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Why isn't Apple attacking the enterprise market?

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Re: Why isn't Apple attacking the enterprise market?

#41

They are. I work for a big enterprise… we probably have $25M of iOS devices. Apple is a huge supplier, through the channel. Mac is growing as well, probably 20% yoy for my place. They probably have the best security and compliance story in the business. They have a model that prints money. Getting deeper means sales teams skimming 20%.

That’s not enterprise. That’s just mobile devices. Everyone needs a cell phone. Verizon or AT&T could do the same thing for you, whether it’s iOS or Android. It’s a consumer device that happens to be used by employees.

No way. iOS is more blackberry than blackberry was. They own the space.

Re: Why isn't Apple attacking the enterprise market?

#42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That’s not enterprise. That’s just mobile devices. Everyone needs a cell phone. Verizon or AT&T could do the same thing for you, whether it’s iOS or Android. It’s a consumer device that happens to be used by employees.

No way. iOS is more blackberry than blackberry was. They own the space.

Agreed. No argument there.

Re: Why isn't Apple attacking the enterprise market?

#44
Why doesn’t the successful bodega owner open a supermarket? It’s the same general idea of grab and go, just bigger.

Why doesn’t Toyota go after the semi truck market? They’re all vehicles.

Why doesn’t Hilton have a line of bed and breakfast locations? Both are just short-term accommodations.

Why doesn’t the excellent restaurant also have catering services? It’s all making and serving food, right?

Why doesn’t UPS get into the trans-ocean shipping industry? It’s just another form of moving boxes.

When we see sufficiently successful businesses there’s an alignment between the customers’ needs and how the business operates. Once the targeted customer changes too dramatically, the unseen skeleton supporting the company is no longer appropriate, and altering (or adding to) the bones of a business is so difficult and rare that it’s hard to find successful examples. All of this is often reduced to, “It’s just not in some company’s DNA” or “Money can’t fix/create everything.”

So when it comes to Apple and enterprise, all facets of how they do things are geared toward consumers, not businesses and their IT setups. That’s product design, marketing, sales, support, etc. Like most long-term successful companies, Apple has generally been good at working with its strengths and steering clear of its weaknesses. Instead of adjusting itself to accommodate the enterprise market, for example, it’s “easier” (and likely more profitable) to develop AirPods, which I’ve heard on their own would be a Fortune 500 company.

Re: Why isn't Apple attacking the enterprise market?

#45

What product are you envisioning that Apple doesn't offer? Rackable compute? Not worth their time. Look at the products they make. They try to make stuff that targets the widest market possible; everybody. They try not to go for niche markets.

This is from the company that just made the Apple Vision Pro. I don't see any reason they couldn't do limited forays into enterprise.

Their obvious goal is everyone buys a Vision Pro.

Obviously they could make a foray into enterprise hardware. They did it in the past. They have no interest. The addressable market is too small. As I already said, when Apple makes a product they want to the addressable market to be everyone.

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