2. Company Issues Faced
 Apple faces the issue of replacing former visionary CEO
 challenge of more globalized high-tech industry
 High concentration of toxic chemicals in its wastes

3. SWOT Analysis
 Strengths:
 Globally well-established brand image
 Talented and inventive R&D team
 Strong advertising and marketing potentials
 Weaknesses:
 Intellectual rights case battles that affects performance
 Product recalls
 Reduced control due to third-party manufacturers

4. SWOT Analysis
 Opportunities:
 Continued innovation in smartphone markets
 Changing market platform for Mac into a digital hub that offer
stability for long-term development
 Threats:
 Threat of popularity of android platform from Google
 Dependence of a few suppliers
 Existing economic conditions will impact consumer’s buying
behaviors

5. External Environmental Analysis
 Political or Legal Environment
 Geopolitical ambiguities, issues on public health, global
war on terror, and sanctions on various countries
 government laws and manufacturing costs in foreign
countries
 Global Environment
 Changing demands in the global market
 High consumer buying behavior in developed countries
and a low in developing nations

6. External Environmental Analysis
 Economic Factors
 Improving economy is making people to shift to Apple’s
premium priced products
 The booming Chinese market is attracting Apple’s products
 Increasing competition due to low barriers to new entrants
 Sociocultural Factors
 Increasing education levels
 Increasing awareness of environmental issues
 Low Price iPhones

7. External Environmental Analysis
 Demographics
 Age group of 18 to 34
 Age group of 35 years and older
 Apple has earned a lot from the higher-end and higher-margin
market area due to their extra disposable income
 Technology
 Computers and Smartphones manufacturers spent adequate
money on R&D
 Rapid innovation from Intel generated strong hi-tech forces for
Apple

8. Porter’s Five-Force Model
 Threat of Buyers
 Consumers will opt for Microsoft OS instead of Apple’s OSX
 the buyer’s bargaining power is lowered due to limited
alternative
 huge array of smart phones, tablets and PCs continue creating
more consumer threat due to high bargaining power

9. Porter’s Five-Force Model
 Threat of Suppliers
 The threat is high due to minimal suppliers of operating
systems and digital signaling chips
 Threat of New Entry
 entering this market needs huge capital investment that
enables new firms to be very active
 existing firm have their own copyrights for technologies
and patents that make it hard for new entrants to adopt

10. Porter’s Five-Force Model
 Threat of Rivalry
 Hardware & Software markets rivalry
 “Think Twice”
 Threat of Substitutes
 Value vs. High price
 “Ecosystem”

11. Summary/Conclusion
 Apple continues leading the revolution in digital media
through iPod, video players, and iTunes web store
 Apple ventured into smartphone industry through value
innovation in the iPhone
 However, Apple still to emphasize on differentiation of
its products
 To win the price war, Apple need to set up a niche
market that will lower cost of manufacturing through
merger or strategic alliances

12. References
Ashcroft, J. (2012). Apple in the digital age from the iPod to the iPad: Apple Inc.
the case study 2000-2010. Retrieved from
http://promanchesterceo.typepad.com/files/apple-case-study-2011.pdf
Nonala, I., & Kenney, M. (1991). Towards a new theory of innovation
management: A case study comparing Canon, Inc. and Apple computer, Inc.
Journal of Engineering and Technology Management, 8(1), 67-83.
Parsons, M. (2012). Understanding innovation: Apple Case Study. Retrieved from
http://innovation-for-extremes.net/blog/understanding-innovation-apple-case-
study
Stovall, D. (2014). Harvard business case study: Apple Inc. Retrieved from
http://www.academia.edu/7206505/Harvard_Business_Case_Study_Apple_Inc