http://www.fosspatents.com/2013/04/samsung-affirmatively-says-us-import.html
It would be interesting to find out if the sales of older iphones and ipads were significantly affecting the sales of samsung products. Contrary to this I wonder if Apple being forced to stop selling all of their older model products will affect sales of their newer products. There are so many different components of a company's business operations that these patent cases affect. It goes beyond the courtroom and lawyers and all the way down to the retailers. In a time when we as a country need to encourage consumer spending to boost our economy, removing desirable and affordable apple products can hinder this goal. The article states that Apple can only be affected at the low end and the repair business but I feel that it goes beyond this. While it may only affect these areas directly, it affects a lot more indirectly.
I feel like people don't really buy older Apple products anyway once new ones come out, since that seems to be Apple's strategy with the yearly iterations of the iPhone and the iPad with only incremental changes. I don't think a ban on older products would even hurt Apple that much.
ReplyDeleteI think Apple's sales will be fine for awhile, even if that means their market share goes down a little. This definitely affects the secondary market for these older Apple products, though, as they may be worth a little more now that they are more rare. On the other hand, they could also be worth less because there are less accessories out for them and less repair availability.
ReplyDeleteI do think that stopping the shipping of older models will affect the sale of current items. After all, many people buy the older models because they're cheaper and, in many cases, very similar. I think overall this will be bad for Apple despite the fact that it would force Apple customers to purchase more expensive commitment.
ReplyDeleteKevin, I have to disagree. There is a large market out there of people who cannot afford the newest and most expensive products. They usually wait until the new version or model of a phone comes out and then they will purchase the older one at a much discounted price. I agree with Aaron and think it would make these products worth even less because of the less repair availability.
ReplyDeleteI think that given the amount of time it will take this injunction to actually go into effect, assuming it happens, another generation of Apple products will come to market, thus making the older models even more obsolete.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I agree with Aviv. I feel like the outcome does not even matter. Most people who can afford it, would go for the latest device and a few people would get the version right before because it is cheaper; but I can't see anyone purchasing more than one version old. So, once the next iPhone comes out, most people will get that, and the few that want to save money will probably get the iPhone5.
ReplyDeleteThis seems like a largely meaningless effort, especially considering the often superficial upgrades that Apple makes to its product line. Samsung appears to release many different types of products, but does not update them as frequently--perhaps their perspective is distorted based on their business model.
ReplyDeleteThe ban is going to apply in the US, and I don't think it would make much of an impact to Apple's US market. It would mean so much more if the ban was applied to countries like China, India or Mexico, where older generations of iPhone and iPad are still very popular.
ReplyDeleteGreat article Cory. I wrote about the same topic this week. I do agree with Tik Kei Dicky Woo how it won't have a big impact to Apple's US market, because of the new technology that will come out in the meantime. This is an interesting situation and should definitely be closely looked out in the coming months.
ReplyDeleteThis ban is wacky. Its always interesting how they site the impact on revenue as a justification for tangible infringement. In any case, banning sales is probably not a smart move.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Apple has no interest in selling its old products because their margins are lower. I also believe that its repair business doesn't bring much revenue, but a rather represents great customer support.
ReplyDeleteI think that sooner or later Apple will stop producing its old Ipads and Iphones itself because it is economically not efficient for them.