The Really Big Apple

[Mark Suszko]

Do apps drive hardware sales, or does hardware drive software sales?
Chicken-and-egg, or orobouros?

The NLE busness is a very tiny part of Apple’s overall business, but it carries a cachet and value for marketing out of proportion relative to that small size. So I think they would keep supporting it, at least as long as it is useful to point to as an area where macs are “creatively superior” relative to other products. As in “Use the same cool hardware and software that Hollywood pros use!”

Whether they are “superior” or not in reality is for another discussion; here I’m only talking about marketing and perceptions.

I think the time to worry is if Adobe gets too far ahead at some point and the Apple bosses decide they are too lazy to play one-up any more. If a performance gap grows too large, then is the likely time the plug would be pulled, under the cover of a “realignment with new market directions and paradigms”.

[Bob Zelin]

Apple has no interest in us, just like the big 3 car companies have no real interest in races like NASCAR (that they sponsor).

iTouch, iPod, iPhone are MUCH more important than hi end applications like Final Cut Pro and Color. As I observe the new i7 iMac computer, that has no ability to do jumbo frames with it’s ethernet port (why does it need jumbo frames – little suzie can send pictures of her friends over the ethernet port with no problem) – you can see that doing hi end professional stuff means nothing to Apple.

I have said this over and over and over again – if it was not for
AJA, Blackmagic, MOTU, Matrox, and all the wonderful plug in companies, and loyalty from RED camera and others, there would be no professional Apple market. The professional Apple market is based on these third party companies, and the wonderful third party hi end storage companies like Maxx Digital, Sonnet, Cal Digit, G-Tech, Dulce and others that push to make the MAC a professional system.
It appears that Apple does everything in it’s power to “dumb down” the hi end market – to level the playing field, so that professionals don’t “own the market”.

In short – Apple doesn’t give a rat’s ass about any of us. It’s MUCH MORE IMPORTANT that little Billy is able to make movies “just as good as we do”.

Bob Zelin

[Bob Zelin]

Mark writes-
I think the time to worry is if Adobe gets too far ahead at some point and the Apple bosses decide they are too lazy to play one-up any more. If a performance gap grows too large, then is the likely time the plug would be pulled, under the cover of a “realignment with new market directions and paradigms”.

Reply –
my dream is that Apple gets sick of the pro apps division, and sells the entire thing to Adobe. Then Adobe trashes Premier, and puts FCP in the Adobe Production Suite (cross platform). THEN, I would be happy.

Bob Zelin

[Helge Tjelta]

lets not forget that without content, apples product don’t do us much… and

audio and video, mags, pictures etc are much being done on a mac.

So yes, they must care about the pro part! No content, no ipod, appleTV, iPad, iPhone or the rest of the iThings.

Just give me a filter to use in my life to filter away any news that has something to do with iProducts….

Give me some new proapps, 64-bit and full cpu/gpu… please apple!

Helge

[Ari Feldman]

I concur with Bob. It would be great if Apple sells FCP to Adobe (or anyone else who cares more about pro apps than Apple).

A company not so concerned with selling gizmos and doohickies would take the time and energy to really make FCP fly to new heights. Who knows? That might even take away the “Final Cut Amateur” stigma that some people still harbor.

It could possibly reach new customers (Final Cut Pro on Windows??? I’m blowing my own mind.)

Alright, that’s my speculation/daydreaming for today.

Ari Feldman
Editor/Assistant Editor
Apple Certified Trainer

[Tom Wolsky]

Final Cut Pro was a Windows application before it was a Mac application.

When Jobs was showing the iPad he said near the beginning of his keynote that Apple is a mobile devices company. That’s what they deliver software and hardware for mobility, laptops, iPod, iPhone, iPad and software that goes with them.

All the best,

Tom

Class on Demand DVDs “Complete Training for FCP7,” “Basic Training for FCS” and “Final Cut Express Made Easy”
Author: “Final Cut Pro 5 Editing Essentials” and “Final Cut Express 4 Editing Workshop”

[Shane Ross]

What is it with people thinking that Apple doesn’t give a rats patootie about the ProApps? Why do people think that Apple will just drop them because they are not AS profitable as the other stuff? Are people just waiting for the day that FCS will be dropped? I swear, it sounds like you all are wishfully thinking that Apple will do this. It is CONSTANTLY coming up.

They update every 2 years. This has been their typical calendar. Sure, Avid has not only caught up, but surpassed FCP in many areas that FCP excelled, or CLAIMED to excel. As has Adobe. But this is just the typical leap frogging that happens.

Sorry…I just wonder why posts like this are even started. Where did the idea pop into your head that Apple doesn’t care about the ProApps? The layoffs last month? That happens everywhere.

Shane

GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD…don’t miss it.
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def

[Michael Sacci]

But why would Apple sell FCP to any company that would make it cross platform? That is not in the benefit of Apple, I think they would just kill it before they did that. FCS is around because it does make money, it is not a losing division but it also sells there high-end computers and like others have brought up it is a great marketing product. Having 9 or the 10 documentary up for an Oscar is a very good thing. While the car company may not care about NASCAR proper the do care about the impact that it has (or maybe had), whatever car won on Sunday, got purchased on Monday.

But it is useless to try to read anything into what Apple might do with all the cash on hand. It gives them options to buy whatever they want whenever they want. They are first and foremost a hardware company. They are first and foremost a closed loop hardware company. They are first and foremost tied to the whims of Steve Jobs.

[Bob Cole]

[Shane Ross] “I just wonder why posts like this are even started.”

I sympathize, but this thread did not start with that same old ProApps question. As the somewhat reluctant starter of this thread, I can tell you why I posted:

1. The ProApps (or rather, the time I’ve invested in learning them) are a major part of my business portfolio.
2. I’ve been burned before, when discreet logic EOLed their NLE, so I like to keep tabs.
3. I was very surprised to find that Apple is the U.S.A.’s #4 company, ahead of such caring, human-oriented businesses as GE, Proctor & Gamble, Google, Johnson & Johnson, and JP Morgan Chase.
4. I thought that the fact in item 3 would lend a useful perspective to the eternal (and I admit, somewhat tiresome) debate about the ProApps part of Apple.

It’s one thing being a small part of a big company, but we’re customers of a tiny part of a HUGE company, and I think we tend to forget that. Apple has this Teflon coating, as the anti-Microsoft or something. It’s a BUSINESS, not a religion. Publicly traded, with a fiduciary responsibility to its shareholders. If we were customers of a faceless corporation like GE, we’d probably be much more suspicious — well, guess what, we’re customers of a company that’s bigger than GE.

That said, I get where you’re coming from, and I liked your post, Shane. Just replying, that’s all. I think Bob and the rest helped me put this in perspective, which is what I was after.

After the discreet logic experience, I realized I should never tie my fortunes too closely to any company. Just make sure your purchases will pay for themselves before the company goes belly-up, or loses interest in supporting your product. One or the other will surely happen eventually.

Bob C

[Shane Ross]

Ah…I get ya.

One thing I noticed is that Apple used to be the company that said “don’t go for the totalitarian ways of WINDOWS! break free and own a mac!” But now they TIGHTLY control what apps go onto the iPhone and iPad. TIGHT…very iron fisted.

That worries me.

Shane

GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD…don’t miss it.
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def