蘋果公司設計、制造產品和市場個人電腦、移動通信設備和便攜式數(shù)字音樂播放器和視頻播放器，銷售多種相關軟件、服務、外圍設備和網絡解決方案。蘋果公司的產品和服務包括Mac臺式機和便攜式計算機iPhone、iPod便攜式數(shù)字音樂和視頻播放器、蘋果電視和Xserve，通過iTunes商店、各種配件、服務和支持服務，蘋果公司形成了消費者和專業(yè)軟件應用程序的一個投資組合，包括Mac OS X操作系統(tǒng)、第三方的數(shù)字內容和應用程序。

iPhone的功能：作為一個照相手機(也包括短信和可視語音郵件)、便攜式媒體播放器(相當于一個視頻iPod)和一個互聯(lián)網客戶端(電子郵件、網頁瀏覽和wi - fi連接)、使用手機的多點觸控屏幕提供一個虛擬鍵盤代替物理鍵盤。第一代手機四頻段GSM邊緣;第二代手機添加UMTS 3.6 Mbps HSDPA;第三代增加了支持7.2 Mbps HSDPA下載軟件，但仍限于上傳384 Kbps，因為蘋果沒有實現(xiàn)HSPA協(xié)議。(Wikipedia,2009)

蘋果已經成功創(chuàng)建一臺具備手機功能的麥金塔電腦，，捆綁在一個能使用PDA和iPod的互聯(lián)網內，這就是iPhone。蘋果公司的iPhone是一款精心設計的信息傳播者，它是由鋼和蘋果OS X系統(tǒng)下Unix內核的先鋒運行“硅”鍛造的。

Apple Inc designs, manufactures, and markets personal computers, mobile communication devices, and portable digital music and video players and sells a variety of related software, services, peripherals, and networking solutions. Apple’s products and services include the Mac line of desktop and portable computers, iPhone, the iPod line of portable digital music and video players, Apple TV, Xserve, a portfolio of consumer and professional software applications, the Mac OS X operating system, third-party digital content and applications through the iTunes Store, and a variety of accessory, service and support offerings.

The iPhone functions as a camera phone (also including text messaging and visual voicemail), a portable media player (equivalent to a video iPod), and an Internet client (with e-mail, web browsing, and Wi-Fi connectivity) — using the phone's multi-touch screen to provide a virtual keyboard in lieu of a physical keyboard. The first-generation phone was quad-band GSM with EDGE; the second generation phone added UMTS with 3.6 Mbps HSDPA; the third generation adds support for 7.2 Mbps HSDPA downloading but remains limited to 384 Kbps uploading as Apple had not implemented the HSPA protocol (Wikipedia, 2009)

Apple has managed to create a Macintosh computer with mobile phone capabilities, bundled within an Internet enabled PDA and an iPod body, which is the iPhone. The Apple iPhone is an elegantly designed information communicator forged from steel and silicon that runs pioneering software under Apple’s OS X in a Unix Kernel.

There are some characteristics that make iPhone highly differentiate from its competitors (such as RIM Blackberry products, Nokia’s products, Sony’s products, HTC’s products and so forth):

The iPhone has an innovative multi-touch screen display that that is patented and unmatched by any other mobile products today. It is radically different from those of other phones or PDAs that recognizes multi finger gestures, just as the human hand normally behaves. The Mac OS X application imbedded into the iPhone assures users will easily recognize what they can do

The iPhone has only a single "Home" hardware button below the display brings up the main menu, compared to many in other phones. The touch screen furnishes the remainder of the user interface.

The iPhone features an internal rechargeable battery. Like an iPod but unlike most other cell phones, the battery is not user-replaceable. The iPhone can be charged when connected to a computer for syncing across the included USB to dock connector cable that make iPhone differentiate from other cell phones.

The iPhone run an it owns operating system known as iPhone OS which is based on a variant of the same Darwin operating system core that is found in Mac OS X, while other cell phones (except BlackBerry) use the same OS such as Symbian, Window Mobile, Androi,

The iPhone allows audio conferencing, call holding, call merging, caller ID, and integration with other cellular network features and iPhone functions

The iPhone allows users to purchase and download songs, applications from the iTunes Store directly to their iPhone which is iPhone's biggest differentiating feature

The iPhone supports gapless playback. Like the fifth generation iPods introduced in 2005, the iPhone can play digital video, allowing users to watch TV shows and movies in widescreen. Double-tapping switches between widescreen and fullscreen video playback.

While competitors distribute products through many carriers, distributors, Apple only distribute iPhone through only one carrier in each country that Apple operates. Another distribution channels are its own store called Apple Store and its website. In doing so, Apple can provide better service to customers. The price of iPhone is quite higher than its competitive products because it outperforms any other PDA or smart phone on the market and the convenience of having multiple features combined into one-device increases its overall value.

1.0策略：競爭策略的選擇——The strategy clock: competitive strategy option

By applying the strategy clock (see figure 2-1) to the case of Apple, it is clear that the competitive strategy Apple pursuing is differentiation strategy. iPhone’s marketing strategy is to differentiate the iPhone from other PDA’s on the market. The iPhone targets consumers who need to store information and communicate or people who want entertainment on the go. One of Apple’s primary customer targets is the middle-upper income professional that need one portable device to coordinate their busy schedules and communicate with colleagues, friends and family. The secondary consumer targets are high school, college and graduate students who need one portable multifunction device. Mainly this market will be replacing their iPod and cell phone with the iPhone.

2.0產品和市場發(fā)展—— Product and market development

Apple announced the iPhone on January 9, 2007, after months of rumors and speculation. The (retroactively labelled) original iPhone was introduced in the United States on June 29, 2007 before being marketed in Europe in November, 2007. The iPhone 3G supports faster 3G data speeds and assisted GPS were released on July 11, 2008. The iPhone 3GS was announced on June 8, 2009, and has improved performance, a camera with higher resolution and video capability, and voice control. It was released in the U.S., Canada and six European countries on June 19, 2009, in Australia and Japan on June 26, and saw international release in July and August, 2009 (Wikipedia, 2009). After two year since its debut, the iPhone is available in 88 different countries throughout the world and around 21.17 million iPhone were sold. These moves evidently demonstrated that Apple pursues both product development and market development strategies to expand its market

3.0對蘋果公司營銷策略的競爭優(yōu)勢和劣勢的評估—— Evaluation and comment on Strengths and Weakness of Apple’s iPhone Strategy

3.1.蘋果公司營銷策略的評估—— Evaluation of Apple’s iPhone strategies

In order to evaluate properly Apple’s iPhone strategies, which are product differentiation, product development and market development, we will look at its performance from debut to date

Iphone全球適用性的計劃——Map of iPhone availability worldwide

Based on above figure, we can conclude that Apple’s iPhone strategies were very successful while there were over 21.17 million iPhone sold in only 2 years and the iPhone is available in 88 different countries throughout the world, representing an addressable market of 760 million users.

Now, the writer will indicate some strengths and weakness of Apple’s iPhone differentiation strategy

競爭優(yōu)勢——Strengths

Position the iPhone as the versatile, convenient, value-added device for personal and professional use. This is align with current Apple’s positioning, brand image

Build a strong brand awareness and gain customer loyalty

Enhance competitive advantage then make its competitors difficult to imitate. Hence, Apple has created an imitation barrier that competitors cannot easily cross

Increase the perceived value of the offering to the customer either more effectively or at lower cost than do competitors

Concentrate resources to compete more effective in intensive mobile phone market

Limit itself to some potential segment and become a niche player in the upper and premium end of the smartphone market so it can better meet the needs of customer

Can command premium for its products based on the quality, features and services.

Increased costs can be passed on tothe buyers

Buyers loyalty can also serve as an entry barrier-new firms must develop their own distinctive competence to differentiate their products in some way in order to compete successfully

Research does suggest that a differentiation strategy is more likely to generate higher profits than is a low cost strategy because differentiation creates a better entry barrier

競爭劣勢——Weakness

Lack of diversification that make the company vulnerable

The targeted market may become saturated in the future and makes the company not sustainable in the long run.

In the glooming global economy, customers may switch to other products that are cheaper due to the decrease in their income. The recession also shrink the niche market for premium price smartphone

If the company lower product price to adapt to the recession and to compete in all segment, it would undermine and erode the company's premium brand image as well as the company's culture and internal activities

4.0致蘋果公司董事長的一封信—— Writing a Report to Apple’s Board of Director

To: The Apple’s Broad of Director

From: Chu Minh Khai

Date: 15 January 2010-01-15

Some comment and recommendations on Apple’s iPhone differentiation strategy

Not since the introduction of the original Apple Macintosh has a product introduction been met with so much anticipation. The Apple iPhone is an elegantly designed information communicator forged from steel and silicon that runs pioneering software under Apple’s OS X in a Unix Kernel. The iPhone combines smart phone capabilities with a simple to use graphical interface projected on a large ‘multi-touch’ display. Apple has managed to create a Macintosh computer with mobile phone capabilities, bundled within an Internet enabled PDA and an iPod body.

In order to compete effectively and efficiently in the intensive smartphone market, Apple has chosen differentiation strategy, which aligns with Apple’s market positioning, brand image and culture. By pursuing this strategy, Apple can differentiate iPhone from other PDA’s on the market; hence Apple positioned the iPhone as the versatile, convenient, value-added device for personal and professional use. Differentiation strategy gave Apple many advantages such as charging premium price in customer, enhancing brand awareness, retaining customer loyalty, building high entry barrier for competitors and so forth. Besides that, this strategy has some weaknesses that will weaken the company development in the future. The first weakness is that it makes Apple lack diversification of its portfolio of products that could make the company vulnerable in long term. The second one is that the targeted market (namely smartphone) may become saturated in the future or there may be many competitors enter the market to compete with Apple and makes the company not sustainable in the long run. The third weakness is that the slowdown in global economy will affect the company. The final weakness is that this strategy does not provide flexibility for Apple in order to respond effectively to competitors.

In order to enhance the strengths of this strategy and overcome the weakness, Apple can use Ansoff matrix. The first move is to diversify Apple’s iPhone while Apple will still concentrate on differentiating its products from customer like Apple has done with the iPod line-up (the iPod line-up includes a number of products such as iPod Shuffle, iPod Nano, iPod Classic, iPod Touch). Following this strategy, Apple may create iPhone Nano, iPhone Biz, iPhone Classic...etc in which each product will target in different segments. The second strategy is market development, in which Apple may reduce price to attract customers from other segment as the price of Apple is now considering too high compared to its competitors’ products. Currently, Apple only distributes iPhone through only one carrier in each country that limits the expansion of iPhone. In the future, Apple can distribute iPhone through more carriers, which will help Apple capture more market share as customer will have more choice, which in turn will help Apple diversify its market. The third strategy is product development, in which Apple will innovate iPhone to serve its current market. For example, Apple can create iPhone compatible with CDMA network, 4G network. These strategies will help Apple overcome the weaknesses of differentiation strategy and enhance the strengths without changing strategy to other strategy such as low price or hybrid strategy.