retroremakes
March 8th, 2010, 15:05
http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/4/2010/03/500x_decr_d.jpg (http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/4/2010/03/decr_d.jpg)The core of any long-standing technology company is research and development. Here's how Apple, Microsoft and Sony's last decade of spending stack up.
Note that the first graph shows research and development as a percentage of revenue (to scale the spending by company, since revenues differ so greatly). This next graphic can help you conceptualize the revenue and R&D gap:
http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/4/2010/03/500x_decaderev.jpg (http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/4/2010/03/decaderev.jpg)
A Few Interesting Notes:
• Now, Microsoft spends about 17% of their revenue on R&D. Sony spends about 8%. Apple spends less than 4%.
• If you were to break down the amount of R&D that goes purely to physical (non-software) products sold by Apple and Sony, Sony would spend about $11.5 million per product while Apple would spend about $78.5 million per product. (Of course, that's rolling the cost OS X and iPhone OS development into Macs and the iPhone, which could be seen as inflating their per product spending.)
• Microsoft just spends a lot of money in R&D, period—about $9 billion this year. In terms of percentage growth over the last decade, Apple's R&D has grown the most (nearly quadrupled) while Sony's has grown the least (not quite doubled).
In light of these bare numbers, is it any surprise that Sony is struggling the most (http://gizmodo.com/5475941/the-return-of-sony) to capture the hearts and minds of a public hungry for gadgets?
Sources:
Apple
Apple Public Relations (http://www.apple.com/pr/library)
Apple Investor Relations (http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=107357&p=irol-reports)
Apple Insider 2004 (http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/08/01/25/morgan_stanley_advises_investors_not_to_bet_agains t_apple.html)
Apple Insider 2005 (http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/08/11/05/apple_outlines_shift_in_strategy_rise_in_rd_spendi ng_more.html)
Apple Insider 2006 (http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/06/03/15/could_a_lack_of_rd_spending_threaten_apples_innova tive_run.html)
Apple Insider 2008 (http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/08/01/25/morgan_stanley_advises_investors_not_to_bet_agains t_apple.html)
Mac Observer (http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/Apple_Ranks_91st_in_U.S._RD_Spending_at_471M/)
Microsoft
Microsoft Investor Relations (http://www.microsoft.com/msft/earnings/history.mspx)
Sony
Sony Investor Relations (http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/IR/financial/ar/Archive.html)
Research by David Chaid
http://ads.pheedo.com/img.phdo?p=1 (http://ads.pheedo.com/click.phdo?p=1) http://a.rfihub.com/eus.gif?eui=2226 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?d=H0mrP-F8Qgo</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=fCC_TUnak8c:rQm8mTnTZbc:H0mrP-F8Qgo) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?d=yIl2AUoC8zA</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=fCC_TUnak8c:rQm8mTnTZbc:yIl2AUoC8zA) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?i=fCC_TUnak8c:rQm8mTnTZbc:D7DqB2pKExk</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=fCC_TUnak8c:rQm8mTnTZbc:D7DqB2pKExk) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?i=fCC_TUnak8c:rQm8mTnTZbc:V_sGLiPBpWU</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=fCC_TUnak8c:rQm8mTnTZbc:V_sGLiPBpWU)
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~4/fCC_TUnak8c
More... (http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/fCC_TUnak8c/research-and-development-apple-vs-microsoft-vs-sony)
Note that the first graph shows research and development as a percentage of revenue (to scale the spending by company, since revenues differ so greatly). This next graphic can help you conceptualize the revenue and R&D gap:
http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/4/2010/03/500x_decaderev.jpg (http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/4/2010/03/decaderev.jpg)
A Few Interesting Notes:
• Now, Microsoft spends about 17% of their revenue on R&D. Sony spends about 8%. Apple spends less than 4%.
• If you were to break down the amount of R&D that goes purely to physical (non-software) products sold by Apple and Sony, Sony would spend about $11.5 million per product while Apple would spend about $78.5 million per product. (Of course, that's rolling the cost OS X and iPhone OS development into Macs and the iPhone, which could be seen as inflating their per product spending.)
• Microsoft just spends a lot of money in R&D, period—about $9 billion this year. In terms of percentage growth over the last decade, Apple's R&D has grown the most (nearly quadrupled) while Sony's has grown the least (not quite doubled).
In light of these bare numbers, is it any surprise that Sony is struggling the most (http://gizmodo.com/5475941/the-return-of-sony) to capture the hearts and minds of a public hungry for gadgets?
Sources:
Apple
Apple Public Relations (http://www.apple.com/pr/library)
Apple Investor Relations (http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=107357&p=irol-reports)
Apple Insider 2004 (http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/08/01/25/morgan_stanley_advises_investors_not_to_bet_agains t_apple.html)
Apple Insider 2005 (http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/08/11/05/apple_outlines_shift_in_strategy_rise_in_rd_spendi ng_more.html)
Apple Insider 2006 (http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/06/03/15/could_a_lack_of_rd_spending_threaten_apples_innova tive_run.html)
Apple Insider 2008 (http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/08/01/25/morgan_stanley_advises_investors_not_to_bet_agains t_apple.html)
Mac Observer (http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/Apple_Ranks_91st_in_U.S._RD_Spending_at_471M/)
Microsoft
Microsoft Investor Relations (http://www.microsoft.com/msft/earnings/history.mspx)
Sony
Sony Investor Relations (http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/IR/financial/ar/Archive.html)
Research by David Chaid
http://ads.pheedo.com/img.phdo?p=1 (http://ads.pheedo.com/click.phdo?p=1) http://a.rfihub.com/eus.gif?eui=2226 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?d=H0mrP-F8Qgo</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=fCC_TUnak8c:rQm8mTnTZbc:H0mrP-F8Qgo) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?d=yIl2AUoC8zA</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=fCC_TUnak8c:rQm8mTnTZbc:yIl2AUoC8zA) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?i=fCC_TUnak8c:rQm8mTnTZbc:D7DqB2pKExk</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=fCC_TUnak8c:rQm8mTnTZbc:D7DqB2pKExk) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?i=fCC_TUnak8c:rQm8mTnTZbc:V_sGLiPBpWU</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=fCC_TUnak8c:rQm8mTnTZbc:V_sGLiPBpWU)
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~4/fCC_TUnak8c
More... (http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/fCC_TUnak8c/research-and-development-apple-vs-microsoft-vs-sony)