Apple … “I’d shut it down and give the money back to the shareholders.” – Michael Dell, October 6, 1997
“Apple is already dead.” – Microsoft CTO Nathan Myhrvold, June 6, 1997
May 26, 2010: Apple passes Microsoft to become the most valuable technology company in the United States – something completely unfathomable ten to fifteen years ago. The New York Times has called it “the end of an era and the beginning of the next one“.
Now to be fair, the valuations are calculated by Wall Street “market capitalization”, which can be considered a fairly arbitrary measure. Regardless, the symbolism of this event can not be missed: it is yet another sign that we are in a transition in the technology world. The “old world” of technology marked by companies such as Dell and Microsoft, is giving way to the new world of technology led by Apple. If you aren’t already preparing yourself for the new world of technology, let this be a wake up call!
Just for fun, let’s take a look at the market capitalization of the companies involved in the quotes above:
- Dell : $26 Billion
- Microsoft: $219 Billion
- Apple: $222 Billion
In fact, Apple could purchase Dell outright with just the cash reserves it has on hand today – and still have about $20 billion left over!
