Apple (Computer) Inc: Whither the Mac?

Abstract

A product manager at Apple examines the past, present, and future of the PC industry in September 2011 in the wake of Steve Jobs's resignation and HP's announcement that it was exiting the PC industry in favor of enterprise software solutions and consulting. The protagonist thinks through current forces in the PC industry, including market share trends, mobile computing, ultrabooks, and cloud computing services—as well as the position of the Mac in Apple's product portfolio—and is faced with making a decision about the future of the Mac. Excerpt UVA-S-0202 Rev. Jan. 28, 2015 Apple (Computer) Inc.: Whither the Mac? A Double Whammy It was August 30, 2011. James Rollins, a product development manager at Apple Inc., reread Steve Jobs's resignation letter and leafed through some news coverage regarding the Hewlett-Packard (HP) announcement. He felt as though he was in the center of a maelstrom. Six days earlier, Jobs had announced his resignation as CEO of Apple. Jobs had said in a brief letter: “I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come.” Six days before that, HP CEO Leo Apotheker had announced that HP would spin off its industry-leading personal computer (PC) business—including all its desktops, laptops, and even touchpads and smartphones—in favor of investing resources in the areas of enterprise software and information management solutions. In support of this strategy, HP also announced its intention to purchase Autonomy, a British enterprise software company, at a premium. Apotheker said on an analyst conference call, “We believe this bold action will squarely position HP in software and information to create the next-generation information platform…This is about a transformation to position HP for a new future and driving shareholder value.” . . .