Apple’s Cook Claims Great Innovations In Store, Devices ‘You Can’t Live Without’ In Mad Money Interview
Apple recently reported its first revenue decline in 13 years and its first ever year-over-year drop in iPhone sales. The consensus by some is that the market is saturated with smartphones and that Apple hasn't been an innovative company since the late Steve Jobs passed the torch to Tim Cook. Is that really the case? Cook says hold the boat.
In an interview with CNBC's Jim Cramer, host of Mad Money, Cook called all the recent negative fuss over the iPhone amounts to a "huge overreaction." As far as Cook is concerned, the iPhone is far from dead, and the same is true of Apple as a whole, which generates the bulk of its income from iPhone sales.
"We just had a, actually an incredible quarter by absolute standards. You know, $50+ billion in revenues and $10 billion in profits. To put that into perspective, $10 billion is more than any other company makes, so it was a pretty good quarter, not up to the street's expectations clearly," Cook said.
The exact figures are $50.6 billion in revenue with a net income of $10.5 billion, though during the same period a year ago, Apple collected $58.01 billion in revenue and profited $13.57 billion. That's in large part due to Apple selling nearly 10 million less iPhone handsets during its fiscal second quarter of 2016 than it did in the same period a year prior.
Taking a deeper dive into the numbers, Cook points out that last year saw an abnormally high rate of iPhone sales. Even though Apple sold almost 10 million less handsets this past quarter than it did last year, it sold more iPhones than it did two years ago. Cook also notes that the satisfaction rate among customers is high, which he says is important for Apple's long term outlook.
Cramer playfully prodded Cook for specifics by saying he can't think of anything else he'd need that his current iPhone doesn't already do.
"We're going to give you things that you can't live without that you just don't know that you need today," Cook responded.
Only time will tell if Apple's capable of delivering on Cook's promises, and if the drop in iPhone sales truly is something that's being overblown by analysts and investors. One thing that's working in Apple's favor is Cook's confidence—his line about giving customers things they can't live without is reminiscent of how Jobs approached product design and ultimately built and empire. Perhaps Apple's best days might still lay ahead, after all.
In an interview with CNBC's Jim Cramer, host of Mad Money, Cook called all the recent negative fuss over the iPhone amounts to a "huge overreaction." As far as Cook is concerned, the iPhone is far from dead, and the same is true of Apple as a whole, which generates the bulk of its income from iPhone sales.
"We just had a, actually an incredible quarter by absolute standards. You know, $50+ billion in revenues and $10 billion in profits. To put that into perspective, $10 billion is more than any other company makes, so it was a pretty good quarter, not up to the street's expectations clearly," Cook said.
The exact figures are $50.6 billion in revenue with a net income of $10.5 billion, though during the same period a year ago, Apple collected $58.01 billion in revenue and profited $13.57 billion. That's in large part due to Apple selling nearly 10 million less iPhone handsets during its fiscal second quarter of 2016 than it did in the same period a year prior.
Taking a deeper dive into the numbers, Cook points out that last year saw an abnormally high rate of iPhone sales. Even though Apple sold almost 10 million less handsets this past quarter than it did last year, it sold more iPhones than it did two years ago. Cook also notes that the satisfaction rate among customers is high, which he says is important for Apple's long term outlook.
Of course, satisfied customers only translate into continued revenue if those same customers are compelled to upgrade. To that end, Cook says there's "great innovation in the pipeline, new iPhones that will incentivize you and other people that have iPhones today to upgrade to new iPhones."
Cramer playfully prodded Cook for specifics by saying he can't think of anything else he'd need that his current iPhone doesn't already do.
"We're going to give you things that you can't live without that you just don't know that you need today," Cook responded.
Only time will tell if Apple's capable of delivering on Cook's promises, and if the drop in iPhone sales truly is something that's being overblown by analysts and investors. One thing that's working in Apple's favor is Cook's confidence—his line about giving customers things they can't live without is reminiscent of how Jobs approached product design and ultimately built and empire. Perhaps Apple's best days might still lay ahead, after all.
