Let me state from the start that Apple is not Standard Oil and while some of the allegations of the DOJ’s lawsuit may have merit it seems a bit extreme to attack Apple for its success. I remember well when Apple was on the verge of bankruptcy, when Micael Dell said famously “shut it down and give the money back to the shareholders”. That is when a top Apple exec came to the small band of surviving Apple dealers and boldly claimed that Apple might soon be a $5 billion company. Now with nearly a $3 trillion valuation, Apple merits close scrutiny to ensure that they are not engaging in unfair business practices and are competing fairly in the marketplace. When the iPhone we first released Steve Jobs foresaw the future of the device and understood just how unique it was and knew it would be copied just as the Apple visual interface had been copied before. I doubt that Steve had really envisioned that the iPhone would become so dominate that Apple was commonly referred to as the iPhone company.
The DOJ attacks features of the iPhone and Apple eco-system that make it unique and attractive. Its end-to-end encryption, Apple’s unwavering commitment to data privacy and the fact that Apple products work together seamlessly make Apple products attractive and highly competitive. But there are alternatives and with a bit of effort you can make Samsung phones work, too. I regret the green s vs blue bubbles that distinguish Apple messaging from Android messaging and it frankly seems stupid that Apple hasn’t solved that problem yet, although they have indicated that help is on the way. The changes will come once Apple adds support for a technology called rich communication services, also known as RCS, next year. I know this will make my family happy as even in this Apple-centric family we have a mix of Apple and Samsung devices.
I do not think that it is Apple’s duty or obligation to make it easier for competitors to gain market share. Apple innovates and builds a loyal customer base which enjoys the inter-operability of Apple devices from iPhone to Mac to Vision Pro! I may be a Bernie Sanders democrat but I am also a capitalist and I believe that capitalism (socially responsible capitalism!) breeds creativity and innovation. We should not stifle creativity to even the playing field for competitors.
The good news that may come from this lawsuit is that Apple may change some of its overly restrictive policies on messaging, cross-platform functions and things like access to the NFC functions of the iPhone. Don’t get me wrong, while I am an unabashed Apple fan (geezer), Apple products are too expensive, Apple’s policies are sometimes unfathomable and in some ways they have forgotten their roots and have become a bit too big for their britches. But this DOJ lawsuit misses the mark and will do little to help the consumer especially as so many have relied upon Apple for the safety and security of their precious data.