Can Apple succeed?

What Apple is trying to do right now is not only to provide more contents for its customers, but also to build an ecosystem to contain its customers. Many people find after owning their first iPhone, they start to use Apple's laptops and tablets, then buy Apple's Apple Watch and AirPods; they are buying more and more products. Moreover, they do not only just buy more Apple's devices, but also buy more and more Apple services, such as Apple Music. Once people become addicted to Apple's ecosystem because of the convenience brought by the ecosystem, they are not easy to switch to other firms' devices or services.

However, it does not mean people will always stick to Apple's ecosystem. People are always making cost and benefit analysis, they will always choose the options which make their benefits greater than their costs. The convenience is a benefit, but people have to pay for the convenience provided by Apple. Once people find the benefit of the convenience no longer exceed the prices they pay, they will give up the convenience and switch to something that may not be so convenient but a lot cheaper. This is why Android smartphones are occupying a greater market share than Apple's iPhones are. High prices can definitely boost revenues if the sales do not drop significantly, which was shown in Apple's previous report (after the launch of iPhone X); however, high prices do not only reduce the sales of hardware, but also reduce the attractiveness of services. If Apple wants to use its services to generate greater revenues, it has to make the benefit of the convenience greater than the cost.

At the moment, Apple's products are still relatively more expensive than other competitive devices on the market; however, after the departure of the former Burberry boss from Apple, Apple may deviate from its current route of being a luxury brand and lower its prices again. The new iPad release may be a signal that Apple is now providing devices which have good quality and also reasonable prices (though the new iPads are not cheap, they are at least not a lot more expensive).