Posts in news

Apple Stores vs. Disneyland

Good catch on The Atlantic: basing on the numbers provided by Apple at its Q4 earnings call, Apple’s retail stores worldwide got almost 4 times the visitors of, say, Disney World in 2009.

On Apple’s earnings call, you probably didn’t catch that Apple set a new retail foot traffic record last quarter, what with all the iPad supply fears and Steve Jobs ranting. But they did: more than 74.5 million people went to one of the 317 Apple stores across the world.

Only a small percentage of them actually bought anything, but that’s the point. Apple has managed to transform *hanging out in their stores* into entertainment.

The cultural shift Apple started is here to stay, and it’s going to be one hell of an effort for any competitor to catch up, or get even close. [via Brooks Review]

Sonos Shows You What A Great iAd Looks Like [Video]

Sonos, makers of wirelessly connected audio systems, announced they’re about to launch an advertising campaign on Apple’s iAd network.

As for all the other companies that launched iAd companies, this is a big bet: iAd campaigns start at $1 million minimum orders, so you have to make sure you have a great and stunning ad experience to bring to iOS devices. Otherwise, you’re wasting money.

Sonos’ iAd looks impressive, with videos, user interactions, menus, stuff to do. This is what an iAd should be about: providing useful information on a product and engage a user at a personal level. Check out the video below. Read more

App Savvy: The Ultimate Guide To Launch Successful iOS Apps

When Ken Yarmosh contacted me asking to take a look at an early version of his upcoming book about iOS app development, I didn’t really know what to do. I read a couple of iOS-related publications before, but I wasn’t really huge on them. I used to think the most important and useful information about development, marketing and sale techniques could be found on the internet - why would I need a book to learn about the App Store?

Then I took my time to read Ken’s book. It’s not easy for me to go into books these days, as I spend most of time writing and catching up on blog posts. But it was a read well worth it: if you’re looking to get started with iOS development, have already released a few apps or are simply curious about how “stuff actually happens” behind the scenes, go buy App Savvy right now. Read more

60 Percent Of Apple’s Sales Come From New Products

Oh, would you look at that. With blockbuster iPhone sales and more than $20 billion revenue in the last quarter, you would expect Apple to be happy about its latest product line. But the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad to represent 60 percent of Apple’s sales?

As Horace Dediu of Asymco noticed, 60 percent of Apple’s sales come from products that did not exist three years ago. I guess that’s a good definition of “reinventing a company”.

At Apple’s Q4 Earnings Call, Steve Jobs’ Rant Sets The Record Straight

So here’s what happened: at the Q4 earnings call Steve Jobs grabbed the mic and started talking. No one expected Steve Jobs to be available at the conference, because Steve Jobs doesn’t usually attend earnings calls.

But it happened, and he went on a 10-minute long “rant” where he set the record straight about overly discussed arguments such as Google’s openness, Android’s sales numbers, Apple’s App Store and closed system and the rumored 7-inch iPad form factor. He’s still taking questions at the moment of writing this. Read more