Should Apple end its annual “Apple Event?”
Several years ago, Apple reinvented itself with the introduction of the iPod. Not only was the device revolutionary and unlike anything we’d ever seen, but Apple founder and CEO Steve Jobs was a master magician — a man who could stand on a stage and mesmerize a dead beetle into wanting to race out and buy the damned thing. Apple was back and it found a formula in its live stage presentation to present a plethora of future devices that just worked!
But Steve Jobs passed away last fall and was replaced by Tim Cook — an effective executive, but not at all a Steve Jobs clone. In fact, it may be impossible for Apple to ever find someone with Jobs’ charisma and ability to make you want to race out and just buy the damned thing. But therein lies the problem.
The Apple Event was Steve Jobs’ baby. Nobody can do it like him. The Apple Event was also like Pavlov’s experiment, where a dog was conditioned to come running for food once he heard the bell ringing. Well, Apple enthusiasts have gotten used to Apple “ringing the bell” and coming out with the next great invention every year. They’ve also grown accustomed to the “one more thing” teaser from Jobs, where he’d usually save the best for last and tantalize the crowd with something beyond exciting. Except, that’s not a realistic business model for Apple to keep up with — especially now that Jobs has passed on.
Since 2007, Apple has introduced a new iPhone every June. Apple fans have grown accustomed to the date and have even timed their mobile replacements to coincide with the expectation of a newer and greater device. But Apple skipped introducing a new iPhone last June. Instead, it came out with the mediocre iPhone 4Gs in the fall that was primarily the same hardware, with merely the Siri software feature added as its selling point. For some, it just wasn’t good enough, since it seemed Apple delivered the product because it was expected to and not because it had something revolutionary.
Apple has now run the risk of elevating expectation beyond control. There is just no way they can keep coming up with something new and exciting every year to appease their eager and expecting fans. But even more importantly, there’s no one around like Steve Jobs to market it to the masses.
Perhaps it’s time for Apple to find a new way to introduce its products to the public. Perhaps it’s time Apple embraced the Internet or social networking for the presentation of its products, instead of a live show with high expectation and possibly little to show for it. Perhaps it’s time for Apple to let go of and move beyond the big “Apple Event.”
