Apple has long been established as a titan of the tech industry and a revenue behemoth. As the first company in history to hit both the $1tr and $2tr market cap milestones and it is now worth more than all FTSE 100 companies combined. When digging into its financials, it doesn’t take long to work out why it has grown to such a meteoric size.
Apple’s AirPod revenues alone generated $23.05bn in revenue during their 2020 financial year – this is more revenue than Twitter, Spotify and Square combined. It gives Netflix’s entire business a run for its money as well – coming in less than 10 per cent shy of their total revenue. According to the financial markets as of today, Netflix is worth somewhere in the region of $260bn which would indicate that based on revenue alone, Apple’s AirPod business is worth somewhere in the region of $240bn.
There are of course a huge number of factors to take into account when calculating the fair value of a company or line of products – and revenue isn’t the only aspect that is considered. However, it is completely mind-blowing how successful Apple are at creating wants, needs and then delivering a product to satisfy.
The technology inside the standard AirPods is not too far removed from the free wired headphones Apple used to provide with their devices. However, add in wireless capabilities and a £200 price tag and consumers go crazy. AirPods are a fashion statement, functional and convenient. Apple never ceases to amaze me with how simple their products are and how much of an outsized impact they deliver to the consumer.
So, what do you think of Apple?