Rich Karlgaard: Apple's Lawsuit Sent a Message to Google

Wall Street Journal ^ | August 27, 2012 | BY RICH KARLGAARD

[Swordmaker]

To Steve Jobs, Android stirred unpleasant memories of Microsoft

Last week Apple made headlines twice. On Monday it broke the world record for shareholder value. Apple's $623.5 billion market cap beat Microsoft's record from tech's notorious bubble era. (Microsoft needed a price-to-earnings ratio of 72 in 1999 to set the record. Apple's ratio is a modest 16.) Then on Friday, Apple won a $1.05 billion patent-infringement judgment against Samsung, the Korean electronics giant and the maker of the Galaxy line of smartphones that stirred Apple's ire.

Congratulations, Apple—twice. But these two coinciding events should give us pause.

One, how badly has Apple been hurt by copycats if it has ...

[kevkrom]

I don’t recall computer prices during the 80’s, but it was a truism in the 90’s that a top-of-the-line PC (with display and OS) would run you about $4,000, which held pretty steady for much of that decade.

Considering what you can buy for well under $2,000 — or even $1,000! — today and factor inflation into the mix, and it’s no wonder the “digital revolution” is so much stronger today: computers are a lot more affordable.

[itsahoot]

Try making an exact duplicate shape of a Lamborghini and putting your own label on it.

When I was a kid after WW II the Japanese made near copies of everything they could, most would not fool people on close examination.

One I particularly remember was the Ronson lighter which they made look a likes of with the name Penguin on them, you could impress an onlooker if you didn’t let them hod them.

Today it is Rolex knockoffs. What is in a shape after all.

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

Steve Jobs wanted the Mac to sell for $1995, to compete more favorably with many home computers. He was overruled by John Sculley.

I agonized over the decision, but finally bought an Apple Iic when it came out, instead of a getting a Mac. Had the Mac been $500 cheaper, I would have sprung for it. I certainly wouldn’t have been the only one. Had the Mac been priced aggressively, the IBM PC might have died aborning. The PC would have been just enough to put the IBM imprimatur on individual computers, without being nearly good enough to compete with a Mac priced at $1999.

Steve Jobs really bought himself - and Apple, if not indeed all PC customers - a pain in the rear by recruiting Sculley!

[antiRepublicrat]

This exemplifies what innovative American companies have to fight with:

The next iPhone isn't even out yet and the Asian copycats already have the copy machine cranked up based on leaks of what the next iPhone will look like. So now maybe you'll complain the next iPhone is a copy of this Android phone.