FileMakerFeller

This patent is pure BS and it's shenanigans like this that devalue the patent system. Provide concrete details about the implementation and you'll get the protection that a patent affords, prevaricate about maybe using this, that or the other and you don't have anything worth protecting.

Train patent assessors well, pay them to do a proper job, and pass the cost onto the patent applicants - increased costs will likely slow the rate of applications to a manageable level. Properly-adjudicated patents will allow for swifter processing in the courts, injunctions can be granted and rolled back more swiftly and the morally-dubious business practice of copying and then mounting an aggressive legal defence will become a higher-risk tactic.

I remember reading a rumour somewhere that Apple was strong-armed into this deal by the Chinese government. If that's true, Apple may have viewed it as a cost of doing business and has reached a point where they don't see any future value from continuing an active involvement with Didi.

I am surprised that this court action has made it this far. Exhibit A should be the price of mobile phone software before Apple's App Store. Anyone remember the price of apps for Windows Mobile circa 2007? Because I recall prices in the range of US$25-40 and that's not the norm now.

Funnily enough, while trying to do some pricing research I came across this article (https://uk.pcmag.com/windows-mobile-apps/24428/windows-mobile-60) which mentions that a WinMo v6 device takes around 40 seconds to boot, and that you bought separate app versions depending on whether or not you were using WinMo Standard or Professional.

Apple really has hurt consumers.

dbendixen said:

iOS_Guy80 said:

Hope those Apple employees are ready to start paying union dues.

I was thinking the same thing. I hope their collective bargaining gets them enough of an increase to cover their union dues. The other thing to think about is if you poke the bear (Apple) enough they’ll seriously reconsider their retail strategy and maybe even shutter their physical stores altogether. That’s if they’re not already thinking about it. Take all that retail overhead and pour it into a more Amazon-like e-commerce experience with fast and free returns, try-out periods, etc. These one-track socialist types, rarely think ahead more than their next immediate move. Strategy is not their forté.

It would be interesting to have a comparison of costs for the two strategies you outline. And an analysis of the effect on customer satisfaction if retail is closed and everything moves to online with direct-to-customer shipping.

Apple is committed to a retail presence and the sales from the stores alone are exceptional. Over the past twenty years or so, having retail stores has also allowed the company to demonstrate its products to people who would never have considered them, provide a consistent level of support and service, and conduct end user training for technologies they have developed. I'm certain that the dollar value of these "unquantifiable" activities has been estimated with good accuracy within the company.

I find it nearly unthinkable that Apple would give up all the benefits of its retail activities just because their HR processes get more complicated or more expensive. Or that the company would start treating its products like commodities in the way Amazon does, or treating customers like they are only interested in the technology and not the outcomes.

avon b7 said:

<snip>
Do you know what year all this became reality? 

https://www.huawei.com/en/technology-insights/publications/huawei-tech/86/driving-ai-to-new-horizons

That article says the strategy was announced in 2018. No mention of shipping products (that I saw). The article at aibusiness.com is dated July 2021 and says that Huawei has built its cloud using the Ascend series chips and uses that to power its AI services. So, maybe the timeline is the same as Apple's? We just don't know, since Apple doesn't announce anything until it's shipping.

Plus, if all Huawei has is its cloud service (a big if, but I'm short of time to research) then we don't really have a comparison for their hardware vs Apple's. And with the trade restrictions in place on Huawei it's unlikely we'll get hardware performance analysis that won't be derided as untrustworthy because of its source.

But it's good to see more than one company trying to control the whole stack - it is at least some validation that the approach is worthwhile.