Is it just me or has the rivalry between Apple and Google blossomed into one magnificent heavyweight title bout? Could there be a better match up than the arrogance of Steve Jobs vs. the collective arrogance of every living soul at Google? And yet it wasn’t too long ago that these two behemoths were locked in a BFF embrace, that just like peanut butter and jelly, or Brad and Angelina seemed so perfectly suited.
If my understanding of the story is reasonably accurate, the rift came about as a result of Apple’s iPhone success and Google’s desire to get in on the act. Can’t say I blame them, especially since Eric Schmidt was a member of Apple’s board at the time and probably peeked at the secret recipe. No hard feelings, its just business.
However, the big question of the day remains, who will ultimately rule the mobile world:
If my understanding of the story is reasonably accurate, the rift came about as a result of Apple’s iPhone success and Google’s desire to get in on the act. Can’t say I blame them, especially since Eric Schmidt was a member of Apple’s board at the time and probably peeked at the secret recipe. No hard feelings, its just business.
However, the big question of the day remains, who will ultimately rule the mobile world:
- Google is the new Microsoft... The good news for Apple is that Microsoft have officially deserted the battlefield. The bad news is that Google have entered the arena, and they are awfully well prepared. Let’s not make any mistake about it, the mobile market is likely to remain more competitive than the PC market ever was, so Google are high unlikely to achieve Microsoft’s overwhelming market dominance. However, according to Morgan Stanley’s research, the mobile internet market is expected to reach twice the size of the desktop internet market. And since Google already rules the internet, its logical that Android will eventually rule mobile. In truth, Apple’s iOS doesn’t offer much of a defence against the fast evolving Android.
- Apple is the king of profits!.. Popularity is a pretty cool thing to have, however when all is said and done at the end of the day, its the $$’s that count! And in this arena, Apple is clearly the king of the hill. These pie charts say it all:
Last year Apple sold 17 million mobile handsets, compared with the 400 million pushed by Nokia, Samsung and LG (23 times greater). Yet Apple earned 39% of the entire industry's profits, more than the 32% earned by the three largest handset makers, combined!
Google’s estimated revenue from Android this year is expected to top $1 billion. Apple’s iPhone revenue in the 1st quarter of 2011 alone topped $11 billion!.. No matter how popular Android becomes over the next 5 years I just can’t see how they catch up to Apple’s big bucks.
Bottom Line
So, all in all, who wins? My short term vote (next 5 yrs) has got to be Apple, they simply have too much cash on their side. However, in the long term I think its possible that Android’s popularity may sideline them to such an extent that they become an irrelevant niche player...
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