BusinessWeek Redeems Itself With New Apple Analysis

by , 11:00 AM EST, December 14th, 2000

BusinessWeek earned the ire of Macheads and knowledgeable technology officianodos this week with the publication of poor editorial on Apple this week. We covered that piece already (with a follow-up piece as well), but the magazine has published another analysis that takes a much more balanced look at the company. The new piece, "Byte Of The Apple," by Charles Haddad looks at Apple's current problems honestly, and suggests that Steve Jobs can likely pull the company through their current problems. According to Mr. Haddad:

Though his Cube hasn't caught on and he has made other missteps, the CEO has a great overall record and can change course quickly.

Oh, those fickle consumers. What kind of computers will they buy next? Figuring that out is a tough assignment. Just ask Apple Computer CEO Steve Jobs. After making a couple of great calls, such as the iMac, he has struck out big-time during the past six months in divining what consumers want. His beloved G4 Cube, pegged as Apple's next growth engine, is gathering dust in warehouses. At last count, there was an 11-week supply of this novel desktop that resembles a slick, oversize ice cube (see BW Online, 12/11/00, "Streetwise: Why Apple Is Losing Its Appeal Again").

Does such a misjudgment signal that Jobs has lost his touch? Is it time for media critics such as myself to gang up on him? Hold your venom, fellow scribes, and first tally up Jobs's successes during his current three-year reign. In addition to the iMac, there's the iBook portable computer, iMovie home-video-editing software, an enhanced Web effort, and an online store. That's a pretty good track record. Considering what a crapshoot it is picking winning computers and software, I'd say Jobs has rolled more lucky sevens than snake eyes so far.

Check out Mr. Haddad's piece for more analysis, background, and information; it is a good read.

The Mac Observer Spin:

We appreciate BusinessWeek publishing something to balance the poorly reasoned ramblings of Mr. Jaffe. Our intent is not to blindly defend Apple by burying our heads in the sand and shouting at those who would dare criticize the comapny. Indeed, Apple has some tough issues before it and, as our own Kyle D'Addario put it, we wouldn't want to be in the comapny's board room making the decisions they need to make. However, well balanced criticism that has a sound basis in reality is a far cry from the kinds of anti-Apple hysteria that is once again making the rounds in the mainstream press.

It seems that the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Read The BusinessWeek Analysis