In 1976, Apple was founded using seed capital from the sales of Steve Jobs’ VW bus and Steve Wozniak’s HP calculator. Four years later, on December 12, 1980, Apple burst onto the most influential of all financial markets, the NASDAQ, at the same breathtaking rate that the company continued to hold throughout the early years of its existence. The issue price for a share was $2.75 (split adjusted); since then, the rate has increased more than sixtyfold. If you’ve been along for the ride since the beginning, you can sit back and relax, but you’ve certainly developed nerves of steel along the way.
Apple’s gold rush-type mood reached its climax with the development of the Apple Lisa (1983) and the Macintosh (1984), the first computers to focus on the person instead of the machine. The graphical user interface was revolutionary, but not completely new: Xerox had developed the technology for their own computers, but hadn’t actively pursued it. Apple secured the rights and developed the first commercial operating system.

We know that guy – would he still make the same claim today?

But as with many gold rush stories, Apple’s came to an end in the 1990s. The company was becoming technologically stagnant and a new, modern operating system wasn’t introduced until the 21st century when Mac OS X was launched.
Microsoft started taking off in the early 1980s. Though MS-DOS, Microsoft’s operating system, was technologically inferior, close collaboration with IBM (the current market leader of the day) proved to be strategically dead on. IBM’s open license policy made it possible for third-party manufacturers to produce PCs, causing prices to sink dramatically. For many customers, this then established the need for a set of IBM-similar standards. In 1990, Microsoft introduced the graphical user interface in Windows 3; although technologically inferior, it still proved successful. Apple then filed a lawsuit due to copyright infringement, but the lawsuit was dismissed in 1995 after several years of litigation.
When Windows 95 was released, Microsoft had a market share of more than 90 percent and nearly drove Apple to insolvency. Apple filed yet another lawsuit at a time when the company found itself in considerable financial distress and was therefore ready to reach a compromise. In the end, Microsoft purchased $150 million of the competitor’s nonvoting stock (with an additional payment of an undisclosed amount) and Apple abandoned the lawsuit. This was a smart move on Bill Gates’ part; a monopoly wouldn’t have been in Microsoft’s best interest, either.

(google.com/finance)
Microsoft and Dell were clearly the stars of the 20th century...

Shortly after Steve Jobs returned to Apple Inc. in 1997, Michael Dell, the founder of Dell Inc., was asked at a technology conference how Apple – which, at that point, could have been likened a patient on his death bed – could be saved. “What would I do?” Michael Dell asked the managers rhetorically. “I’d shut it down and give the money back to the shareholders.” In all honesty, the response wasn’t incredibly creative; it did, however, show consistency with the company’s conservative strategy. Dell’s strength isn’t necessarily their technology, but rather their cost leadership through ingenious logistics. The company had the brilliant idea to stop stockpiling computers and instead go to the customer directly. Unfortunately, this was done lethargically and without a hint of imagination.
Still, Michael Dell recognized the sign of the times. He told Fortune.com in 2005, “If Apple decides to open Mac OS to others, we would be happy to offer it to our customers.” Steve Ballmer, Microsoft’s new CEO, continues to laugh at Apple, or at least does so in public. They say, though, that attack is the best means of defense.

Well, Steve, according to recent figures, Internet use via iPhone (Safari mobile) has already surpassed Windows CE (market-share)

Ten years – an eternity in the technology world – have passed since Dell's legendary appearance. I will forgo a detailed summary of what’s gone on since then, but the following chart shows who’s currently this century’s leader. Still, Apple still has a way to go. Microsoft and Dell have multiplied their market capitalization since the initial public offering by 413 (IPO 1986) and 315 (IPO 1988)!

(google.com/finance)
Wall Street is always right – there’s never a dull moment!

You’ll be hearing more from me from now on. The entries will likely vary in length, but I tend to go by the motto: the spicier the better! Bear or bull? Neither – I simply hope this Leopard is a little bit more agile!

I look forward to receiving your input. Critical and honest dialogue always spurs the most productive discussions.

P.S.: As a closing remark, allow me to share with you the e-mail Steve Jobs sent to his employees on the day when Apple surpassed Dell in terms of market capitalization: “Team, it turned out that Michael Dell wasn’t perfect at predicting the future. Based on today’s stock market close, Apple is worth more than Dell. Stocks go up and down, and things may be different tomorrow, but I thought it was worth a moment of reflection today. Steve.” – What more can we say?

Next blog: Apple's quarterly figures - a different kind of comparison