Apple and Beats?


Am I way off for not liking Beats headphones? I thought they were ok if they were $30.00 but for $250.00? Another question is this a good fit for Apple? I am not a techno-geek, but does Beats offer anything than the headphones to Apple? Couldn't Apple have outsourced to someone like Harmon Kardon which I believe is a CA company and definitely is a company that knows Audio?? Thanks!
shubertmaniac
What would we do without the snark to help pass the time?

Love ya Judy.

All the best,
Nonoise
That's a good one Judy.

As for Apple, let's see....

They have an estimated $150 Billion in earnings they're keeping overseas to avoid paying taxes on.

Last year they applied for and got a $17 Billion debt shelf and just two months ago applied for but only got a $12 Billion debt shelf.
(they've got to pay the shareholders somehow)

They're doing massive buybacks of their own stock to inflate the price.

Those bonds, which cost a lot but have low yields (don't forget we've been in a zero lower bound for some years now) won't sell for three years to satisfy those debt shelves which have loaded up the company with, what?
$29 Billion worth of debt. (Somewhere, Mitt Romney is wishing he was in on this one).

Let's hope Apples new lineup (aside from the Beats deal) which will be announced soon, pays off in more sales. If not, who's to say what will happen in 2-3 years when that debt comes due? Cook, Dre and Iovine will be off the hook and the company will own that debt. Any deals to bring manufacturing back home, stateside, may be sidelined as a result.

If only they paid their taxes like the rest of us do, then I'd look up to them and not question their motives.

All the best,
Nonoise
Judy, Judy, Judy....

I never doubted the already established streaming end of the deal. That's for beginners, journalists, and children to dwell on.

As for the "investing" side of the equation, where have you been for the last couple of decades?

All the best,
Nonoise
Agree w Sfar. Cash flow, cash flow, cash flow. IIRC, the beats streaming service gives you access to what you "rent" only as long as you subscribe. If Beats music gets 10
million subscribers worldwide (not out of the question, I don't thing) @ $10/mo, that's real money ;-)
It doesn't have anything to do with the headphones, as much hype as there is about the Beats headphones, and regardles of whether they're worth anything like what they cost, they're a tiny market compared to Apple's other hardware business.

It's about the streaming technology and the subscriber base.

Revenue from buying and downloading music, the iTunes model, is steadily dropping compared to streaming subscription revenue and Apple is buying an entry into the streaming market, based on Beats' acquisition of MOG.com and the transformation of MOG into beatsmusic.com.
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It's a brilliant move on the part of AAPL.
Ignore nonoise, it's obvious he knows nothing about investing.
Add to that some options on stock and other forms of compensation and you'll see just a continuing trend in sell outs masquerading as far sighted leadership.

I couldn't resist.

All the best,
Nonoise
I sense a desperate (or tactical is there are some tax wright offs) move on Apples part. That, and an ignorant public who think Bose are great.

Add the fact that $2 Billion is the asking price for the Clippers and Bob's your uncle.

All the best,
Nonoise
The headphones are a natural upgrade for Apple audio players, but the deal isn't about the headphones. It's about Jimmy Iovine.