Advertisement. PC guy and Mac guy.
After years as a bit player in the business computer market, Apple Inc.'s success with consumer products - particularly its iPhone and iPad tablet - is pushing the Cupertino, Calif., company's Macintosh computer line through more businesses' doors.
But it's a slow process, thanks to lingering compatibility concerns, Apple's secretiveness and insistence on doing things its own way - and, ironically, the very ease of use loyal Mac customers rave about.
According to research firm International Data Corp. (Canada) Ltd. in Toronto, Apple has gained market share in personal computers for several years. In 2005, the Mac accounted for 4.2 per cent of Canadian PC sales, IDC Canada reports, while its share of commercial PC sales was 5 per cent. Both numbers have risen since then - consumer sales slightly faster. Last year, IDC found Apple had 9.7 per cent of overall Canadian PC sales and 8.2 per cent of commercial sales.
Fuelling the growth is Apple's success with consumer products such as the iPhone and, before that, the iPod. Both helped Apple gain mind-share in the consumer market, and the iPhone is getting business people's attention, too. But the Mac business tidal wave, experts say, could still be lurking out at sea.
Phil Taylor, owner of Mainly Mac in Markham, Ont., recalls being treated "like a leper" at holiday parties a few years ago when he identified himself as an Apple dealer. "They'd kind of look at me and they go 'Macintosh? Are they still around?'" Now, he says, people want to talk to him about Apple products.
The iPod is one reason for the change, he says. As the music player took off Apple put its brand front and centre in iPod advertising, so its popularity boosted the corporate image. And teenagers who bought iPods went on to buy Macs, which has created a trickle-up effect.
High school, university and college students started demanding Macs because they were cool, Mr. Taylor says. Then, parents started experimenting with their kids' computers and liking them. They bought Macs for themselves. And now, he says, some of those same people have started pushing for Macs at work.
But, Mr. Taylor says, "the wave has not arrived." Business buyers are not yet flocking to the Mac in massive numbers.
While many small businesses are interested in Macs, he says, they often hold back because of worries about compatibility with Microsoft Windows applications. In particular, says Mr. Taylor, some popular small-business accounting software doesn't work on Macs. Most accountants use Windows, and quite a few small businesses believe they must use what their accountants use.
Not true, he says, but the perception is an obstacle just the same.
Mark Tauschek, research director at Info-Tech Group in London, Ont., says compatibility isn't a problem any more as new Macs, based on the same processors as PCs, run Windows programs and even Windows itself in a "virtual machine." So where three years ago the IT department would have said "get lost" to requests to bring in Macs, he says, "knowledgeable IT people now understand that the Apple machine can fit into a mostly Windows environment."
But Mr. Taylor says resistance from IT is resilient in larger businesses, and he thinks there are two reasons. One is IT people simply don't want to learn another platform. The other, he contends, is the Mac's fabled ease of use threatens IT workers' job security.
"The IT guys realize, 'Hey, I could be made redundant if they get more Macs in here.'"
There could be some truth to that, but Mr. Brunt cites a darker reason for IT's hesitation: Apple's culture of secrecy. Unlike many other computer vendors, he says, Apple is tight-lipped about future products and directions. In fact, the company seems to grow steadily more secretive (its Canadian media relations office didn't respond to requests for comment for this story).
"The secrecy around their products becomes very difficult for companies to do long-term planning around," Mr. Brunt says.
Apple also won't negotiate pricing with any but perhaps the biggest customers, Mr. Tauschek says. Because of Apple's tight control of its distribution channel, he says, "the price of Apple products is the same no matter where you buy it," and most businesses can't negotiate volume discounts. So, Mr. Tauschek says, while Macs seem competitive with comparable Windows PCs on a price list, there can be a considerable difference for a business buying many machines.
Info-Tech itself was able to negotiate prices for Dell PCs "close to 50 per cent less" than for comparable Macs, he notes.
But, Mr. Tauschek says, Apple's iPad tablet is opening more doors. "The iPad is probably the biggest thing that's started to drive Apple adoption in the enterprise," he says, citing "really big" uptake of the tablet in the corporate market.
Krista Napier, senior analyst for Canadian digital media at IDC Canada, is more cautious. Tablets remain primarily consumer products, she says.
"The number of business users is growing rapidly from a small base." And the advantage Apple gained from pioneering the product category will fade somewhat as more competitors enter it. "Apple was the main player in the market last year," Ms. Napier says. "Naturally we will see them lose market share this year."
Some of that share could go to more business-focused vendors, such as Waterloo, Ont.-based Research In Motion Inc. - which, Ms. Napier notes, announced its PlayBook tablet well ahead of launch, giving business customers time to plan. (The PlayBook, however, has been bedeviled by launch delays.)
Once seen as a has-been, Apple has made a remarkable transformation. But its greatest strength is in the consumer market, and it seems unlikely that will change - or that Apple even wants it to. "The consumer market," Ms. Napier points out, "is Apple's bread and butter."