“Nine times out of 10, when a company makes an error, the polite and politically correct thing to do is to make an apology, correct the mistake, then move on,” James Brumley writes for InvestorPlace. “I thought that might be the appropriate action for Apple to take, too, following the Apple Maps debacle that has frustrated far too many users of iOS 6 devices, (which most notably includes the new iPhone 5). After actually reading Tim Cook’s letter of apology, though, I’ve officially changed my mind.”
“Maybe sometimes the best thing a company can do when it makes a mistake is to say nothing,” Brumley writes. “The letter came across a little smarmy.”
Brumley writes, “Frankly, the whole apology would have seemed a lot more sincere had Cook also not peppered the letter with reasons suggesting he doesn’t actually owe anyone an apology. It’s kind of like Steve Jobs telling iPhone 4 users ‘Don’t hold it that way’ when they figured out its antenna didn’t work very well in certain positions.”
Read more in the full article here.
This apology is becoming a bigger story than the issue with Apple Maps ever was. Clearly Cooks worst move yet.
Nope. I don’t agree. The whole trumped-up controversy is just a reflection of the times in which we live. If you want to get noticed, publicly take a position that polarizes an issue and then rake in the attention from the ensuing battle of words. In a short while, the issue fades and another takes its place. The Chick-fil-A controversy, for instance, was fairly big for a while – massive crowds and lots of media coverage. But how many people are either boycotting or frequently patronizing Chick-fil-A these days? You don’t hear anything about it anymore.
If Apple and we, the Apple faithful, allow the ignorati to define/control technical and managerial discussions involving Apple and its products, then you can be certain that the discourse will largely be negative. As informed Mac users, it is our responsibility to keep an informed, critical eye open to Apple’s actions and products. But we must also avoid allowing others to play on our emotions or push us to act in a rash manner. A good example of a rash response would be the calls to immediately first Forstall or one of the other Apple managers. Let Apple take care of its own business unless it proves that it cannot do so. Do you really believe that all these pundits and media personalities and agitated forum contributors know better than Cook and his team?
“fire” not “first” – victim of spell correction
Geez! Chic-fil-A! King, you’re out of control. Take a few days off. Live a little. Apple doesn’t need your rants that go on and on and on and…. Apple can do just fine without your opinions. Really! They’re ok. “We the Apple faithful!” “it’s our responsibility to keep an informed, critical eye to Apples actions and products!” Are you fucking nuts? But then of course you are after all “KING!”
It’s good to be the King! That name was given to me, by the way. You make it sound like a self-appellation.
It is humorous to hear you complain about interminable rants. I do not believe you are qualified to diagnose the mental health status of other people. It would be advisable for you to weed your own synapse garden.
Just what do you want/expect from everyone on this forum, GM? Abject submission to your will? That is not going to happen.
Let me simplify for you, GM…
The Apple Maps situation was blown out of proportion. The Chick-fil-A situation was blown out of proportion. Within a couple of weeks the attention given to the Chick-fil-A situation faded. So will the attention given to Apple Maps issues.
Summary: Contrary to your assertions, GM, most people seem to feel that Apple should avoid knee-jerk reactions such as immediately firing someone (you mentioned Scott Forstall) to demonstrate that Apple management is in charge.
Is THAT simple enough for you to comprehend without exploding?
This is simply the liberal media doing what it does, you guys don’t notice because you’re not on the butt end of their stupidity.
Believe me, this is *nothing* compared to how they deal with serious world news.
You just had to append “liberal” to media, didn’t you? And how, exactly, did “fair and balanced” Fox News handle the Apple Maps situation, SG Gibson? Clearly FN isn’t liberal, so I guess that makes them the only true media.
Has a life of its own.
James Brumley is trying to jump on a bandwagon that has already left.
People buying a new iPhone 5 are expecting a debacle because of all the hysteria that has been whipped up, but what they find when they switch it on is a mapping app that does a pretty good job.
The database problems will soon be resolved and the media circus can then move on to the next round of FUD for when the mini iPad is released.
“People buying a new iPhone 5 are expecting a debacle because of all the hysteria that has been whipped up, but what they find when they switch it on is a mapping app that does a pretty good job.”
A nice summation of the situation.
From what I am told at one of our 2 Apple Stores, sales of iPhone 5 are primarily to the converted and not so much to new blood. That screen size will bite Apple in the butt with regards to moving Droid or for that matter Windows Phone users over to iPhone.
“From what I am told at one of our 2 Apple Stores”
Are you pregnant, or do you have a mouse in your pocket?
You appear to be in the BLN “bigger display is better” camp, Gary J. There are practical considerations that must be factored in to the size, resolution, and aspect ratio of a smartphone touchscreen. Samsung has headed towards crossover phone/tablet dimensions (4.5″ to 5″). Apple believes that it has chosen wisely with the iPhone 5 and previous iterations in terms of utility and portability/convenience at 3.5″ to 4″.
Apple is stronger when it does not attempt to be all things to all people. That is why Samsung has a couple of dozen or more handset designs and Apple has only three – new, previous, and once more removed – designed to appeal to the majority of potential customers. The popularity and profitability of the iPhone attests to the wisdom of that approach. Apple may lose some customers to Android for that reason, but it is not clear that the losses will be sufficiently material to be classified as a “bite in the butt.”
James, no one gives a flyin’ fuck in a rollin’ doughnut that you’ve “officially changed” your mind…asshat.
And there goes the stock price!
ooh, smarmy. How many times does he use that word in a year? Either once or a whole lotta times because he just learned it. I’m impressed (amazed, astonished, astounded, bewildered, dazed, dazzled, overwhelmed, stunned, surprised).
But not shocked.
Sweet christ, now they’re trying to create a fake Apology-gate scandal.
What could have made Tim Cook’s apology more sincere? If he committed seppuku?
I’m guessing that some of the MDN folks that keep going on and on about how Apple is doomed now that Jobs is gone may have liked that.
Yeah, and then those same people would begin griping about Cook’s replacement. You can’t satisfy some people, and those same people often have a highly inflated opinion of the value of their beliefs/ideas.
like Google stole Android from Apple, Oracle, Msft etc. ?
Apple went the high ground to not steal but buy or build their own database and they get crucified for it.
Google steals (and gives the stolen product to America’s competitors ) and the majority of the press lauds it as the great american hero….
If Google didn’t steal Google phone would have been a blackberry button mess.
and few in the non apple press ever examine or condemn Google for betraying apple, not only did they steal iPhone secrets, after making a deal to provide maps for iOS they sabotaged apple by not making turn by turn available for years while giving it to Android.
—–
all these negative maps press is overblown by haters who will attack apple every chance and also by hedge funds and big investors spreading FUD to try to push aapl down
Excellent point… Apple should have simply removed the Google logo from maps and labelled it Apple.
Then when Google complains, just tell them …. Don’t stifle innovation!
I’ve always found it quite fascinating how so many in the media (MDN included) have pounced on Apple since Steve Job’s passing. People who wouldn’t have the balls to say such things when Jobs was alive.
“Jobs’s” passing. Sorry.
As much of an Apple loyal customer I’ve been over the decades, I wish Apple would come clean with the problems IOS 6.0 has done with battery draining with iPhone 4 and 4s.
I had to turn off all of my notifications and my locations services.
Foolish story. I respect Cook for apologizing partly because most CEOs don’t admit their errors.
When Cook issued that apology on Friday, I thought “Fuck, now the story is going to go on for another whole week.” If he had just said nothing, people would be over it and harping on something else by now. Making the apology made the story much bigger than it originally was.
Yeah, Cook should have just ‘doubled down’ on the other Apple exec’s statement. That was (more or less); ” We own this one, it’s no one’s problem but ours (Apple’s).” And left it at that, the apology was unnecessary and lame.
But I’ll leave it with… Go Apple!
“I’m sorry, but so is Brenda Lee”- Marshall Crenshaw
Next week we’ll be reading about Cook’s silence since his apology is all wrong.
Well Apple is surely doomed!
Move on, this is just another antennagate – no big fucking deal.
Stick it out leki we always did and use Apple maps exclusively for a while – help it learn and tweak itself into what it will become when everyone will rave about how Apple transformed GM into a greater reinvented one. It’s only a damn app for fuck’s sake, A Smart App…
Dyslexia rules OK
Leki=like
Whinegate II
Steve Jobs would have done what Tim did, he did when he flew back from A Hawaaian vacation for Whinegate I.
Apple is expanding on all fronts and firing on all 8 cylinders. Shit happens , this has no bearing or effect on it’s standing.
Stay tuned Mr. Breeze it’s about to get real windy at Apple Inc. Heck Google now trading North of $100.00 more than Apple.
Apple’s sense on entitlement is about to hurt them big time!
Idiot dismissed.
As an aapl investor, I always feel more secure when google price is higher. Seems like a buying opportunity. And time to sell google. But it’s only psychological.
My maps works great! And I think the people will speak with their wallets.
Vultures. People will pounce on anything. It’s the new normal. Everybody Hates.
I suppose Google is banned from updating their maps and data in China, the biggest mobile phone market in the world. Today I visited 3 places, on all of them Google maps were totally wrong, not useful at all. Then I went back to my photos and looked with their location data, found fields where there were now business park, empty lots were there used to be business parks, lot of missing roads either way, and the map and sat were both wrong.
But, the directions data is missing for bus and walking, which makes the Apple maps sometimes useless. There also should be a layer for users to share their data.
ANTENNAGATE
As Jobs showed. Holding other phones affects their signal strength too. An old SonyEricsson phone I got and my iPod 2G shows the same problem. Cover them a certain way they lose signal. Apple could have done a better job with it like in the 4S and 5 where the problem seems to be gone but covering the antenna will weaken the signal.
Who is this writer? Cook’s apology was humiliating. This person is good for nothing but click bait.