| <No.576> |
| Apple Betting on Success With New Product Launch |
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Whether it's a new way to pay for goods,
a thinner, faster notebook
or an entirely new product
like the Apple Watch,
no other company makes a simple product announcement
such a highly anticipated event.
One thing Apple is good at is taking risks,
says CNET editor Lindsey Turrentine.
"There's a risk
that people will say,
'I have a phone,
why would I want some of those same features
on my arm?'
There's also the risk
that battery life could be a really limiting factor."
But risk has always been an important aspect
of innovation.
Some say CEO Tim Cook has succeeded
in Apple's post-Steve Jobs era
because he's willing to exchange stability
to stay relevant.
That's one of the main points
in a new book
by business motivation expert Kevin Paul Scott.
"They're saying you know,
'We could continue to do what we're doing
and do it well and survive,'
but they're saying
'We're gonna give up,
we're gonna make some big bets
on some big things' -
and they're really pursuing significance.
And that's why
Apple has continued to change the game
again and again."
But to be fair,
Scott says Apple also has three things going for it.
"Apple always tends to keep us in suspense,
so it makes us want to watch.
Number two,
they don't speak too frequently,
and so when they do, they say something
that's worth saying,
and number three is,
they have a cult-like following."
With a price range
starting at $350 for the Sport edition,
all the way to $10,000
for the 18-karat gold edition,
Apple's cult-like following is probably enough to sell
millions of the new watches
when they go on sale April 24th.
Regardless of how well it does
in the second quarter,
John Silva, president of the National Association for
Business Economics,
says Apple's success is proof
that innovation sells
even in a tough economy.
"Well, it tells us
that you know, innovation actually is quite strong
relative to a lot of the negative sentiment
that seems to be out there,
and that there is a lot of change going on
in terms of entrepreneurship in the U.S. economy."
Apple stock rose about half a percent
after the announcement.
Last week, the California-based company became the newest member
of the Dow Jones Industrial Average,
meaning that any ups and downs in the company's fortunes
will be reflected
in the world's most closely watched stock index.
Mil Arcega, VOA News, Washington |
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