Apple Reveals Plan Allowing for Cloning of Macintosh Computer : Technology: Analysts disagree on whether the company will recapture market from IBM-compatibles.
Apple Computer Inc., struggling to compete against the Intel-Microsoft juggernaut, on Friday revealed details of its long-discussed plan to license its technology and permit other companies to make clones of the Macintosh personal computer.
But Apple did not say whether any companies had yet signed on, nor would it disclose what conditions would be attached to such licenses.
The Macintosh clones--which will be based on the new Power Macintosh design and will sport the licensees’ own labels along with a new blue logo for the latest Mac software operating system--are not expected to hit the market until the end of next year, according to Don Strickland, the Cupertino, Calif., company’s vice president for licensing.
“Using the Mac OS licensing system as a way to build brand awareness, we think we can boost our worldwide market share to as much as 15% or 16% over the next three years,” Strickland said.
Apple has been scrambling to hold on to a 10% share of the $80-billion global PC market. Meanwhile, machines containing Intel chips and running Microsoft’s DOS and Windows operating systems have grabbed more than 80% of the market.
Allowing others to license Mac hardware and software would expand the base of Macintosh machines and bring some revenue to Apple. But allowing clones carries big risks: Clone makers were decisive in establishing the IBM PC as a standard, but IBM--which did little to protect its hardware design from license-free copying--lost out as lower-cost manufacturers simply copied the hardware and licensed the software from Microsoft.
Opinion diverged widely Friday on Apple’s chances of success. The company has been criticized for years for guarding the Mac technology too closely and thus losing the opportunity to establish it as a standard.
“It’s too slow,” said Philippe de Marcillac, director of worldwide PC research at Dataquest in San Jose, referring to the Apple licensing plan. “By being so slow, they are definitely limiting the gains they’re going to make.”
Mark Hall, editor of MacWeek magazine in San Francisco, disagreed. “Now the world knows what it will take to build a Mac clone. Apple will pick up decent market share worldwide in two years.”
Since introducing the Mac a decade ago, Apple has gained a devoted following among desktop publishers and other computer users for whom ease of use and good graphics were crucial. But for years Apple charged a premium, and the vast majority of users opted for cheaper IBM-compatible PCs--and the Windows operating system has now eroded Apple’s ease-of-use advantage.
Earlier this year, Apple introduced a new type of Mac based on the Power PC chip, giving the company a chance to revisit the licensing question. But Apple has reportedly failed to cut a deal with IBM--an ally and co-developer of the Power PC--and the slow rollout of the licensing plans has disappointed analysts.
Apple officials declined to name any prospective licensees Friday, noting that those companies want to control the timing of such announcements. However, trade publications have reported that Apple is close to deals with, among others, Motorola Inc., Vobis Microcomputer of Germany, Ing. C. Olivetti & Co. of Italy, Toshiba Corp. and Pioneer Electronic Corp. of Japan and Goldstar Technology Inc. of Korea.
Strickland indicated that initially Apple expects to manufacture machines for licensees to help jump-start the process. Later, he said, with specifications supplied by Apple, the companies would be able to build their own hardware.
