The other war between Apple and Google
There are two fronts in the increasingly bitter war being fought between Apple (AAPL) and Google (GOOG). And while the contest between the iPhone and Google’s Nexus One (and other Android phones) is getting most of the ink, it’s the apps battle that comes with the biggest stakes.
Update Qualcomm (QCOM)
One chip in. One chip not quite in but closer. Between the two maybe this stock has finally achieved some upside momentum.
Two big announcements in the tech world with Qualcomm (QCOM) near the center of both.
Apple’s iPhone to go to T-Mobile and not Verizon in 2010
When AT&T’s (T) exclusive deal expires in 2010, Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone is most likely to find a second home with T-Mobile and not Verizon (VRZN). That’s the conclusion of a note published by analyst Doug Reid of Thomas Weisel Partners and picked up and amplified by AppleInsider.
Has Apple blown it? Did the company squander the competitive chance of a lifetime?
I know Apple (AAPL) is an investor darling trading near an all-time high.
And I know the company’s products have tremendous consumer cache. So much so that the company is able to sell its iPhones and iMacs for prices well above those charged by competitors.
But it still looks to me that Apple has missed its chance. It had a limited window of opportunity when competitors such as Microsoft (MSFT) couldn’t do anything right and it didn’t turn that opening into a big enough share of the personal computer market. It was first to market with a game-changing smart phone but the company has pursued a high-end niche strategy with the iPhone that has left the door wide open for Google (GOOG) to grab for the mass market.
If this is as good as it gets for Apple, the company has no one to blame, finally, but itself. The opportunity was there and Apple didn’t exploit it as ruthlessly and as relentlessly as it needed to.
Here’s my basic problem with Apple’s strategy and execution: The company didn’t kick ‘em hard enough when they were down.
Apple gets its deal in China; iPhone goes non-exclusive in the UK
China Unicom (CHU) announced on September 28 that it will begin selling Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone in China on October 1. China Unicom is China’s second largest mobile phone operator. (For more on how the Chinese players line up and the coming battle between Apple and Google (GOOG) in China see my August 6 post http://jubakpicks.com/2009/08/06/apple-and-google-go-head-to-head-in-chinas-mobile-phone-market/ )
Unicom said it will start selling 3G iPhones for 5,000 renminbi or $732, although the company didn’t say what model it would sell.
China Mobile (CHL), the country’s biggest mobile operator, is set to begin selling the 3G OPhone, based on Google’s (GOOG) Android operating system, although the timing of that launch is still vague.
China Telecom (CHA), the smallest of China’s mobile operators, is in talks with Resarch in Motion (RIMM) to sell the Blackberry.
The question is, of course, how many consumers in China will buy an iPhone considering what seems to be a very high price?
