Just yesterday I was having quite a discussion with my cousin on if Apple ought to make its software - iOS open source.
My cousin opinion-ed that yes Apple ought to do so as it would better for customers, as they will be able to get most of the iPhone features on their Android clones or phones running on an souped up open source iOS.
I disagree. While bulk of the people would be in favor of Apple relinquishing its tight hold on the iOS I would beg to differ. It is Apples ability to tightly integrate its hardware with its software that makes it the force that it is today in the industry.
Yes, Android is the most adopted smart phone OS in the world and has a larger % share over Apple, but in terms of sheer numbers comparing Apples iPhone with individual vendors like Samsung, LG, Motorola running their phone on Android; Apple wins by a distance.
In technology industry it is rare that you see a company with the first mover advantage be dethroned from its spot. Sony brought out Walkman series of audio player and even today we refer to portable tape cassette player as a Walkman. Microsoft did the same with its Windows OS, Windows Media Player and Internet Explorer. Poor Netscape had to close shutter in spite of having a better product when MS bundled the IE into Windows directly.
In this industry the stakes are high and there are no friends. When Apple was in trouble you didn't see even a single tech giant come to help it out. Apple reinvented itself by the sheer vision and tenacity of Steve Jobs and nothing else.
They created a new segment for digital music players in the form of "iPod". Before Apple came in with a sleek looking digital music player, the music industry was at pains to disseminate the media in an efficient manner. Apple changed the landscape with the iPod and iTunes allowing music companies a platform to sell their music and earn money. Microsoft and other companies retaliated with Zune and Digital Walkman series et al but they could never compete with the sheer number of devices sold by Apple.
Smart phones were out there in the market, so Apple did not create that segment. But what they did was package the smart phone in a sleek avatar and integrate the software and hardware at such a level that the resultant device sent the common person into raptures. Again Apple did some smart juggling by tying up with cellular networks to offer the iPhone at cheap prices. With Steve Jobs leading the presentation and marketing of the iPhone it was a run away success. The other phone makers of that time like RIM, Samsung, LG were again caught napping. These companies had their own eco-system so a product like smart phone was a logical expectation from communications company, but that it came from a technology giant was a slap in the face from which the device makers haven't recovered from so far.
All that they have been doing for sometime now is playing catch up and Apple is chipping away at more and more of their traditional fiefdoms.
Apple spotted another opportunity in the Tablet segments. Apple invented that particular area of the market and again the first mover advantage worked tremendously in its favor. Its been more than a couple of years since the launch of the Apple iPad and so far no company has come close to challenging the supremacy that Apple has in this segment. Samsung tried with the Android based Samsung Galaxy Tab series, but it did not get the same amount of success achieved by Apple.
On its part Apple has zealously protected its market share by filing injunctions and getting rival products delayed by any means necessary. Currently the tab market is estimated around 79 bn$ with an annual rise of over 30-45% expected every year. Clearly the pie is too lucrative for Apple to play the saint and share its secrets or software with the world.
With having a very tight control on iOS, Apple is catering to the highest form of quality and by maintaining its grip on the App Store it is making sure that it controls every aspect of how the user interfaces with the world via an iPhone or an iPad. The tight integration between all the Apple products available out there like iPod, iPhone, iPad, Mac book and the Macintosh Desktop through the Cloud speaks volumes for Apples vision or plan for the future.
Hypothetically if Apple makes iOS a open source distribution, then it will have to cater to the lowest possible denominator, that is the very bottom of the hardware that works and thus lose out on the premium it commands just for being a custom made one off product.
With Apple entrenched and having a huge cash pile and loyal customer base already, it will be tough going for Samsung, Google and Microsoft to make inroads into this bastion. Whatever the outcome a long and bloody fight is on the cards and it appears to that it will start sooner than later....
[To Be Continued......]
My cousin opinion-ed that yes Apple ought to do so as it would better for customers, as they will be able to get most of the iPhone features on their Android clones or phones running on an souped up open source iOS.
I disagree. While bulk of the people would be in favor of Apple relinquishing its tight hold on the iOS I would beg to differ. It is Apples ability to tightly integrate its hardware with its software that makes it the force that it is today in the industry.
Yes, Android is the most adopted smart phone OS in the world and has a larger % share over Apple, but in terms of sheer numbers comparing Apples iPhone with individual vendors like Samsung, LG, Motorola running their phone on Android; Apple wins by a distance.
In technology industry it is rare that you see a company with the first mover advantage be dethroned from its spot. Sony brought out Walkman series of audio player and even today we refer to portable tape cassette player as a Walkman. Microsoft did the same with its Windows OS, Windows Media Player and Internet Explorer. Poor Netscape had to close shutter in spite of having a better product when MS bundled the IE into Windows directly.
In this industry the stakes are high and there are no friends. When Apple was in trouble you didn't see even a single tech giant come to help it out. Apple reinvented itself by the sheer vision and tenacity of Steve Jobs and nothing else.
They created a new segment for digital music players in the form of "iPod". Before Apple came in with a sleek looking digital music player, the music industry was at pains to disseminate the media in an efficient manner. Apple changed the landscape with the iPod and iTunes allowing music companies a platform to sell their music and earn money. Microsoft and other companies retaliated with Zune and Digital Walkman series et al but they could never compete with the sheer number of devices sold by Apple.
Smart phones were out there in the market, so Apple did not create that segment. But what they did was package the smart phone in a sleek avatar and integrate the software and hardware at such a level that the resultant device sent the common person into raptures. Again Apple did some smart juggling by tying up with cellular networks to offer the iPhone at cheap prices. With Steve Jobs leading the presentation and marketing of the iPhone it was a run away success. The other phone makers of that time like RIM, Samsung, LG were again caught napping. These companies had their own eco-system so a product like smart phone was a logical expectation from communications company, but that it came from a technology giant was a slap in the face from which the device makers haven't recovered from so far.
All that they have been doing for sometime now is playing catch up and Apple is chipping away at more and more of their traditional fiefdoms.
Apple spotted another opportunity in the Tablet segments. Apple invented that particular area of the market and again the first mover advantage worked tremendously in its favor. Its been more than a couple of years since the launch of the Apple iPad and so far no company has come close to challenging the supremacy that Apple has in this segment. Samsung tried with the Android based Samsung Galaxy Tab series, but it did not get the same amount of success achieved by Apple.
On its part Apple has zealously protected its market share by filing injunctions and getting rival products delayed by any means necessary. Currently the tab market is estimated around 79 bn$ with an annual rise of over 30-45% expected every year. Clearly the pie is too lucrative for Apple to play the saint and share its secrets or software with the world.
With having a very tight control on iOS, Apple is catering to the highest form of quality and by maintaining its grip on the App Store it is making sure that it controls every aspect of how the user interfaces with the world via an iPhone or an iPad. The tight integration between all the Apple products available out there like iPod, iPhone, iPad, Mac book and the Macintosh Desktop through the Cloud speaks volumes for Apples vision or plan for the future.
Hypothetically if Apple makes iOS a open source distribution, then it will have to cater to the lowest possible denominator, that is the very bottom of the hardware that works and thus lose out on the premium it commands just for being a custom made one off product.
With Apple entrenched and having a huge cash pile and loyal customer base already, it will be tough going for Samsung, Google and Microsoft to make inroads into this bastion. Whatever the outcome a long and bloody fight is on the cards and it appears to that it will start sooner than later....
[To Be Continued......]
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