Ken Segall, former ad agency creative director for NeXT and Apple, argues that Samsung’s recent advertising blitz has been effective against Apple. Segall writes that Samsung has spent “a fortune to run its ads,” and that “Samsung’s message has proven to be tremendously potent” — ads that allude to negative perceptions with Apple have been “scoring points.” Apple has lost momentum and needs to recalibrate, according to Segall, who compares the situation to Barack Obama after his first debate with Mitt Romney. “(Apple) deeply believes in its ideas; it just need to express them more forcefully,” he writes.
Jean-Louis Gassée, one-time head of Apple’s Products Division before the return of Steve Jobs, writes that a side effect of the iPad’s success is that it “ignores the needs of people who want to perform ‘complicated’ tasks on their iPads.” Gassée suggests that the iPad could have two user interfaces and two modes: an “easy mode” — such as the current setup that hides the iOS file system from users — and a “pro mode” for more demanding users who wish to use the iPad in more in-depth ways. He points to the proliferation of keyboards for the device and the iPad’s penetration among Fortune 500 companies as signs that more people wish to use the iPad for heavier work and creation, not just consumption, though he also notes that balancing the needs of multiple audiences will prove tricky.
Apple has become somewhat easier to deal with under Tim Cook, according to France Telecom-Orange CEO Stéphane Richard.
Richard said that “Apple has (become) more flexible, paying more attention to everyone else, probably a little less arrogant than they used to be,” All Things D reports. “I think they are probably a little more under pressure, and it is quite nice,” he said.
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