蘋果將斥資100億美元收購Twitter應為謠傳
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????本周一當地時間上午11：07，一則簡短的商業新聞吸引了我的注意： ????蘋果或將斥資100億美元收購Twitter——《福布斯》 ????一開始我以為是我看錯了。不是，《福布斯》的網站上確實有這么一篇980字的報道，作者艾里克?杰克遜是其長期撰稿人。文章把蘋果（Apple）斥資100億美元收購Twitter比喻成繼Facebook10億美元收購Instagram之后“又一只落地的靴子”。 ????謠言就是這么起來的。 ????就在不久前，坊間還流傳蘋果可能將收購Facebook。曾傳出將被蘋果收購的公司還有迪士尼（Disney）、雅虎（Yahoo）、奧多比（Adobe）、Tivo、Netflix和電子藝界（Electronic Arts）。 ????上面提到的這些蘋果擬收購的公司出自《紐約時報》（New York Times）的一篇報道，文章還引用了史蒂夫?喬布斯的一句漫不經心的話：蘋果將把現金留在手上，以便出現 “戰略性機會”的時候就可以出手。 ????這些傳聞在當時看起來就沒什么道理，現在同樣如此。Facebook和Twitter并不是蘋果會收購的那類公司。 ????蘋果會收購哪些公司？《商業周刊》（BusinessWeek）的Arik Hesseldahl曾總結說，“蘋果的哲學是收購那些可以迅速整合到現有公司架構中的小公司。”下面這份來自維基百科（Wikipedia）的蘋果歷年收購名單也體現了這一點： ????? 1997 Next (programming services). Value: $404 million ????? 1997年收購Next（程序服務）。收購價：4.04億美元 ????? 1997 Power Computing (cloned computers). $100 million ????? 1997年收購Power Computing（Mac兼容機廠商）。收購價：1億美元 ????? 1999 Xemplar Education (software). $5 million ????? 1999年收購Xemplar Education（軟件）。收購價：500萬美元 ????? 1999 Raycer Graphics (graphic chips). $15 million ????? 1999年收購Raycer Graphics（圖形芯片）。收購價：1500萬美元 ????? 2000 NetSelector (Internet software). Value: NA ????? 2000年收購NetSelector（互聯網軟件）。收購價：不詳 ????? 2001 Astarte (DVD authoring software). Value: NA |
????At 11:07 a.m. Monday, a brief item hit the business newswires: ????Apple may buy Twitter for $10B -- Forbes ????At first I assumed it was some kind of mistake. But no, there it was on Forbes.com: A 980-word piece by Eric Jackson, one of their regular contributors, pitching Apple's (AAPL) $10 billion purchase of Twitter as the "next shoe to drop" after Facebook's $1 billion acquisition of Instagram. ????This is how rumors get started. ????It wasn't that long ago that Apple was supposed to be buying Facebook. Or Disney. Or Yahoo. Or Adobe. Or Tivo. Or Netflix. Or Electronic Arts. ????That list, published in the New York Times, followed an offhand comment by Steve Jobs about Apple keeping its cash "powder dry" for one or more "strategic opportunities." See here. ????The rumors didn't make sense then and they don't now. Facebook and Twitter are not the kind of company Apple buys. ????What kind of enterprise does Apple buy? The list below, taken from Wikipedia, is instructive. As the entry succinctly puts it, paraphrasing BusinessWeek's Arik Hesseldahl (now at AllThingsD): "Apple's business philosophy is to acquire small companies that can be easily integrated into existing company projects." ????For example: ????? 1997 Next (programming services). Value: $404 million ????? 1997 Power Computing (cloned computers). $100 million ????? 1999 Xemplar Education (software). $5 million ????? 1999 Raycer Graphics (graphic chips). $15 million ????? 2000 NetSelector (Internet software). Value: NA ????? 2001 Astarte (DVD authoring software). Value: NA |
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