I am going to take a bit of a chance here. While I do not anticipate applying to work at Microsoft or Apple any time in the near future, who really knows what types of acquisitions could occur to cause me to be employed by one of the companies by default. If either of these companies ever does acquire the company I work for expect this post to be immediately replaced by a glowing description of the company and the executives who run the company in question.
Quite a few years ago I used to have a strong dislike for Microsoft as a company. This largely stemmed from the fact that I felt like I did not have the realistic alternative to Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office. While I do not believe today that Microsoft is an altruistic company, I am not nearly as bothered today by it as I was in the past. For one thing, I have learned since that technical markets tend to naturally gravitate toward monopolies more than most other types of markets. Also, while Microsoft owns monopolies in two markets now, it is not doing a good job at the moment of replacing those monopolies with monopolies in different markets. This puts Microsoft in a very bad strategic position five or ten years from now if things do not change.
I now see Apple as the new Microsoft. This does not mean I have particular disdain for Apple. It just puzzles me why so many of the same people who hated Microsoft for its business practices have a love for Apple. Apple's strategy is almost exactly the same as what Microsoft's has been. Gain a monopoly in a market (iTunes, Windows) and use that monopoly to extract high margins from customers who can't reasonably go elsewhere. Again, I am not saying that Apple's strategy is immoral or anything like that, but rather I am saying that almost everything that a person could have hated about Microsoft they could hate about Apple as well.
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2 comments:
interesting - I'd never thought of it from a monopolistic perspective. People do tend to be very pro Microsoft or Apple and very anti the other. I am an end user and I have used both. I don't drink the coolaid either way. And I agree neither is on an altruistic path, but that's not their purpose.
Isn't Apple old enough that it can't be considered the "new microsoft"? I think they have really upped their Marketing and product placements. They are targeting the younger generation now, where Microsoft targeted us back a few years ago! ;)
I love all technology companies equally. I like iTunes. I use Windows and I have been a fan of google from its start! :) Yeah, I did it...I put Google up there with the big dogs! It's still a puppy, but growing up fast.
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