Category: Technology Author : Duncan Riley Posted: July 10, 2009
Tags : Apple, fail, google
The above picture is pretty self explanatory. It shows Google CEO and Apple board member Eric Schmidt capturing those taking photos of him…with a Blackberry.
There’s some very reasonable arguments around why Schmidt has a conflict on interest sitting on both the Google and Apple boards, ramped up even more now by Google’s entry into the operating system game.
But using a Blackberry when the companies who pay you offer the iPhone and the gPhone respectively? That’s beyond the acceptable pale, and sends all the wrong messages to the share holders in both companies. Schmidt should have always quit at least one position (and the obvious one was Apple), but after this you’ve got to wonder whether his judgement is suitable for either Apple or Google.
(via The Next Web)
Jul 10, 2009
And neither the iPhone or the Gphone can do email as well or as securely as RIM. It's just a fact of life.
They'll get there, but to be honest I'd be a little concerned to see my CEO/Board Member rocking an iPhone even if I did work for Apple…The thing is an open book.
My CEO has an iPhone for playing around with the kids, and a Curve for when he wants to actually work. No hate on the iPhone, it's a fantastic consumer device.
Jul 10, 2009
As an member of the board on both Apple and Google would it not behoove him – and other board members – to try rival products for themselves? Sure Apple has an R&D department, presumably google does too, but at the same time how can the board members make sound decisions about how to go forward with something if they don't see what the competition is offering? Sounds like smart research every board member should be doing. All I'm getting from this photo is Schmidt using the blackberry to take a picture – that could be a one-time thing. So to me the blackberry is no issue IF it is used for researching the competition. IF he is using it as his primary phone, then yes there is an issue.
Now that Google has gone public with an OS for windows is there a possible conflict of interest? Sure, possibly, but unless they make a version of Chrome OS that runs on macs, Apple and Google are NOT in direct competition – this just puts google on the same playing field that Linux is on – as an alternate OS to Windows… and I'm sure any direct competition to Microsoft is in Apple's best interest. So no real issue here either.
Perhaps the author has a bias against Apple, Schmidt, or Google?
Jul 10, 2009
I shall unsubscribe.
Jul 10, 2009
apple is lucky to have him. he provides an obvious new point of view for the board, and is hopefully enough of an outsider to keep stockholder's interest's at the forefront. Also, i think you must use rival product for some time to see how they work and why they are better to compete.