The million dollar question: Will Apple license Mac OS X mobile and let others make an iPhone?
Posted by Stefan on Friday, March 7th, 2008 at 6:29 pm under Apple
Why does Apple have less than 3% market share? They refuse to license the “most advanced operating system” to other vendors. Their ecosystem is profitable, but that is because they enjoy a monopoly whereby they can charge whatever they want for hardware since you need their machines to run their software.
I was close, really close, to actually being excited about the iPhone after yesterdays SDK announcement, but then it hit me like a ton of bricks: Apple makes only one phone.
Why does Nokia have 40% market share? They released over 30 models last year, each tailored for a specific type of customer, most running an operating system, whether it be S40 or S60, that can be expanded with third party software. Does Apple really think that their one size fits all device will get today’s mobile developers to jump ship?
Yes I know what Fake Steve Jobs said, and Michael Mace couldn’t be more right in his analysis that the iPhone model of software distribution is the best the mobile ecosystem has seen, but volume trumps quality in today’s economies of scale. The million dollar question, will Apple let other people create an iPhone based on Mac OS X Mobile?
Granted I would like nothing more than to see June roll around and Apple expand the iPhone lineup similar to what they’ve done with the iPod family, but that brings about new questions such as how exactly will Apple handle different specifications among products if they do indeed choose to deviate from the multitouch 480×320 display?
Some people really want a keypad, some people want the best multimedia capabilities which includes a high megapixel count and video recording, some people want that basic barebone device aka iPhone 1.0, will Apple let others step to the plate or will they control their ecosystem and sit happily with their single digit marketshare?
I can already tell the answer is to keep the crown jewel within the company, but I want to know why? If Apple wanted to change things, really shake things up, they would at least attempt to put their “most advanced operating system in the world” out on more devices than their handful of laptops, desktops and music players.
One more thing … The SDK runs on a Mac and only on a Mac, will development houses want to equip their employees with new machines that can only be serviced by one company? Apple changes things, they’re bold and some may say they’re leaders of the industry, to that I say when they take a big step everyone else makes a big step, but just that tiny bit extra to be better.
Nothing is going to stop Nokia or Microsoft to make an App Store and build it into their 2009 models. Nothing is going to stop Nokia or Microsoft from making a UI that is on par with the iPhone today. What is stopping Apple from licensing their software?
March 7th, 2008 at 8:17 pm
I think Apple wants to keep Apple software constrained to Apple-designed hardware.
March 7th, 2008 at 8:56 pm
Just as there was the iPhone, so too shall there be the iPhone nano!
I used to build PCs from scratch. It was fun. But then I just wanted something that worked. That’s the simplest way I can think of Macs. The iPhone is the same way.
Hopefully this SDK will allow developers to create all the apps we see on the S60 platform. I know I could go for a nice profile setter and something that will allow me to sync with my Gmail contacts. Gmail just announced their Contacts API so maybe that will be a reality by the time the SDK goes live in June.
March 8th, 2008 at 1:10 am
I think Apple would never let other use their mobile Mac OS X, just like how it’s still illegal to install Mac OS on a machine that is not Apple’s. I think it’s similar to how operators want to keep the power they have, really.
March 8th, 2008 at 1:58 am
The union of apple hardware and software is what makes it so great. You PC guys always fail to understand that. Give mac OS X to all the PC makers and the user experience would drop immediately. It would be another missing driver hell, like Vista.
The iPhone is special cause apple makes all of it. So I wish for the opposite - I want everyone else to start doing their own software!
March 8th, 2008 at 8:36 am
i don’t think HTC devices would be so bad running apple mobile. All the “driver” garbage would be handled via HTC/Apple, not the end user, all the user has to do is upgrade there firmware periodically. HTC Android > HTC Apple Mobile > HTC WM.
March 8th, 2008 at 9:40 am
Perhaps - but then there’s the brand issue - what would Apple benefit? It’s brand would suffer, from Apple branded phones (and I have used a HTC phone) that are good bit below the standard of Apple’s own hardware.
If Apple wanted the money they would have licensed OS X to the pc manufactures along time ago - It’s about brand protection.
March 8th, 2008 at 10:46 am
what a great idea! then instead of having 100% of the best phone made, they can make part of cheap POS phones!
…..and i guess they should sell OSX for PeeCees too?
how much do you make for writing this brainless crap? should i apply for a job? sounds like easy money…..
March 8th, 2008 at 11:58 am
If you ask me Apple is pure evil. A lot worse than Microsoft and you all know how bad M$ is. Thank god Apple does not have a monopoly Microsoft has but is just a “small” company with small (but loud) crowd of customers.
However, I’d very much like the idea of Apple starting to sell its Mac OS for mobiles as well as for PC. But I seriously doubt this will ever happen…at least as long as that turtleneck guy is alive and kicking.
March 8th, 2008 at 4:29 pm
i think it’s exactly because of what you said already: “they can charge whatever they want for hardware..”
if others could sell OS-X on their machines, apple would lose the wohle HW goldmine.
March 8th, 2008 at 5:08 pm
As I’m sure you know Stefan, Apple licensed the Mac OS, it was a big failure, not because the 3rd party hardware was duff, or because the clones were not ‘cool’ enough, but simply because the timing was all wrong. That will not be the case with the iPhone.
The iPod and Mac won’t be licensed because they are transitional products, both of which lead to iPhone. The iPhone OS will be licensed, but not until it has unseated Symbian as the dominant OS in the Smartphone market and certainly not before Windows Mobile is crushed.
Apple *is* Steve Jobs, once Steve retires, Apple will go back to being just another tech company, in the meantime, Apple seem to be capable of just about anything.
“Nothing is going to stop Nokia or Microsoft from making a UI that is on par with the iPhone today.” - Hmm… We’ll see about that one. I’ve bookmarked this article and put a reminder in my calendar for 8th of March 2010.
March 9th, 2008 at 4:51 am
Nothing is stopping Nokia and MS from copying iPods… and how successful has that been? And when they finally make a UI on a par with iPhone of today, it would be next year, when iPhone is another light year ahead.