With all the speculation about Apple’s upcoming mobile phone release next week, I think it is appropriate to run a short series of articles relating to that very event. Rather than speculate what the new device will look like, what it will do etc - I am going to consider whether Apple should actually be launching a mobile phone at all. I’ll look into Apple as a company, and conduct some basic market research to decide whether what they are embarking on is actually a good idea. It should hopefully give an insight into how Apple researched the market opportunity as well.

This first section will cover a brief introduction to Apple, and their continuing success as a brand, and as a manufacturer.

Apple Computer Inc.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II, and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Apple still stands by its original aim - to bring the best personal computing products and support to students, educators, designers, scientists, engineers and consumers in over 140 countries around the world.

Apple spends a huge amount of money on Research and Development. In 1996, Apple invested approximately six percent of its annual sales in research and development. Apple’s main R&D sites are located in Ireland, California, Japan and China. Apple owns manufacturing facilities in Ireland and Singapore. Distribution facilities are located in the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia, Singapore, and Japan.

Although Apple has been developing innovative and state of the art computer products for many years, it’s main recent claim to fame has been the Apple iPod. At the moment, the iPod is the leading ‘Must Have’ gadget, and rightly so. Its design has become a brand in itself, and the iPod has been incredibly marketed and promoted.

Apple also operates the world’s largest and most successful online music store, the iTunes Music Store. It integrates with it’s also highly popular iTunes software and is currently operating in the USA, UK, France and Germany. It has sold over 100 million songs.

Although this chart (from ipodlounge.com) shows the sales of the iPod in the past 3 years, Apple’s general success follows a very similar pattern. Apple’s most recent development has been the iMac G5, where Apple has managed to fit an entire computer in a screen sized case, and the tiny Mac Mini.

Apple is always looking to expand their product line, and create new and innovative computing products. Recently, they have moved away from solely computer based products to focus on the multimedia, audio and communications markets.

Tomorrow: Secondary Research and Statistics