tech talk in wsj.
With price wars continuing, Mr. Otellini said consumers will benefit immensely. Echoing National Semiconductor Chief Executive Officer Brian Halla, Mr. Otellini executive vp @ intel suggested "free PCs" might materialize in 1999. That is, computer makers could start giving away PCs to users who sign up for Internet access, much as cellular-phone makers give away phones under service contracts. "The holy grail is how do you get to the next 50% of households that don't have a PC," Mr. Otellini said. "It has to be done through pricing."
If Mr. Otellini truly believes pricing will get you the other 50%, he is pretty deluded, and as a stock holder, I don't want him in charge of much of anything.
Forget the other 50%, a huge number of the people who have PCs barely use them. In their current incarnation, PCs are just too much effort to be useful.
iMac is nice, but it basically builds on the strengths of the Mac OS, which are not recent (it sometimes takes a fancy case to help media recognize an old advantage).
The Mac is too complicated to use. Windows is worse. And I know I am speaking blasphemy, but Linux is worse than Windows.
As an AAPL and INTC stockholder, I think both these companies fundamentally understand this, to be honest. AAPL is limited by its relegated niche, and INTC is limited by its designation as a chipmaker.
The more I read from Andy Grove, the more I am convinced that the higher ups at Intel can visualize a more useful set of computing devices. When Andy Grove praised the iMac, he wasn't calling for cheapo PC clones of the case. He was praising the idea that computers can and have to be made simpler for consumers.
BTW Here is my prediction for the $699 iMac PC Clone. It will sell very very few units, and the people who buy them will regret it.
As for INTC price in 1999, I feel INTC is pretty well valued for the year already. However, I believe Intel has the best financial management of any company anywhere. They will continue long term to surprise on the upside. |
