Wednesday, May 2, 2007

Microsoft: iphone will be a bust


According to Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, the iphone will not put a dent into the cell phone market. All this from an interview with USA Today, in which he says that the iphone has 'no chance' in making an impact on the market.

'No chance. It's a $500 subsidized item. They may make a lot of money. But if you actually take a look at the 1.3 billion phones that get sold, I'd prefer to have our software in 60% or 70% or 80% of them, than I would to have 2% or 3%, which is what Apple might get. In the case of music, Apple got out early. They were the first to really recognize that you couldn't just think about the device and all the pieces separately. Bravo. Credit that to Steve (Jobs) and Apple. They did a nice job. But it's not like we're at the end of the line of innovation that's going to come in the way people listen to music, watch videos, etc. I'll bet our ads will be less edgy. But my 85-year-old uncle probably will never own an iPod, and I hope we'll get him to own a Zune.'

This is a bold, if not stupid statement.

Apple has reinvented how music is listened too, why would you doubt the impact that the iphone may have on the market? I think Steve Ballmer needs to worry about Vista being hacked to death, rather than if the iphone will do well in the cell phone market.

Read the reset of the article after the jump.

2 comments:

Malcolm said...

I have to agree with him. I think the iPhone would stand a chance if they kept it more secretive like apple TV. But by the time this phone comes out, there will already be cheaper units with the same features already out. Plus it really doesn't have that many great features. I think it'll end up like the Newton.

Malcolm said...

Engadget had this to say

iPhone buzz may be at a strong, rolling boil at this point, but a recent survey suggests that the tabloid-like attention the device has been enjoying may not translate to sales at Apple and AT&T counters come next month. The poll of 1,300 individuals responsible for their own bills uncovered that while 77 percent had heard of the iPhone (wow, only 77 percent?) and 41 percent had a "good impression" of it, a full two-thirds of respondents indicated that there was no chance they'd buy one -- and only 6 percent said they'd pick one up. 6 percent seems like a dismal number at first glance, but the survey firm astutely notes that even at the very peak of its popularity, the now-ubiquitous Motorola RAZR only achieved 6 percent market penetration. So yeah, theoretically, if 6 percent of the American bill-paying populace actually buys an iPhone next month, we officially have the next RAZR on our hands. Way to put a damper on things, eh?

Except for one thing. Nobody got a RAZR until they dropped tremendously in price, I got mine for $249 ($149 after rebate) when they were still $399 at the Cingular store. Then, I would see another Razr carried by 1 out of 100 people. Now, since they are regular priced, you see them everywhere. Can you imagine Apple dropping the price that much??? I think not