“Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates backed Warren Buffett’s decision to up his stake in Apple, saying it is the most well-positioned tech company when it comes to profits,” Kate Rooney reports for CNBC. “‘Apple’s an amazing company, and the multiple’s not gigantic,’ Gates told CNBC’s ‘Squawk Box’ Monday from Omaha, where Berkshire Hathaway held a weekend of events around Saturday’s annual meeting. ‘The top tech companies do have a very strong profit position right now but Apple has the most of all.'”
“On Friday, Buffett, Gates’ longtime friend and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, revealed that his company bought 75 million shares of the tech giant during the first quarter, adding to the 165.3 million shares Berkshire already owned at the end of last year,” Rooney reports. “‘I think Warren has applied great thinking there,’ said Gates, who is a Berkshire Hathaway board member.”
“Berkshire invested in Apple in 2016 after someone else at the company bought about 10 million shares,” Rooney reports. “Buffett later looked at the stock and bought ‘considerably more,’ the billionaire told CNBC in August.”
• I don’t believe the success of the iPod is sustainable in the long run. – Bill Gates, May 2005
• There’s nothing that the iPod does that I say, ‘Oh, wow, I don’t think we can do that.’ – Bill Gates, September 2004
Mr. Original could’t even help copying his own sarcastic and proven-wrong quotes:
• There’s nothing on the iPad I look at and say, ‘Oh, I wish Microsoft had done it.’ – Bill Gates, February 2010
Doesn’t surprise me. After all, Apple are turning into MicroSoft in some ways – they’re making shitloads of money so everything must be going brilliantly, right?
Meanwhile, many of us seem to be in the position where there isn’t a single available Mac that we’d want to buy. I just hope my 2012 mini lasts forever.
Actually, making shitloads of money IS a pretty good indication that things are going brilliantly.
Your personal dissatisfaction with the Mac lineup, is not nearly so much an indicator that things are not going brilliantly.
Apple and MicroSoft share little in common. MS started with a poor quality product that succeeded because of it’s close affiliation with IBM and resulting acceptance by enterprise. Once their monopoly was established, they essentially stopped competing by making better products. Instead they built a moat around their business model by primarily undermining and sabotaging their competition. Their lack of ability to create wins based on better products than the competition is now slowly eroding their monopoly even though they have virtually unlimited financial resources. So now, in their case, their ability to make shitloads of money is diminishing and the shitloads they ARE making are no longer an indicator that things are going brilliantly for them.
Apple on the other hand started out making a good and unique product and has, unlike MicroSoft, worked to protect their success by using the tactic of continually attempting to make a better product rather than the tactic of undermining their competition. For Apple, who’s ability to generate cash is only increasing, and who’s product line-up is mostly solid despite the temporary missteps with their Mac business and occasional execution stumbles, are enviously positioned for future success. And, yes, their incredible ability to make shitloads and shitloads of money is a very good indication that Apple is performing brilliantly.
Your disgruntlement with the Mac lineup and any other petty complaints are just tiny, whiny squeaks when observed against the macro view of Apple’s current enviable position and current customer satisfaction of 97+%. And Apple’s business model of constantly striving to improve the technologies in their products, with the ultimate stated goal of making products that their customers will love, forges a path forward to continued future success in contrast to MicroSoft’s flawed business model of breaking the knees of the competition and strong-arming their customers and partners to protect a line of stodgy, stale and broken products.
“Actually, making shitloads of money IS a pretty good indication that things are going brilliantly.”
Riding the iPhone gravy train Steve started is NOT brilliant, but given the inconsistency Apple is plagued with under Cook, definitely necessary.
“Your personal dissatisfaction with the Mac lineup, is not nearly so much an indicator that things are not going brilliantly.”
You must be new around here. Countless others are up in arms for YEARS now of Apple NEGLECT of the Mac line that BUILT APPLE in the beginning.
“Your disgruntlement with the Mac lineup and any other petty complaints are just tiny, whiny squeaks when observed against the macro view of Apple’s current enviable position and current customer satisfaction of 97+%.”
You know all about “tiny, whiny.” Your macro view focuses on a one trick pony successful product known as the iPhone that Steve introduced.
Obviously, NEGLECT OF MACS is not a problem with you, fine. Thank the maker you don’t speak for everyone …
Hell has finally frozen over. Bill Gates publicly praising Apple is something I would never have expected to hear. I realize Apple and Microsoft aren’t actually fighting for the same space so it certainly doesn’t hurt Microsoft in any way. Microsoft is going to be making money from its cloud business and Microsoft Office 365 subscriptions and Apple can certainly use what Microsoft has to offer. There’s no need for animosity between the two companies, anymore.
If anything, Microsoft would rather side with Apple than with Google and Amazon, so why not give Apple a bit of an endorsement. If Apple wanted to help Microsoft, it would be better to have Bing Search on Safari instead of Google Search. That might be a better deal for both companies since Apple isn’t likely to acquire its own search engine.
There were many things Microsoft did right to become the defacto ‘standard’ of computing during the 90’s. Bill earns a lot of credit for manipulating and buying his way into his prosperity. He deserves credit for his ‘success’, such as it is.
But since SJ return with Apple 2.0, OS X, BYoD to work, etc., people have begun to realize that they no longer have to be shackled to that mess any longer. Thank goodness Steve had the foresight to introduce the iPod, iPhone & iPad. Dark Ages of computing no longer.
Now, if Tim would just show some love for the truckers… *sigh*.
A correctly speked out MacPro would give Apple bragging rights which would go a long way toward upping Apple’s prestige. Because it would be a signifier of sorts, it would get good PR for its other products from its halo effect. So I think the value of the MacPro is not as much monetary as it would be intrinsic. And the MacPro would no longer be a laughingstock among computer pros. who have significant influence with me.
Uh oh.
Doesn’t surprise me. After all, Apple are turning into MicroSoft in some ways – they’re making shitloads of money so everything must be going brilliantly, right?
Meanwhile, many of us seem to be in the position where there isn’t a single available Mac that we’d want to buy. I just hope my 2012 mini lasts forever.
Actually, making shitloads of money IS a pretty good indication that things are going brilliantly.
Your personal dissatisfaction with the Mac lineup, is not nearly so much an indicator that things are not going brilliantly.
Apple and MicroSoft share little in common. MS started with a poor quality product that succeeded because of it’s close affiliation with IBM and resulting acceptance by enterprise. Once their monopoly was established, they essentially stopped competing by making better products. Instead they built a moat around their business model by primarily undermining and sabotaging their competition. Their lack of ability to create wins based on better products than the competition is now slowly eroding their monopoly even though they have virtually unlimited financial resources. So now, in their case, their ability to make shitloads of money is diminishing and the shitloads they ARE making are no longer an indicator that things are going brilliantly for them.
Apple on the other hand started out making a good and unique product and has, unlike MicroSoft, worked to protect their success by using the tactic of continually attempting to make a better product rather than the tactic of undermining their competition. For Apple, who’s ability to generate cash is only increasing, and who’s product line-up is mostly solid despite the temporary missteps with their Mac business and occasional execution stumbles, are enviously positioned for future success. And, yes, their incredible ability to make shitloads and shitloads of money is a very good indication that Apple is performing brilliantly.
Your disgruntlement with the Mac lineup and any other petty complaints are just tiny, whiny squeaks when observed against the macro view of Apple’s current enviable position and current customer satisfaction of 97+%. And Apple’s business model of constantly striving to improve the technologies in their products, with the ultimate stated goal of making products that their customers will love, forges a path forward to continued future success in contrast to MicroSoft’s flawed business model of breaking the knees of the competition and strong-arming their customers and partners to protect a line of stodgy, stale and broken products.
Apple is not MicroSoft.
“Actually, making shitloads of money IS a pretty good indication that things are going brilliantly.”
Riding the iPhone gravy train Steve started is NOT brilliant, but given the inconsistency Apple is plagued with under Cook, definitely necessary.
“Your personal dissatisfaction with the Mac lineup, is not nearly so much an indicator that things are not going brilliantly.”
You must be new around here. Countless others are up in arms for YEARS now of Apple NEGLECT of the Mac line that BUILT APPLE in the beginning.
“Your disgruntlement with the Mac lineup and any other petty complaints are just tiny, whiny squeaks when observed against the macro view of Apple’s current enviable position and current customer satisfaction of 97+%.”
You know all about “tiny, whiny.” Your macro view focuses on a one trick pony successful product known as the iPhone that Steve introduced.
Obviously, NEGLECT OF MACS is not a problem with you, fine. Thank the maker you don’t speak for everyone …
And a user is also praising lock in. I can see it from a shareholder, and they would still be lacking credibility….
Yeah, yeah Thomas, MS had sycophants like you, too.
“Gates, who is a Berkshire Hathaway board member”
It’s not as if he’s going to go against Warren Buffett.
Now if Ballmer give a positive statement on Apple..then I would be worried (since he is always..always..wrong).
Ballmer the contrarian! If he said that the sky is blue, I would still have to look twice to be certain.
Bill Gates calling Apple an amazing company? Almost enough to make someone sell their stocks.
Love the quotes MDN, such memories.
Hell has finally frozen over. Bill Gates publicly praising Apple is something I would never have expected to hear. I realize Apple and Microsoft aren’t actually fighting for the same space so it certainly doesn’t hurt Microsoft in any way. Microsoft is going to be making money from its cloud business and Microsoft Office 365 subscriptions and Apple can certainly use what Microsoft has to offer. There’s no need for animosity between the two companies, anymore.
If anything, Microsoft would rather side with Apple than with Google and Amazon, so why not give Apple a bit of an endorsement. If Apple wanted to help Microsoft, it would be better to have Bing Search on Safari instead of Google Search. That might be a better deal for both companies since Apple isn’t likely to acquire its own search engine.
There were many things Microsoft did right to become the defacto ‘standard’ of computing during the 90’s. Bill earns a lot of credit for manipulating and buying his way into his prosperity. He deserves credit for his ‘success’, such as it is.
But since SJ return with Apple 2.0, OS X, BYoD to work, etc., people have begun to realize that they no longer have to be shackled to that mess any longer. Thank goodness Steve had the foresight to introduce the iPod, iPhone & iPad. Dark Ages of computing no longer.
Now, if Tim would just show some love for the truckers… *sigh*.
A correctly speked out MacPro would give Apple bragging rights which would go a long way toward upping Apple’s prestige. Because it would be a signifier of sorts, it would get good PR for its other products from its halo effect. So I think the value of the MacPro is not as much monetary as it would be intrinsic. And the MacPro would no longer be a laughingstock among computer pros. who have significant influence with me.