News, info, and opinion by Mac users, for Mac users.

April 24, 2008

money

While you were sleeping…(tidbits from Apple Q2 results)

Posted Apr. 24, ’08, 8:29 AM PT by Dan Moren
Category | Money

Apple Quarterly EarningsIf you didn’t listen to yesterday’s financial results conference call (or read our lovingly handcrafted liveblog over at the Mothership), I suppose I can’t blame you. It takes a true masochistic personality to follow along with the numbers and figures, listening to Peter Oppenheimer and Tim Cook’s awkward pauses as they remind themselves that they’re only doing this because it’s required by law.

But as always, there are a couple of bits and bobs nestled in the data that might be of interest to even your casual Apple-watcher.

  • 1.43 million Mac laptops were sold in the quarter, the most ever.
  • Apple had a blockbuster quarter in education, growing 35% over the year ago quarter, the highest increase in any quarter in 8 years.
  • Apple acknowledged their recent move into selling videos in Germany and said they would continue to expand that internationally.
  • Interest in the iPhone’s forthcoming enterprise features is big: over 400 higher education institutions and 1/3 of Fortune 500 companies have registered interest.
  • Around 45 more Apple Stores will open in 2008, including the first stores in Australia, Switzerland, and China.
  • The 51% increase in Mac sales year over year is strongest in almost two decades and about 2.5x the market growth rate.
  • Best Buy rollout is going extremely well. Apple’s in about 400 stores at present, and plans to have 600 by the summer.
  • Apple’s corporate treasurer, Gary Wipfler, who sits in on all the calls, but pretty much never says anything actually answered a question! Unfortunately, I didn’t really understand a word out of the guy’s mouth. The short answer to the question asked, however, was “No.”
  • Sharon Cross of Cross Research tried to trick COO Tim Cook into revealing Apple’s plans to release a 3G iPhone, but Cook is far too wily for that—he dodged the question like one of he was in The Matrix, causing Cross to cry plaintively “I had to try!” That got a laugh from Tim, even as I imagined his finger hovered over the trap door button.
  • iPhone unlocking is a “significant” number, but Apple doesn’t want to give a figure because they aren’t confident they can back it up.

Now that your eyes are fully glazed over, we’ll return you to our regularly scheduled Mac tomfoolery. No more numbers. Well, for about three months anyway.


2 Comments

Michael Mistretta said:

They also made it quite clear that the iPhone 2.0 software (and supposedly the 3G phone) would not be released until *late* June. That pretty much counts out WWDC.

June 27th anyone?

April 24, 2008 9:21 AM
Sramana Mitra Author Profile Page said:

So are we moving toward a vertically integrated computer industry again?
http://sramanamitra.com/2008/04/24/apples-dramatic-risks-and-ambitions/

April 24, 2008 9:40 AM

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