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Coming To A Head (6/14/99)
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If there weren't some tension somewhere in Apple's relation with resellers, it just wouldn't be Apple. Most recently we were all treated to a squabble over fruit flavors between the Cupertino mothership and the Great Yellow Terror, formerly known as Best Buy; piled on top of a host of other irreconcilable differences, the color clash resulted in the severance of what should have been a powerful partnership. But just as most of us are getting past that (now that Sears has climbed aboard the iMac bandwagon and early indications are positive), the latest example in a long tradition of reseller tension rears its ugly head. This time it's the issue of product availability making the Mac reseller landscape resemble the sullen Thanksgiving dinner of a dysfunctional family.
The trouble is this: nobody can get their hands on any PowerBooks. The "bronze" models introduced by Jobs at the WWDC early last month were slated for a May 20th ship date, which quickly slid into June. Now, a product release delay is bad enough, but what's really got the resellers up in arms is that the Apple Store seems to have them available long before anyone else. And while that may sound perfectly natural to you-- after all, Apple's the company making them (sort of), so why wouldn't they have them first?-- here's the problem: If Apple starts using its manufacturer status to let the Apple Store compete unfairly with all of the other Mac resellers, things will get ugly. And according to MacCentral, that's pretty much what's already happened.
You might recall that when the Apple Store first debuted a couple of years ago, Apple was quick to assure worried resellers that Apple wouldn't be playing any favorites by shuttling inventory to the Apple Store at the expense of the other resellers. That policy would appear to have been reversed, as right now the only places that seem to have new PowerBooks available are the Apple Store and, according to Mac OS Planet, CompUSA-- Apple's sole national retailer for the professional machines. Regional and local resellers are apparently out of luck so far, as are mail-order houses, and relations are getting (understandably) strained. Here's hoping that Apple manages to iron things out and make everyone happy again. We suggest sending baked goods by way of apology...
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SceneLink (1601)
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 | | The above scene was taken from the 6/14/99 episode: June 14, 1999: Mac resellers are up in arms over Apple's apparent decision to override their earlier Apple Store promises. Meanwhile, more "details" of P1 paint the laptop as very much a portable iMac, in both positive and negative ways, and Microsoft pulls off their own little courtroom shocker in "Redmond Justice..."
Other scenes from that episode: 1602: Thankfully, Leaks Happen (6/14/99) As the next Macworld Expo draws ever closer, so does the introduction of what may well be the most anxiously awaited computer in Apple's history: the as-yet-to-be-named consumer portable internally referred to as "P1."... 1603: The Other Side of Drama (6/14/99) Sometimes while watching "Redmond Justice," it's easy to forget that Microsoft is capable of pulling off a courtroom shock play, too. Sure, in most cases the really interesting developments in the ongoing antitrust trial originate from the government side and Smilin' Dave Boies: the event that first springs to mind is how he spotted that Microsoft's videotaped Windows speed test was a fake...
Or view the entire episode as originally broadcast... | |  |
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