Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is continuing to lick the wounds to its stock, which is on its way to dropping about 12 percent Thursday in the wake of its weak forecast guidance Wednesday evening. While there is much chagrin on the future of the company, as it forecasted lower profit margins and lower revenue growth in the current quarter. What is a company to do to fight off any further freefall in its stock? Well, there is one tech reporter who is taking a stab at a couple of product and service ideas that he believes would improve Apple’s innovation.
A recent post suggests an upgrade to one existing product, and a way for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) to use some of its tremendous war chest of cash – and no, it’s not raising dividends or executing a more intense stock buyback.
Photo courtesy of Dmitry Baranovskiy via Flickr
The first idea involves the MacBook Air device. This post gives some rationale for turning that laptop into a convertible device – suggesting that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) could set up PC sales while also catering to the tablet market by making the screen of the MacBook Air detachable from the keyboard and touch-capable. That would make it a great fit to run Windows 8 by Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)! OK, just kidding.
The other idea seems like more of a stretch, but also possible. There has been much made about Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) continuing to develop its own ecosystem, and perhaps the next natural step to that siloed ecosystem could be in developing its own wireless or cellular network for its iPhones and iPads. In this article, it is postulated that Apple could cut down on some overhead by buying a cell carrier – in this case, US Cellular – that could be an exclusive provider of iDevices. What might this mean for Apple, and for Apple users?
In this case, with its own cellular/wireless network, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) could establish one type of iDevice that would be used only on this particular network, rather than making three types for the various carriers – one for AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T), one for Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) and a third for foreign networks like in China, Japan or Europe. The theory is then, that the company could then offer deals on data and phone plans, plus perhaps additional Apple-related services that may not be available on other networks.
What do you think about either or both of these ideas? If you were Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), what would be your strategy to get investors back on board? Is all this about innovation, or competition? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
DISCLOSURE: I own no positions in any stock mentioned.
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