Fruit of the Day...

Apple got flamed today in an article by CNET senior editor Molly Wood entitled “The Strong Arm of Apple”.  The article was designed to spark controversy (good articles often do, don’t they) and Ms. Wood did a good job in that, but I was amazed by some of the comments.  I’ve written before about the religious war that still seems to be present in some minds between Apple and Microsoft, and the comments again prove the battles are still raging.  Here’s how the article started:

Poor Apple. It must be exhausting having to constantly run around threatening and even filing lawsuits, developing new schemes to get money out of iPod accessory makers, convincing Motorola to delay the launch of its most hotly anticipated phone since the Razr, and convincing would-be Shuffle imitators to dump their product or face--you guessed it--"legal options."

Apple is growing up – it has been for some years now.  With the return of Steve Jobs, the company has very successfully added a lucrative line of business, and not just hardware, but great services – some would argue the iPod' target=_blank>iPod and iPod' target=_blank>related stuff ARE the business of Apple today.  But some long for the “good old days” of the Apple club/cult (hey, I was a member – still am in some ways) rather than the reality of today.

Here’s part of what I wrote:

Its interesting that as Apple works harder to monetize the iPod phenomenon and to better protect their secrets, which many (including shareholders like me) expect makes it a BETTER company, they get lambasted for being a WORSE company. C'mon. The article was slanted to get a rise, and it clearly did.

I don't recall anyone forcing the accessory manufacturers to sign up for the iPod program. If they're not using the logo or other Apple IP to promote their product, who cares? If they are, they have the choice to stop infringing and gain permission (some will do this), ignore the issue (some will do this) or sign up for what will very likely be a lift in their revenues and profits by better riding Apple's coattails, and having the direct not indirect benefit of Apple's well oiled marketing machine.

Grow up, folks. Its a business, not a knitting circle. In business you pursue profits, build channels and protect your brand and your intellectual property.

I like what Steve is doing with the company, I like seeing the diversification, and I love the stock price.  He’s smiling in this picture because he can hear the sound of the cash register ringing Keep up the good work Steve Jobs.