An old friend in the music business was visiting and we wandered around Austin’s gigantic South by Southwest music and film extravaganza and, of course, I was struck by the effects of Apple’s brilliant product design and marketing. IPods and MacBooks were everywhere and iPhones were rivaling Blackberries. Downstairs at the convention center, Dell had a bar, but upstairs where the exhibitors and bands register, it was Apple city -that distinctive white plastic casing was ubiquitous.
Apple has been on a roll of selling style and to end-customer wants instead of accepting industry commonplaces. Some companies shape the market, some tag along behind, and some are just lost.