"We think the open versus closed argument is just a smokescreen to try
to hide the real issue, which is what's best for the customer: Fragmented versus integrated," Jobs said on the call. "We think Android is very, very fragmented and getting more fragmented by the day."
"It was one of the most entertaining -- and interesting -- earnings calls in recent memory," comments Search Engine Land's Greg Sterling. "Jobs' highly passionate style stands in marked contrast
to Google CEO Eric Schmidt's unflappable delivery."
As TechCrunch notes, "Apple's Q4 earnings call
today made it more clear than ever that Apple and Google are in the middle of an all-out war in the mobile space."
That said, "Jobs wasn't just criticizing Google," notes The New York Times. "With a bit less passion, and perhaps a touch of disdain, he also
dismissed Research In Motion, the maker of the BlackBerry."
Calling it "an astonishing five-minute critique of rival companies, operating systems and platforms," the Telegraph notes: "Some industry insiders questioned whether his appearance
was designed to deflect some of the attention away from worse than expected iPad sales of just 4.2 million for the quarter, far less than Wall Street analysts had predicted."
VentureBeat couldn't help noticing, "What's funny is that [Jobs] didn't spend much time on
Microsoft's upcoming Windows Phone 7 platform -- which means he either doesn't consider it a threat, or he's avoiding Microsoft criticisms for some reason."
Ha, that same approach killed him in the personal computing market as well. Why does he think that this approach will work in the phone market when it killed him in the PC market. In 1978, Apple was arguably the biggest, most popular personal computer in the world. Yes it was a small world, but they were the leader. Then Gates kicks out MS-DOS to anyone who wants it and boom, Apple goes from hero to zero in less than 10 years and a bunch of other companies make huge fortunes (HP, Compaq, IBM to name a few). I think the same thing is going to happen to Apple in the mobile phone market. Jobs will limit his OS to HIS hardware and therefore limit his distribution and price point capabilities. Google will license their OS to anyone and they'll wind up getting a far larger share of the market via 5 or 6 handset manufacturers because it will allow specialization of hardware and multiple price points. There will always be the iFans who buy anything Apple makes, but the mainstream will run on Android or its derivatives on any number of handsets inside of 5 years is my guess.
Steve you are so right, I think they are preparing a repeat of their past mistakes, only this time the arrogance is so high from the Apple farm that they will not see it until it's too late.