Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) -- strange bedfellows or enemies? The iPod and the Zune, the Mac OS and Windows. Is Microsoft really helping Apple selling Macs?
Well, not entirely. According to The Wall Street Journal, the ability of the new Intel Corp.- (NASDAQ:INTC) powered Macs to run Windows is winning fans [subscription required] with consumers, schools and small businesses. As the paper writes, "support for Windows on Apple hardware looks to be playing a key role in persuading some users to switch to Macs."
Apple really doesn't need the help. In the latest reported quarter, Mac sales rose 40% to $2.4 billion. Sales of portable Macs rose 79% to $1.455 billion.
The knock against the Mac at most companies is that its OS does not play nicely with Windows. No longer. Now, Apple computers run the stuff. Apple's marketing strength, however, remains directed at the consumer, due, in part, to the success of the iPod and the upcoming launch of the iPhone.
Perhaps Apple will actually put some sales effort against enterprise sales of the Mac. That could make things interesting for companies like Hewlett-Packard Co.(NYSE:HPQ).
Douglas A. McIntyre is a partner at 24/7 Wall St.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
3-21-2007 @ 1:04AM
Christopher Martin said...
Microsoft helps Apple sell Macs... just by being Microsoft and subjecting people to Windows. Except for a few database programs (often taken care of by using a Citrix clients), there is no reason to have a windows box in an office. Macs cost about $300 more up front, but the computers last an average of 4.5 years, whereas a Windows box will last 2-2.5. Also, PCs take about $375 per year per workstation for software and labor for virus protection alone, not even counting the cost if the PC actually gets infected with something. Macs: $0 - there is one trojan horse for the Mac, and you have to try to install it. Not to mention the defect rate of a Mac is much lower than a PC - Macs are built and designed by one company, and every PC is built by alamgamating the lowest bids from 23 different subcontractors. In a Mac-to-PC comparison, Macs are cheaper than PCs in an office environment after an average just 9 months of use. And then on top of that, they look prettier, have more features, are easier to use, and take up less desk space. It's just simply fiscally responsible to get Macs. And cool.