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OCTOBER 29, 2007
APPLE POLITICS iPhone, the Jury Loving to love—and loving to hate—the iPhone. Some topics are avoided in polite society: religion, Middle East politics...and that company founded by Steve Jobs. So I was reminded as the responses, some scathing, to my Oct. 8 BW Online column, Byte of the Apple, poured in. In "Why I Won't Buy an iPhone", I argued that Apple Inc.'s (AAPL ) resistance to outside developers' creating iPhone applications is a departure from Apple's openness to third-party software on its computers. It also undercuts its marketing message that the iPhone is really a computer you can use to make calls. (Since the column appeared, Apple has announced it will open the door to some developers.) Readers split 50-50 on my reasoning--and my boycott. Here's a sampling.—Arik Hesseldahl I should write an article on why I bought five iPhones. I don't know of any other phone that runs on Mac OS. My iPhone is great, and I love it. If my iPhone can't do it, then my MacBook Pro can. Stop whining. Screen name: Vermifax I purchased an iPhone, but didn't activate it and can't return it now [after 14 days]. I travel internationally and don't want to pay $1.49 a minute. I'm putting my unopened iPhone on eBay (EBAY ). Screen name: Doug I would never want any third party or virus-infested applications or files on my iPhone. Screen name: Ron Apple will eventually provide a software developer's kit for the iPhone. In the meantime, give it a chance to get its feet on the ground! Screen name: Steven A die-hard Apple user since 1986, I am so disgusted by Apple's actions regarding the iPhone that there is no way I will purchase one until it changes its policies. Screen name: Chris Rosebough The real problem is that bloggers can write all this trash faster than Apple can develop the iPhone software into a sophisticated mobile operating system. The iPhone delivers 90% of what people are looking for today. Screen name: Arn Not only will you be uncool [without an iPhone]. You'll be out of the loop and an instant antique. Ouch!! Screen name: Articcat I couldn't agree more with you. No iPhone for me until they open it up. I was given one for my birthday and had the person return it. A great gift, but no thank you. Screen name: Shelterpaw Apple not supporting its developers? That's hardly a surprise. It's one reason Microsoft is in the position it's in. Despite having operating systems that are significantly less innovative than Apple's, Microsoft has done an excellent job of supporting and encouraging a huge developer community. Wise up, Apple! How many times do you have to squander your lead with your insistence on a closed platform before you learn? Screen name: Brad Shucks! I love my iPhone and my Apple stock. This is only the first generation of design. It's akin to the Model A Ford. Screen name: Michael Bettler THAT SINKING FEELING Option ARMs and Reality If you make money on your house, great ("That sinking feeling," News & Insights, Oct. 15). If you "lose" money, consider it rent that you would have paid anyway. No one was forced to buy a house. With option ARMs and 100% loan-to-value borrowings, many of these "homeowners" were not even owners in the first place. This is no different from what happens when people have to move out of rental housing when they cannot pay the rent. Paul Dembry LOS GATOS, CALIF.   GM'S HEALTH PLAN Turnaround at the Negotiating Table "GM's (GM ) health plan could be contagious" (News & Insights, Oct. 8) notes that some voluntary employees' beneficiary associations (VEBAs) are already in trouble. There is a strange shift here: During normal union-company negotiations, the union argues that promised benefits are low-cost, and the company argues that they are high-cost. In VEBA negotiations, the company would argue that the benefits are easily managed, and the union should argue that they are not. It is easy to imagine that the company, familiar with the current costs and projections, might shift paradigms a bit faster. Richard Gasink TAMPA AUTO WORKERS BLINK Look More Closely Next Time I was very surprised to see that you would include a photo of an auto worker sporting a Nazi swastika on his left forearm ("The auto workers blink," The Business Week, Oct. 8). I assume this was an oversight, but you may want to scrutinize your pics a little more closely in the future. Chad DaGraca BURLINGTON, MASS. THE WELCH WAY "A Harder Climb" for Minorities For years, we (minorities in Corporate America) have held the assumption that we have to work twice as hard to get ahead or be recognized. ("Breaking through the bias," The WelchWay, Oct. 15). How sobering it is to have business leaders such as the Welches confirm what we've known all along: We have to be "prepared for a harder climb." How can one be expected to maintain that sense of humor that the Welches refer to when some will benefit based on familiarity as others have to prove their competence? James Ely MINNEAPOLIS GIFTS TO PHYSICIANS What Is Big Pharma Trying to Hide? "Will pharma finally have to fess up?" (Oct. 8) underscores the hypocrisy in the pharmaceutical industry's strong opposition to legislation introduced by Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) to require pharma companies to disclose gifts to physicians. The industry's argument that gift disclosure laws interfere with the education that sales reps provide to physicians is tenuous. The Grassley-Kohl legislation would simply require that these activities be disclosed so the public is aware of them. Industry efforts to oppose transparency leave questions about whether the industry has something to hide. A federal gift disclosure law would provide a clear answer. Robert Restuccia EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR THE PRESCRIPTION PROJECT BOSTON BEAR'S HOCUS POCUS Barclays Gives Its Side of the Story The authors of your magazine's recent Cover Story ("Bear Bets Wrong," Oct. 22) imply Barclays (BCS ) had some degree of control over the activities of the Enhanced fund. We did not. The article also implies we pulled the plug on the Enhanced fund. We did not. Peter Truell HEAD OF CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS BARCLAYS CAPITAL NEW YORK Your article could have ended after the first paragraph when it comes to anyone predicting what was going to happen to [Bear Stearns (BSC ) hedge-fund manager Ralph R.] Cioffi and his funds. "We don't believe what the markets are saying" is one of the most common and potentially devastating mistakes any market participant can make. History is filled with failures from those who refuse to listen to the market. The warning signs were present, and the market told you about them. Those who don't listen pay the price. John Boik ATLANTA Corrections & Clarfications In "Advocates who help you negotiate health care" (Personal Business, Oct. 22), Andrea Romisher's title was incorrect. She is vice-president for benefits and compensation at Kindred Healthcare.
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