The iPhone Franchise

The iPhone is a franchise, a product that will make money in well-defined ways; Apple understands that and is exploiting it more than ever before with the iPhones XS and XR.

Android-EU Follow-Up, Google Earnings, Facebook and the Stock Market

Follow-up on Google’s EU decision, and a reminder that Google really good for consumers. Then, Google’s strong quarterly results, and why the understanding Facebook’s strategic advantages may be divorces from their stock price.

Amazon Switches?, AWS Versus Azure, Photoshop on iPad

Amazon’s rumored move into Switches is being framed as being about Cisco, but I suspect it’s about Microsoft. Then, Adobe is making Photoshop for iPad, which benefits from subscriptions.

Xiaomi IPOs, Samsung’s Profit Slips, The Smiling Curve

Xiaomi’s IPO shows a company that has come full circle but still has a long ways to go. Then, Samsung remains reliant on components for profit, and both companies show that the Smiling Curve applies to smartphones more than ever.

The Cost of Developers

Microsoft paid a lot for GitHub, because it had to pay directly for access to developers. It doesn’t have the leverage of users the way that Apple does on the App Store.