Linked List: January 24, 2012

Tuesday, 24 January 2012

Transcript of Cook’s remark’s on today’s call. I point you to his remarks on iCloud:

I think Peter shared earlier the number of customers that had signed up for iCloud, and it’s already over 85 million, so it’s incredible that this has happened in just a few months’ period of time. We’re thrilled with it, and the response from customers has been incredible. It’s solved a lot of problems that customers were having and made their lives much much easier.... It was a fundamental shift recognizing that people had numerous devices and they wanted the bulk of their content in the cloud and easily accessible from all of their devices, and you know, I think we’re seeing the response from that. With 85 million customers in just three months, it is a very very important part — it’s not just a product, it’s a strategy for the next decade.

I saw Matt Deatherage from MacJournals flag this remark during Macworld’s live coverage of the call. iCloud is as central to Apple’s next 10 years as the digital hub strategy was to the previous 10 years — and financial analysts are likely to ignore it, just like they did Apple’s digital hub strategy. I think Steve Jobs had his fingers in as many projects as he could manage in his final year, but it’s no coincidence that his last product announcement was iCloud. Put another way, I don’t expect any new Apple products that aren’t related in some way to iCloud.

Ubuntu HUD to Replace Menu Bar ★

Sort of like Quicksilver or LaunchBar, but for menu items instead of apps.

Claim Chowder: ‘The Apple Bubble Is Ready to Burst’ ★

Leonid Kanopka, writing for Seeking Alpha in November, two months ago:

Apple is a great company with wonderful products, but its run is up. It seems to me that innovation is beginning to run dry, and the stock price is overinflated. The stock has begun to fall already dropping from its $426 high. If the economy does not pick up and the company does not cushion its freefall, we could see new lows into 2012 — maybe $85. Whatever the case, I see a rocky future and a new bubble about to burst. My recommendation: Sell.

Nailed it.

The Second-Most-Profitable Quarter in Any Company’s History ★

Another interesting bit of perspective on Apple’s numbers, from CNN:

It was one of the most profitable quarters ever for any U.S. company, trailing only ExxonMobil’s record-setting $14.8 billion quarter from the fall of 2008, when oil prices were at an all-time high.

It wasn’t just a historic quarter for Apple, or for a tech company. It was a historic quarter, period.

‘I Clearly Believe That There Will Come a Day That the Tablet Market in Units Is Larger Than the PC Market.’ ★

Tim Cook, as quoted in Macworld’s live transcript of Apple’s quarterly earnings call:

Last year was supposed to be the year of the tablet, and I think most people would agree it was the year of the iPad for the second year in a row. We’re going to continue to innovate like crazy in this area, and continue to compete with anyone that is currently shipping tablets, or that might enter in the future.

The iPhone is by far Apple’s biggest source of revenue and profit today. But if you’re thinking about future growth, keep in mind that the iPad is far ahead of where the iPhone was two years after its debut.

Also worth noting: Tim Cook says Apple sold 2.8 million Apple TVs in fiscal year 2011, and broke a record with 1.4 million in the just-ended quarter. They’re still calling it a hobby, and it’s only a $100 product, but in terms of units, it used to be that 1.4 million was a great number for Mac sales in a quarter.

Apple Added $38 Billion in Cash Last Year ★

Another chart with an impressive slope.

Huffington Post Headline Two Days Ago: ‘Apple Q1 2012 Earnings Call Could Reveal Chinks in Armor’ ★

Or maybe not.

Claim Chowder: ‘iPhone Dead in Water’ ★

Henry Blodget, back in April:

Importantly, it’s not a question of which platform is “better.” (This is irrelevant.) It’s a question of which platform everyone else uses. And increasingly, in the smartphone market, barring a radical change in trend, that’s Android.

So that’s why Android’s gains matter. And, yes, Apple fans should be scared to death about them.

Actual result: Apple sold more iPhones in calendar 2011 than in 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 combined; 55 percent of all smartphones sold by Verizon last quarter were iPhones.

Claim Chowder: ‘The iPad: In the Middle (of Nowhere)’ ★

Marketing brainiac Mohan Sawhney, after the introduction of the original iPad two years ago:

What’s the outlook for the iPad? There will be long lines on the day it becomes available, because a million or so die-hard Apple fanatics will buy anything Apple puts out, even if it is a brick. Seduction and lust is a powerful emotion and it will drive sales for a while. Once the early adopters have forked over their money, the rest of us will start to ask difficult and inconvenient questions about the value relative to the price. And Apple will be forced to make some drastic adjustments to the pricing and the connectivity fees.

Actual result: 15 million iPads sold last quarter; same prices, same connectivity fees as when it debuted.

Claim Chowder: ‘iPad Demand Said to Be Fading as Competition Heats Up’ ★

Zach Epstein, BGR, back on 15 November:

Demand for Apple’s iPad tablet is said to be in decline as competition finally heats up thanks to the $199 Kindle Fire from Amazon, and investors could be in for a disappointing fourth quarter as a result. In a recent research note, Goldman Sachs analyst Bill Shope suggested Apple’s firm grip on the global tablet market may finally loosen unless the Cupertino, California-based company lowers its pricing.

Actual results: 15.4 million iPads sold, a 111 percent increase over the year-ago quarter.

Perspective ★

Farhad Manjoo:

Apple’s profits ($13 billion) exceeded Google’s entire revenue ($10.6 billion).

Matt Richman on Apple’s Results ★

Matt Richman:

In 2009, Apple sold more iPhones than it did in 2007 and 2008 combined. In 2010, Apple sold more iPhones than it did in 2007, 2008, and 2009 combined. Last year, Apple sold 93.1 million iPhones, slightly more than it did in in 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 combined. The pattern continued.

Imagine if that holds true for 2012 as well.

Richman also makes a strong case that Apple sold more iOS devices than all Android devices combined last quarter.

Charting Apple’s Revenue Growth ★

Q1 is always a peak for Apple because it’s the holiday quarter, but still, the slope on this chart is simply breathtaking.

Apple’s Q1 Results: Record-Breaking Revenue and Profit ★

Make that record-shattering:

The Company posted record quarterly revenue of $46.33 billion and record quarterly net profit of $13.06 billion, or $13.87 per diluted share. These results compare to revenue of $26.74 billion and net quarterly profit of $6 billion, or $6.43 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. Gross margin was 44.7 percent compared to 38.5 percent in the year-ago quarter. International sales accounted for 58 percent of the quarter’s revenue.

The Company sold 37.04 million iPhones in the quarter, representing 128 percent unit growth over the year-ago quarter. Apple sold 15.43 million iPads during the quarter, a 111 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter. The Company sold 5.2 million Macs during the quarter, a 26 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter.

Apple broke its previous quarterly records for: revenue, profit, iPhones sold, iPads sold, and Macs sold. Their previous record for revenue was $28 billion; they almost hit 50.

So they’re doing OK.

Yankees Great Jorge Posada Retires After 17 Seasons ★

Andrew Marchand, ESPN

Posada sat at a dais flanked by his wife and his children, Jorge Jr. and Paulina. To his right were the five world championship trophies that Posada helped the Yankees win. Jeter, closer Mariano Rivera, ace CC Sabathia and Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner were among those in attendance.

After Posada finished his opening statement, Diana Munson, the widow of Yankees great Thurman Munson, spoke. She credited Posada for inspiring her to watch baseball again. Posada had considered Thurman Munson, who died in 1979 when the plane he was piloting crashed in Ohio, a hero.

Diana Munson said she now has loved two Yankees catchers in her life.

One of the all-time greats, a class act, and one of the most emotional players I’ve ever seen.

iPhone Accounted for the Majority of Verizon Smartphone Sales Last Quarter ★

Tom Krazit, PaidContent:

In the first quarter that Verizon Wireless was on board with Apple for an iPhone launch event, the company sold 4.2 million iPhones, accounting for more than half of the 7.7 million smartphones that its customers purchased in the fourth quarter.

File under “Android is winning”.