Tim Cook takes on those Apple bears who say the company's best days are behind it (VIDEO)
As the CEO points out, with this large, loyal installed base, Apple can expect recurring revenue from hardware sales and from the App Store. It also will help Apple continue to grow Services revenue, which has expanded from $7 billion in 2010 to $41 billion in calendar year 2018. Fiscal first quarter Services revenue is expected to be a company record $10.8 billion.
Sitting inside the Apple Store on Apple's campus in Cupertino, Cook told Cramer about how Apple's products are life changing. He mentioned the emails from Apple Watch owners whose lives were saved by the timepiece, and the photos that are saved on the iPhone that bring back memories. The executive managed to sidestep Cramer's question about Chinese businesses that are subsidizing employees purchases of phones from Chinese manufacturers while imposing fines on those who buy an iPhone. Instead, Cook spoke about how the decline in the country's economy was exacerbated by tensions from the trade war with the U.S. He is optimistic that the battle will lead to a new trade agreement between the two countries.
Cook called "baloney"on analysts who have turned bearish on the stock and those who have called the iPhone XR a flop. He pointed out that since Apple started shipping the iPhone XR on October 26th, it has been the most popular model every day. "Of course I'd like to sell more, and we're working on that," said Apple's CEO.
"In terms of the naysayer, I've heard this over and over again. I've heard it in 2001, I've heard it in 2005, in '7, in '8, in '10, in '12 and '13. You can probably find the same quotes from the same people over and over again."
Cook says that the market is emotional in the short term and that Apple looks through all of that, focusing on the long term. "And so when I look at the long-term health of the company, it has never been better," Cook stated. "The product pipeline has never been better. The ecosystem has never been stronger. The services are on a tear." He also discusses how Qualcomm is overcharging for its standards essential patents by charging "exorbitant" rates for licensing its patents instead of the Fair, Reasonable and Non-Discriminatory (FRAND) rates it should be charging.
In response to Cramer's comment about Alexa, Apple's CEO says that the company is investing heavily in the virtual personal assistant, which is now found on 500 million devices. Cook says that Siri is used 10 billion times a month and is available in 21 different languages in over 30 countries.
It's a fascinating interview and you can watch it by clicking on the video at the top of this article.
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless
Things that are NOT allowed: