Apple Ranks 91st in U.S. R&D Spending at $471M
First on TMO - Apple Ranks 91st in U.S. R&D Spending at $471M
by , 11:30 AM EST, December 1st, 2004
Apple Computer ranked 91st among American businesses in spending on research and development in 2003, according to a just announced list from Technology Review magazine.
Apple spent US$471 million in 2003 on R&D, a 6% increase over 2002, or $25 million more than the previous year.
Apple R&D accounts for 8% of its sales, the survey showed. The Mac and iPod maker spends $34,719 on R&D for each of its employees.
The 2004 R&D Scorecard of the top 150 spenders showed Apple sixth among the top nine computer hardware makers in spending. IBM was first among computer companies and 19th overall, followed by Hewlett-Packard in second and 24th overall. In comparison, IBM spent $5 billion on R&D in 2003; HP spend $3.6 billion. IBM had a 7% increase in R&D spending, or $318 million more. HP spent 10% more, or $340 million.
The trend among computer manufacturers in 2003 was to spend less on R&D, with a .4% overall decline.
Observer Comments
Wed Dec 01, 2004 1:52 pm Subject: If it came from a magazine, how can it be "first on TMO
Wed Dec 01, 2004 2:21 pm Subject: that's what I was just thinking!
We were first in the Mac Web to:
A.) Spot the story
B.) Give it context within the Apple and Mac community
C.) Report it with that context
In other words, we aren't claiming it's a scoop, but rather that we we were first to publish an Apple-related story about it in the Mac Web.
Thanks for the notes.
Bryan
Editor
TMO
Wed Dec 01, 2004 4:03 pm Subject: Thank you Bryan for the story
Wed Dec 01, 2004 4:21 pm Subject: Re: Surprised
Quotezpok wrote:
Or is HP the typical Dell situation, where R&D is mostly spent on sales?
I'm pretty sure Dell and HP are VERY different companies.
Dell is like the Wal-Mart of computer makers...low cost through very high volume. I doubt they do very much innovating on their own...their mission is to sell computers as cheaply as they can.
HP, on the other hand, is more like the Apple of the PC world. They're always coming out with media-center computers and things that are a bit different than what everyone else is doing.
It's hardly surprising that HP is the company Apple decided to market the iPod through...they're already open to trying new things, from what I've seen.
QuoteYou are right in certain extent. Many companies included sales and maintenance expenses into R&D to look good.zpok wrote:
I'm actually surprised that HP spends so much on R&D. The mantra is that Apple does all the research for the home PC market, while now we learn HP spends about 8 times as much...
Or is HP the typical Dell situation, where R&D is mostly spent on sales?
That said, Apple is more efficient in their R&D effort than most companies. Since SJ return, Apple only focuses R&D in area that would bear fruits and not some wishy-washy research that go nowhere. Apple use to have many wishy-washy research going on too. SJ killed off all these research efforts long ago.
Remember that Hewlett-Packard is an enormous company that does business in much more than just personal computers... take a look at their web site. I'm sure that the majority of their research dollars go to high-profit technologies like medical imaging and very-high-end software/hardware for large companies and government agencies.
Quotezpok wrote:
I'm actually surprised that HP spends so much on R&D. The mantra is that Apple does all the research for the home PC market, while now we learn HP spends about 8 times as much...
Or is HP the typical Dell situation, where R&D is mostly spent on sales?
HP produces a lot more than PCs--printers, servers, copiers, scanners, and operating systems, but the real key is to look at R&D as a percentage of sales, not the overall amount. Apple is 8%, HP 5%.
Looking down at the software giants, I wonder how much of their "R&D" is just software development--does it include coding & design? GM doesn't count designing new cars as "R&D."
Comments are currently closed. Please email the author instead.
Recent Headlines - Updated November 21st
- Fri, 7:07 PM
- Games - Soccer Sim Championship Manager 2010 Released for Mac
- 6:47 PM
- Games - EA Publishes Original Monopoly for iPhone
- 6:15 PM
- News - Original Apple I on Ebay for $50K, w/Letter from Steve Jobs
- 6:11 PM
- Games - New iPhone Games: Secret of the Lost Cavern Ep 1, New DJ Nights, More
- 5:47 PM
- Games - Star Trek D-A-C Game Headed to the Mac Next Month
- 4:57 PM
- Product News - TidBITS Releases “Take Control of Syncing Data in Snow Leopard”
- 4:26 PM
- John Martellaro's Blog - Particle Debris (week ending 11/20) Stationery Pads Go Poof
- 2:59 PM
- Free on iTunes - Musée du Louvre, Art Lite, SketchBook Mobile X and More.
- 1:50 PM
- Deal Brothers - Acer P215H bmid 21.5” Widescreen LCD Monitor: $139.99
- 11:24 AM
- TMO Appearances - Jeff Gamet Shares More Holiday Gift Ideas on MacJury
- 10:43 AM
- Product News - Cocktail 4.5 for Leopard Adds QuickLook Cache Clearing
- 10:06 AM
- News - Hack Enables Mac OS X 10.6.2 on Netbooks
The Mac Observer Reader Specials
- TypeStyler For Mac OS X is Now Shipping! Download The Free Fully Functional 60 Day Tryout at www.typestyler.com
OWC: Plug & Play Hardware RAID up to 8.0TB. High Performance, Data Redundant Solutions. FireWire 800, FireWire 400, USB2, or eSATA. Hot Swappable Bays, Data Rates over 200MB/s. Click here
If you're using a Mac, then you've gotta check out Full Tilt Poker for Mac. This Full Tilt Poker bonus code does the unthinkable, it actually rewards!For the latest Apple products use Ciao, a price comparison website, to find laptops like MacBook Air. Then find the best prices on MP3 players and use our comparison tool to evaluate mobile phones like the Apple iPhone.
Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.

