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Microsoft CEO Claims iPhone Will Be Bust
Theaetetus writes "In an interview with USA Today, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer claimed there is no chance that the iPhone is going to get any significant market share. The article also deals with Microsoft's friction with the Justice Department, friction with Google, and the profitability of MSN. '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.'"
Can i pay more to the get the iPhone without a contract? No? Then how is it a subsidy?
Avoid Missing Ball for High Score
If I read the title of this comment out of context, I would have honestly thought you were talking about Steve Jobs.
Not to say that Ballmer isn't a jackass, but Jobs has made PLENTY of arrogant claims without any real-world basis other than it's what he tells himself as he stares into the mirror for an hour every morning. Also he's naked.
There's nothing wrong with anything - Phillip J. Fry
I made it through about 30% of the article and just can't read any more. This is typical Steve Balmer and therefore there is nothing here but marketing junk and chest thumping of how great he and Microsoft are and will continue to be. Sorry but reality is that Balmer and Gates were handed a monopoly which they've leveraged to the hilt but can't make a dent outside of. They just lost another $300 million in the last THREE MONTHS in the MSN division. They've lost over $10 BILLION in over ten years on the Microsoft Windows CE based productline and it's still a loser. XBox, a loser. But somehow he's all cocky that they'll beat Google, the Apple iPhone won't do well but Zune is all "crack-a-lack'n" and a big deal. All of these losing products and product lines are funded by profits from MS Windows and MS Office and even with no hope of ever being profitable, they'll keep dumping money into them so the others in those fields don't grow to threaten Windows. My gawd, I'm still hearing people complain of Windows CE/Windows Mobile/PocketPC/etc crashing after over ten years on the market!
I just can't read any more of his marketing speak. It's not even closely tied to reality. Maybe that he trained as CEO under Enron's Jeff Skilling is telling of how truthful he is?
It also doesn't help that the interviewer is spineless and lets Balmer go without answering questions.
IMO
LoB
"Anyone who stands out in the middle of a road looks like roadkill to me." --Linus
But my 85-year-old uncle probably will never own an iPod, and I hope we'll get him to own a Zune.
Ownership of something is easy to achieve. I'd be more impressed if you can get the guy to actually USE the thing. Surely he can afford to buy a Zune and give it to his uncle, who then owns it. That doesn't mean a darn thing if uncle puts it on a shelf somewhere and forgets about it.