Apple surveys business markets
Apple, which continues to ride a wave of business success as a company, is looking more and more at the enterprise marketplace as a new revenue source for its Mac computers and mobile devices.
It is difficult to find a company that has been more successful as a business lately than has Apple. The Cupertino powerhouse has proven to be virtually recession-proof during a worldwide downturn for most corporations, posting improved numbers almost every quarter while others posted losses. As a result, the price of a share of Apple stock doubled during a very bad business year. Sales are up on almost all of their product lines as the recession fades, as well.
The company that business has been good to is hoping that it will also be good for business and the enterprise. According to an article in TechNewsWorld, sales are up on Apple computers, right across the Mac lineup. Certainly, some of those are heading into businesses. We are hearing more and more about enterprise acceptance of the Mac, and the ease of care and feeding of Macs by IT departments in the enterprise, including the theory that they cost less to operate than a PC.
The iPhone appears to be gaining a little ground every month and quarter on the Blackberry in the boardroom, while other competitors like Palm fall by the wayside. It is expected that the new iPhone OS 4.0 will bring true multi-tasking to the iphone, long seen as a barrier to enterprise acceptance of the Apple handset, and other business-friendly enhancements are expected as well.
Much is even being bandied about relative to the iPad in the enterprise. In many ways, the iPad may not seem like a great fit, but it could be ideal as a portable and in-office device to handle business reading, email, and internet chores. It is small, light, and unobtrusive, making it perfect for mobility and meetings. All in all, it may not be a bad fit for many middle and upper-level managers.
Apple in the boardroom probably started with the iPhone, but with that inroad in place it seems that the idea of Apple in the enterprise is catching hold. High quality, which Apple products have in spades, is never a bad thing and many enterprise-dwellers could also be talked into packing a little bit of style around at their day job, another place where Apple shines. It is true that Apple is a long way from being Microsoft, but who would want them to be?
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March 20th, 2010
Insisting that the desktop is the most important item in an enterprise environment only shows just how little you understand about how one works.
You can file this one next to the ones predicting that BootCamp would put Macs on a significant number of desks of enterprise clients.
Apple’s philosophy and marketing model certainly doesn’t mean that Apple can’t gain some significant, for them, increases in the business market, it makes serving the enterprise tough.
The enterprise is a complex system and,contrary to what some Apple enthusiasts believe,the lack of presence in the enterprise isn’t because a bunch of IT people hate Apple and need constant problems to justify their continued employment.
And here’s a revelation, no matter how many times you state it Microsoft doesn’t make the hardware and single sourcing isn’t normally considered best practices.