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Further Clone Aftermath (5/22/98)
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Man oh man oh man, looks like nobody had any luck with the whole Mac cloning debacle. Power Computing cranked out great boxes that sold like hotcakes, but they weren't making any money, even before Apple put the hurt on them. Motorola got out while the getting was good, relatively speaking. Umax stayed in, and still makes Mac clones today-- or rather, they still sell Mac clones today, because once this inventory is gone, they're probably going to pack it in, as well. A Wired article tells how the cloner is losing money hand over fist, has all but ceased production on Mac-compatible computers, and is very unlikely to extend its Mac OS license past the July expiration date.
Umax reports that they have lost a staggering $1.1 billion since they began their Mac cloning operations. Doesn't that sound like a ridiculous amount of money? Well, you're right, it is-- that $1.1 billion is actually in Taiwanese dollars; it comes to only about $33 million in U.S. currency. (See, now it doesn't sound so bad, right? We're just trying to make you feel better.) Still, a loss is a loss, and it sure sounds like Umax's finance manager is speaking the gospel when he states that "almost everybody suffered losses from making computers for Apple." Even, you will no doubt recall, Apple.
Ironic, isn't it? The Golden Age of Clones is the one era that seemed so bright to us at the time, what with cheap, fast machines ripe for the plucking; but in retrospect, it's starting to look like one of the darkest periods in Mac history, with all the players maimed or killed, and absolutely no winners at the finish line. Good lord, imagine what might have happened if Steve hadn't killed cloning: the clone companies would've folded or pulled out due to unprofitability, Apple would have been bled to death too, and we'd probably all be using abaci by now. Dodged a bullet on that one, hmmm?
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And Now For A Word From Our Sponsors |
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 | | The above scene was taken from the 5/22/98 episode: May 22, 1998: Whack! Down comes Apple's axe, lopping off a third of its resellers and half of its service centers. Meanwhile, Umax reveals that they've lost a ton of money in their whole Mac clone endeavor, and Microsoft gets to ship Windows 98 as planned, but their trial date is close enough to make them sweat...
Other scenes from that episode: 727: The Big Axe Falls (5/22/98) Remember way back in February when Apple shook up our quiet, mundane little world by announcing that it was pulling Macs out of all national retail stores except for CompUSA? It was a bold move for Apple to sacrifice shelf space in an already tight retail market, but they had determined that the old, non-functional Macs on display in uncaring stores like Sears and Computer City were hurting sales and public opinion more than they were helping... 729: Showdown in September (5/22/98) Well, Microsoft didn't get its requested seven months in which to prepare to argue its side in the current Department of Justice antitrust case, but they did manage to squeeze three and a half months from Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson; the trial date is set for September 8th, instead of sometime in December as Microsoft requested...
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