Discerning Apple's international product positioning through the big Mac index

Thanks to all those who contributed to the big Mac index there is a substantial amount of pricing data available in one location. The analysis that I hoped to perform on the data was to see if Apple was pricing specific products differently in international markets. It was prompted by some apparently anomalous pricing of … Continue reading “Discerning Apple's international product positioning through the big Mac index”

The big Mac (and iPad and iPhone) index (Updated)

Apple’s products are globally consistent. They sell the same exact[1] product in all countries. An unlocked iPhone is the same everywhere. It makes the products “liquid” in that they can be easily bought and sold across borders. However, laws do not permit the import and friction-free trading of electronic products. In addition to regulations there … Continue reading “The big Mac (and iPad and iPhone) index (Updated)”

Asymetric: The Crypto Plan for World Domination. An Interview with Balaji Srinivasan

This is a transcript of an Asymetric podcast. It was lightly edited for legibility. Judd Rubin:  Three continents, one conversation, this is Asymetric. We are very excited to have Balaji Srinivasan with us today. Balaji, you’re a busy man, Horace you’re on the run as usual, so why don’t we dive right in. Thanks for … Continue reading “Asymetric: The Crypto Plan for World Domination. An Interview with Balaji Srinivasan”

[Updated] Samsung's Android Problem

[Samsung] said it has sold around 4 million Galaxy S smartphones in North America, 2.5 million in Europe, and around 2 million in South Korea in the past seven months. via Samsung Sells 10 Million Galaxy S Android Smartphones – Digital Lifestyle – Macworld UK. Samsung’s US Android sales are very similarly allocated to Apple’s … Continue reading “[Updated] Samsung's Android Problem”

Open always wins, unless it's Symbian or LiMo or Openmoko or Qt

In June 2008, Nokia made its first big move to turn around the platform, and announced that it was acquiring Symbian, with the intent of turning the OS into an open source project. Two years later, the move to open source has proved to be a miscalculation that is slowing down Symbian’s development. It would … Continue reading “Open always wins, unless it's Symbian or LiMo or Openmoko or Qt”