????顯然，蘋果已經習慣于保持其操作系統的神秘性，以此迫使應用開發商和程序開發商按它的意愿行事。此外，蘋果還拒絕其他手機制造商使用其iOS系統，這意味著只有蘋果產品可以訪問iTunes和iOS應用商店。蘋果占據智能手機市場主導地位的時候，這當然是很好的做法，但現在卻變成了絕對愚蠢的招數。谷歌的安卓操作系統雖然不如iOS系統美觀，但經過一段時間的發展，在整個智能手機市場已經隨處可見。諾基亞（Nokia）已經放棄了自己的操作系統，Palm操作系統也已成昨日黃花，動態研究公司（Research in Motion）和微軟（Microsoft）則仍在苦苦掙扎。

????如果蘋果足夠聰明的話，應該回顧一下二十年前。當時，它正在與IBM爭奪對個人電腦市場的控制權。與今天一樣，蘋果對其計算機架構和操作系統也是守口如瓶，拒絕與其他制造商分享。而與此同時，開發商要想獲得蘋果認證，也要經過層層考驗。

????可IBM卻利用一種開放架構和已上市的部件來生產其個人電腦，并使用微軟的Windows操作系統。最終，其他計算機硬件制造商紛紛轉投PC架構陣營，并開始使用微軟的Windows平臺。雖然與蘋果的封閉系統相比，最初復制IBM的Windows電腦在外觀上相形見絀；但它們更便宜，也更方便程序員操作。最終PC與蘋果電腦不相上下，甚至占據了上風。截至上世紀八十年代末，運行中的PC數量大幅超過蘋果電腦。

????如果不是有了iPhone手機，蘋果現在可能還是一家小眾電腦制造商。是iPhone使蘋果變成一家內容分銷商，使其達到了其他公司難以企及的規模。然而，它對于隨意性規定的刻意堅持，以及其封閉、保密的文化，已經開始威脅自身的利潤。雖然iPhone仍然是最出色的產品，但現在已經有各種不同價位的智能手機可供消費者選擇。雖然不是全部，但其中大多數均運行谷歌的安卓操作系統。

????今天，蘋果要確保不再重蹈上世紀八十年代的覆轍，可以從幾個方面入手。首先，開放其iOS操作系統，這樣其他制造商便可將其整合到各自的智能手機當中。而這會為iTunes帶來更多客戶。此外，蘋果還可以生產符合不同價位的更多手機。畢竟，iPhone只是一臺內容傳送裝置——網絡中的用戶越多，收入便會越多。如果蘋果繼續我行我素，延續當前的做法，必將遭受重大損失。（財富中文網）

????譯者：劉進龍/汪皓

????Apple has defined itself by keeping its operating system close to its chest, forcing app developers and program makers to bend to its wishes. It has also refused to allow other phone makers to use its iOS, meaning that only Apple products can access iTunes and the iOS app store. That was fine when Apple dominated the smartphone market but it's downright foolish now. Google's (GOOG) Android operating system, while not as elegant as Apple's iOS, has come a long way and has permeated pretty much the entire smartphone market. Nokia (NOK) abandoned its OS, Palm is gone, and Research in Motion (RIMM) and Microsoft (MSFT) continue to struggle.

????Apple would be wise to look back two decades when it was locked in a war to control the personal computer market with IBM. Like today, Apple kept its computer architecture and OS close to its chest, refusing to share it with other manufacturers while at the same time making program developers jump through a lot of hoops to get Apple certified.

????Meanwhile, IBM built its PC using an open architecture with off-the-shelf parts using Microsoft's Windows OS to drive its machine. Eventually, all the other computer hardware manufacturers consolidated behind the PC architecture and started using Microsoft's Windows platform as well. While those first IBM clones running Windows weren't as elegant as Apple's closed system; they were cheaper and easier for programmers to manipulate. Eventually PCs became as good as or arguably better than anything out of Cupertino. The number of PCs in operation by the end of the 1980s vastly outnumbered Apple computers.

????If it weren't for the iPhone, Apple today would be a niche computer maker. The iPhone has turned Apple into a distributer of content, making it richer than anyone ever imagined. But its rigid adherence to its arbitrary rules and its secretive and closed culture is beginning to threaten Apple's profits. While the iPhone remains an amazing piece of machinery, there are now a host of other smartphone options available to consumers across various price points – most, if not all, of them running Google's Android operating system.

????There are a number of things Apple could do today to ensure it doesn't relive its 1980s meltdown. It could for one open up its iOS so that other manufacturers could integrate it with their phone. This will bring a new line of customers into the iTunes orbit. It could also create a larger line of phones to fit a multitude of price points. After all, the iPhone is simply a delivery device for content—the more people you have on your network, the larger your revenue. If Apple continues on its current path, it could lose—a lot.