have AppleTV Take 2 but Apple come out smelling sweet.
Point 3 and 4 are classic examples of this exact masterful spin that make Apple so interesting to watch.
Once Apple was in shiny-happy-land with the iPhone in the US, they decided it might be time to start addressing the whole '10 million sales', '1% of the market' thing. So they hopped on a plane to Europe and started talking American to Telcos who only spoke 'rest of the world' with limited success. On the plane back to Apple HQ, Steve and Phil were chatting about how marketing phones just isn't the same as iPods and they might have to start to Think Different.
Turns out that some of the telcos played nice but in some countries, there were laws against that kind of crazy long term lock-in business in others - but Apple still found a way to make it work. Casually dismissing the single carrier model was as simple as Tim Cook brushing off a question in a conference call. But that's all it took - it was picked up by everyone that mattered, simple and effective, "scrolls like butter".
In point 1 it was the only way, in point 3 it was just another way.
By the time we got to March 2008, Apple was about to deliver on number 4 in dramatic fashion - delivering the SDK the masses were demanding. When Scott Forstall described the iPhone OS as 'the most advanced platform for mobile devices' the transformation from potential orphan to mobile platform was complete.
Four easy steps to turn mistakes into magic, if you ever needed any proof that Apple was knows exactly what they are doing - this has to be it.
The iPhone was in very real danger of being stuck in a very American problem but Apple not only had the wisdom, they had the guts to make the hard decisions when they needed to be made. The success of the iPhone and the future of their mobile platform depended on it.
With WWDC08 only 3 sleeps away and some large hurdles overcome, we can't wait to see where too next for the iPhone!
Zillatron
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