Apple Inc Case Study

Company Background

Apple Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiaries (collectively "Apple" or the "Company") design, manufacture, and market personal computers, mobile communication devices, and portable digital music and video players and sell a variety of related software, services, peripherals, and networking solutions. The Company sells its products worldwide through its online stores, its retail stores, its direct sales force, and third-party wholesalers, resellers, and value-added resellers. In addition, the Company sells a variety of third-party MacintoshR ("Mac"), iPhoneR and iPodR compatible products, including application software, printers, storage devices, speakers, headphones, and various other accessories and peripherals through its online and retail stores, and digital content and applications through the iTunes StoreR. The Company sells to consumer, small and mid-sized business ("SMB"), education, enterprise, government and creative customers. The Company's fiscal year is the 52 or 53-week period that ends on the last Saturday of September. Unless otherwise stated, all information presented in this Form 10-K is based on the Company's fiscal calendar. The Company is a California corporation founded in 1977.

Business Strategy

The Company is committed to bringing the best personal computing, mobile communication and portable digital

music and video experience to consumers, students, educators, businesses, and government agencies through its

innovative hardware, software, peripherals, services, and Internet offerings. The Company's business strategy

leverages its unique ability to design and develop its own operating system, hardware, application software, and

services to provide its customers new products and solutions with superior ease-of-use, seamless integration, and

innovative industrial design. The Company believes continual investment in research and development is critical

to the development and enhancement of innovative products and technologies. In addition to evolving its

personal computers and related solutions, the Company continues to capitalize on the convergence of the

personal computer, mobile communications and digital consumer electronics by creating and refining

innovations, such as iPhone, iPod and the iTunes Store. The Company desires to support a community for the

development of third-party products that complement the Company's offerings through its developer programs.

The Company offers various third-party software applications and hardware accessories for MacR computers,

iPhones and iPods through its retail and online stores, as well as software applications for the iPhone and iPod

touch platforms through its App Store™. The Company's strategy also includes expanding its distribution

network to effectively reach more of its targeted customers and provide them with a high-quality sales and postsales

support experience.

Consumer and Small and Mid-Sized Business

The Company believes a high-quality buying experience with