“Apple Inc. introduced installment payment plans for buyers of iPhones and MacBook laptops in China as it struggles to compete with low-cost devices in the world’s largest computer and mobile-phone market,” Bloomberg News reports.
MacDailyNews Take: Yes, Apple is “struggling.” Struggling to find bank vaults large enough to house the vast majority of the world’s smartphone profits, that is.
Hey Bloomberg, why don’t you try simply reporting the news instead of festooning and thereby distorting the facts with your own fallacies? (You, too, Nikkei.)
Now, because some fool at Bloomberg News obviously didn’t pass Journalism 101, here’s how the information should have been reported: “Apple Inc. introduced installment payment plans for buyers of iPhones and MacBook laptops in China, the world’s largest computer and mobile-phone market.” Just the facts, ma’am.
“Payments on purchases costing from 300 yuan ($48) to 30,000 yuan made via the company’s Chinese website can be spread over as long as two years, according to the site,” Bloomberg News reports. “The plan, which requires a China Merchants Bank Co. credit card, has fees ranging from zero to 8.5 percent.”
“The iPhone 5, released in China last month, is priced at 5,288 yuan on Apple’s local site, equal to about six weeks’ pay for the average urban worker,” Bloomberg News reports. “‘There is an enormous mid-range consumer market that they are not tapping into,’ said Mark Natkin, managing director of Marbridge Consulting Ltd., a Beijing-based market research firm. ‘They’re trying to figure out how to make products more accessible to that market segment. This is a good step in that direction.'”
Bloomberg News reports, “Online customers in China will be able to split payments into three, six, 12, 18 or 24 installments, according to Apple’s website. Through Jan. 23, choosing 12 or fewer installments carries no fee. A fee of 6.5 percent of the selling price will be charged for 18 installments, and 8.5 percent for 24 installments.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: There was once a pervasive meme that stated “Apple needs to build a netbook in order to ‘compete.'”
Apple didn’t build a netbook. They killed the netbook. But, unfortunately, not the stupid, brain-dead meme. It just morphed.
The lately version of the meme is: “Apple needs a cheapshit iPhone in order to ‘compete.'”
Extrapolate.
Market share is mistakenly being used by Wall Street as a proxy for platform value and dominance. According to comScore, as of November 2012, Android is ahead in market share at 52.6% versus Apple at 34.3%. However, Apple generated 71% of the entire mobile industry’s operating profits, according to Canaccord. In any other industry, the analysis would end right here, as investors and analysts would never seriously contend that market share is more important than profit share. – Bert Danner, January 11, 2013
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Brawndo Drinker” for the heads up.]
Apple has been doing the same credit thing in the US for years as it “Struggled” to sell Apple products in the US. Why wouldn’t they do the same everywhere? This is not news, it’s just smart business as usual.
Having seen a couple of repossessors in action detaining a friend’s expensive sports car (Porsche 911), I have an aversion to consumer credit, no matter in what form.
I love credit, as in credit cards. I get things CHEAPER (due to cash back) than cash, and more conveniently. Of course I pay in full every month automatically.
Guy gave his word to pay and did not, car comes back …..
What is your issue with repro guys?
Repossession. It’s what happened to Ballmer’s right nut.