Marketing Assignment On Business Model Of Apple, Microsoft & Google :: Failure of mobile computing

Q 1. Compare the business models and areas of strength of Apple, Google, and Microsoft??

Solution the Business Model Frame is::

 All the three firms in contention in the Tablet market today have separate business strengths and models. One has more emphasis on the hardware while the other prefers selling the software while the third one would like to generate revenues from a separate source itself. This is the basis of the three way war for the supremacy in the mobile computing market that has just erupted on the scene.(Micheal M, 2012)

The business models of the three firms are very different. The three different business models include:

Apple:  It has the basis of creating a very strong hardware base for the internet future and thus logically they play their role in this battle by laying emphasis on the hardware that facilitates mobile computing. Apple has gone into the stance that applications, one of the major earners for tablet and phone manufacturers, should be device restricted, i.e. one application should be unique to the brand of the device and should be allowed to function in another device from another separate brand. They even stopped Google in its plans to allow Google applications to work on Apple products. Thus by doing this Apple is trying to capitalize on their loyal customer base and create a Apple weds Apple scenario. Although they may face tough competition in the future for the hardware battle as even Google and Microsoft have decided to enter the market with tablets and mobile phone of their own, two of the major platforms for mobile computing. (Micheal M, 2012)

Google:  It has a completely opposite stance to what Apple states. Google is the believer in the concept that in the future the devices used to run the applications and other internet options should be a fraction of what they are being charged now and instead the revenues generated should be from the in-app advertisements. Google even bought AdMob, an application advertisements development company, to work on such a concept. This future, if it ever exists, can spell doom for an organization like Apple which relies so much on the hardware part of the mobile computing battle, although Google and Microsoft have tried their hand at going hardware friendly but they still do not put the same emphasis on the hardware as Apple. (Micheal M, 2012)

Microsoft:  The last entrant on this three way battle royal is Microsoft, the operating system giant is trying to cash in on the very same, the Operating system. Microsoft has laid its bet on the operating system on which the mobile computing devices shall run. Also Microsoft has announced plans to develop the hardware for mobile computing, something it has not done so far, and thus has entered into the field of both Google and Apple. By integrating the hardware and software deal Microsoft has actually change the dynamics of the whole market. And this can be problem some for Google and Apple as they shall have to change their own perspective and outlook towards the level of competition that they shall have to face in the coming years in mobile computing. (Micheal M, 2012)

Q2. Why is mobile computing so important to these three firms? Evaluate the mobile platform offerings of each firm.

To describe the importance of mobile computing one must first be aware of what mobile computing is. Mobile computing is basically doing the activities which involve internet without being fixed to a particular place i.e. taking the device along with u in the field and perform the activity. This basically provides us with portability, flexibility and efficiency as it saves time.

The importance of mobile computing lies in the very fact that is the future of internet technology. Companies need to excel in it so as to survive and expand in today’s world which is full of competition.

There are two very famous examples of two big firms which very once the leaders in this field but today they are finding it hard to even survive leave apart giving competition to the other firms. They are IBM and ICL

ICL once used to be the leader in the mainframe computers market but today the name even exists. So is the case with IBM which is also finding it hard to even survive.

The above mentioned facts clearly state that how important it is to always understand the scope and move ahead so that you can compete with the other firms.

Thus mobile computing becomes so very important for all the three mentioned firms i.e. Apple , Google and Microsoft as it is the future of the internet technology and for these firms to  flourish and expand they need to be very effective with mobile computing.

A brief description of the mobile platform of these firms can be stated as follows.

APPLE:  The mobile platform that Apple provides with its products is “iOS” (Kevin K, 2012). This mobile platform is the closed platform that is it is applicable for apple products and only apple apps could work on this. The latest version which is being offered is the iOS6. It would be upgraded with 200 new features. Some of the remarkable features amongst them are –

• There is an option over which you can reply later on the calls which you can’t take immediately.
• Integration with the facebook over which you can share all you iphone activities
• There is a passbook app through which you can use you iphone as a credit card.
• There is also an upgradation of the apple maps app which is very impressive.

GOOGLE:  The mobile platform that Google provides is “Android”. This mobile platform is a universal platform or you can say it’s an open platform when compared to the mobile platform offered by Apple. This is so because majority of the apps could work on this platform which makes it a platform that is used by many (Kevin K, 2012) .The latest version provided by the Android software is the version 4.1 “jelly bean” (Android, 2012). Some of the notable features of this version are:

• A simple screen swipe would provide you with search results related to Google.
• The voice recognition tool in this version would rub offline.
• Another of the new feature is GOOGLE NOW in which the preferences are chosen based on the data like the time location and personal history and over this the search results are provided

Google is pushing itself to make this system like Microsoft windows where the majority hardware works on it. Thus is heading into the hardware as well.

MICROSOFT

Microsoft is entering this market recently by launching the tablet named “Surface tablet”. The mobile platform that Microsoft is offering is the Windows Phone 8(Kevin K, 2012). This operating system will be compatible with the laptops and the desktops.

Some of the unique features of this operating system are:

• Support dual core chips
• Support multiple screen resolution
• Provides advanced map technology
• Offers Passbook wallet.

 Entering into this market is one of the very important and the bold step which Microsoft has taken. But it is necessary for Microsoft if it has to remain competitive and stand in contest to Apple and Google. (Windows Mobile, 2012)

Q3. What is the significance of applications and app stores to the success or failure of mobile computing?

Any computer software that performs specific tasks is called Applications (Bovee 2012, p 256). They can range from large business computer programs such as “Sun Systems” for processing large accounting problems to a simple program that can be used to order something as simple as a pizza, in today’s world applications have become a part and parcel of the day today.

Today’s mobile and tablet users are becoming more and more inclined towards a product which has more number of application than the other product option. Although it can be said that such a thing has happened because of the fact that the devices today have become so specified that a certain range of products shall have the same specs regardless of their make. And thus because of such a development the difference that counts is the number of applications that a certain product can run. This change can be determined as a major shift in the consumer psyche and even the big three have not  underestimated this change, currently there are over 500,000 apps are now available for Apple’s operating system alone and close to 300,000 apps for Android (iPhone 2012).

The development of applications and software’s to match these expectations is a task that all the companies in the fray to be the leader in the mobile computing market, wither it be Apple, Google, Microsoft or any other new player, shall have to look into great detail and precision.

The importance of mobile applications can be justified on this basis itself that Google has based their future growth prediction on the very same. Right now the scenario for mobile applications is such that they have are being considered as the future bread and butter of mobile IT firms. Mobile applications have such a great scope of growth in the future that they can one day eclipse the sales of the hardware part of mobile computing and form a major market themselves here players like Google and apple shall have tough competition even from small fray players if a common platform for application usage is formed, the very same reason why Apple is resisting Google’s repeated efforts for a common mobile platform.

According to experts(Kevin, Timothy et.al) mobile applications are even today a big part of the on the go access market. Finish mobile giant Nokia too has a say in the application future as it still has the lion’s share in the applications that are used in its mobile phones, which in spite of the recent drop are a very big number. Also applications and app stores are also being viewed as a source of major entertainment by many users of mobile computing devices, with games like angry birds and temple run taking the market by storm it is very evident that applications and app stores are a thing for the future.

Lastly it can be said that although all three firms have great opportunity in the market which is still young and in its infancy, the first mover shall have very definitive advantage to take control of this veritable goldmine.

Q4. Which company and business model do you think will prevail in this epic struggle? Explain your answer.

The mobile computing market has started to look like a galactic war of epic proportions where no clear winner can be stated till date. Although the market is still relatively young the first mover advantage is still not with a single competitor. To predict a clear winner in such a scenario is difficult however there are certain qualities in one of the players that can make it a winner in this battle of equals.

Google:  The search engine giant has a lot of positives going for it rather than the negatives. The clear positives that can make it a winner are:

1. A well established name is something which not a lot of players can boast of but Google is one of them, although Apple and Microsoft have chartered territories of their own but Google can fight them out both as an equal if not better.
2. The Company has entered into all the three basic markets of mobile computing including hardware, operating system and the application stores. Their hardware is something which a few competitors can best , however the Android operating system has taken the market by storm and the app store which comes with it is a mean bully in itself (Android 2012)
3. Google has also bet on of the most time relevant feature of the mobile computing market, the App store, and this is the biggest advantage which the Google business model gives it and makes it the prime contender for the number one position. With hundreds of applications already online and hundreds more in the development stage Google has started to take a sort of lead on the other players in the race to be number one. And this may not be decisive right now but with Google’s recent acquisition of application developers and their heavy R&D expenditure on the same, it is just a matter of time before it will take out companies like Apple and Microsoft. (Android 2012)

Although the Google bandwagon is on its way there are certain roadblocks that it can face that can halt its march and some of them are:

1. The Google brand is big but it still lacks the appeal of an Apple product and this many say is one of the most major difference between the two.
2. The Android system although perfected to a large extent still has a few errors in the new versions that can hamper the growth of the operating system and this where a competitor like Microsoft can prevail over the Company
3. Lastly it can be said that Google’s move towards a common mobile application platform can itself backfire and could increase competition from local app players which can affect the overall profitability from this step.

Thus it can be said that Google does have a lot of positives that can help it in the market and if it can take care of the negatives and maybe tweak the one platform stance, it can just pull ahead of Apple and Microsoft in this battle of the behemoths.

 MI02

If you want Marketing Assignment Help study samples to help you write professional custom essay’s and essay writing help.

Receive assured help from our talented and expert writers! Did you buy assignment and assignment writing services from our experts in a very affordable price.

To get more information, please contact us or visit www.myassignmenthelp.Com