by winston » Mon Sep 05, 2016 8:11 am
not vested
Not much cooking at Apple these days
Ever since Steve Jobs passed away, Apple computer has lacked a truly creative soul, with the effect that even iPhone launches these days have lost the buzz of old.
His successor, Tim Cook, has been pursuing anything but Jobs' ideal of product innovation and perfection.
Two recent news reports illustrate this.
One, the European Union ordered Apple to pay 13 billion euros (HK$112 billion) in taxes to Ireland.
Two, the Wall Street Journal reported Apple in recent months as demanding lower prices for iPhone parts.
Some may say the EU move is to get at Apple's pile, but the EU must have cause.
As Nobel prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz said, Apple committed a "dishonest" act to avoid tax.
Apple's bid to squeeze suppliers to bolster its gross profit margin shows Cook is not prepared to focus on product perfection.
Therefore, long-term investment interest in Apple is not high, unless, one day that is, Cook is replaced by a forward-looking chief with an affinity to Jobs' lofty vision who can shoulder responsibility, for leadership is crucial for an enterprise like Apple.
Of course, to analyze an enterprise like Apple in this way is not dissimilar to dissecting a government.
Source: Andrew Wong Wai-hong, The Standard
It's all about "how much you made when you were right" & "how little you lost when you were wrong"
