Spotlight on Apple’s Tile killer and Opt-in tracking in advance of today’s Senate hearing on Apple’s and Google’s market power.
From the New York Times’ “Apple’s New Devices Target Markets Led by Smaller Rivals” posted Wednesday:
Apple unveiled a series of new products on Tuesday that showed how it continues to center its marketing pitch on consumer privacy, at the potential expense of other companies, while muscling into markets pioneered by much smaller competitors.
In an hourlong infomercial that was streamed from its Silicon Valley headquarters, Apple showed off a new high-end iPad and an iMac desktop computer based on new computer processors that Apple now makes itself. The company also said it was redesigning its podcast app, which competes with companies like Spotify, to enable creators to charge for their shows. And it revealed the AirTag, a $29 disc that attaches to key rings or wallets so they can be found if lost.
But after its product show, Apple made other news that could have far more significant, industrywide implications. The company said in a news release that it planned to release highly anticipated iPhone software next week with a privacy feature that worries digital-advertising companies, most notably Facebook…
On Tuesday, Apple’s AirTag immediately drew criticism from Tile, a company that for years has made similar devices for finding lost items. “We welcome competition, as long as it is fair competition,” said CJ Prober, Tile’s chief executive. “Unfortunately, given Apple’s well-documented history of using its platform advantage to unfairly limit competition for its products, we’re skeptical.”
Tile has accused Apple of anticompetitive practices since Apple began working on a competing product. Last year, Tile’s general counsel testified to Congress that, shortly after reports that Apple was working on similar gadgets surfaced, Apple pulled Tile’s devices from its stores and made it more difficult for them to work with iPhones.
Tile’s general counsel, along with executives from Apple, Google, Spotify and the dating company Match Group, is set to testify on Wednesday at a Senate hearing on Apple’s and Google’s market power and control over mobile apps.
My take: As a long-time Tile user who’s planning to order a couple of AirTag four-packs early Friday, I can see why CJ Prober’s nose might be out of joint.
“In an hourlong infomercial …”
New-York-Times-speak for:
“let us first declare our bias”?
Tile has 90% share. I’ve bought and used them; And found they’re not so great, especially with my poor hearing.
The big story is the U1 chip. It gives Apple a giant moat in another new market. And what else Apple might Apple do with that chip?
1. Dropped Tile from their stores. Yeah, that’s what companies with retail outlets do. I don’t see the problem.
2. Made it harder to work with Apple products. Need more details here.
Without some specific details for #2, this just comes across as more whining.
I think “made it harder to work with Apple products than Apple has” is the essence if the complaint….
So either Apple customers shouldn’t be allowed the advantage Apple gives them by building more tightly integrated priducts than is even remotely possible between Apple and third parties, or Apple is somehow supposed to tightly integrate their businesses together.
Wow.
For Tile a passerby needs to be a Tile user. The same goes for other brands that offer trackers, and there are many. The problem is there aren’t enough users of any one particular brand to make it really useful. Tile managed to grab market share early so at least in some populated areas their trackers were useful. The rest of the brands don’t really stand a chance to overcome the chicken and egg problem because they aren’t working together to create a unified tracker platform.
Enter Apple with Airtags. Instantly every iPhone on the planet becomes a location reporter through Apple’s famed privacy based system. Once again Apple’s ecosystem effortlessly adds the value. All other tracker platforms become essentially worthless.
However, long before Airtags were announced this week, Apple’s Find-my network was opened up to third parties. The third party has to be certified by Apple to make sure it operates correctly with the Find-my API. I believe Chipolo has already been selling a tracker tag that uses Apple’s Find-my network. Tile opted to not go that route.
I’m not sure what Apple could have done to make this more fair.