PC:s eco-system fights back?

/in /by

Yesterday we got the report saying that Apple’s brand value is Number 1 followed by Google.

Apple’s brand value is estimated to $ 153.3 billion. It’s value has climbed 84 percent during the last years. I think that’s great and as being in love with Apple since 1989 I can fully understand why.

Today we got the news about Microsoft buying Skype. I can’t help but feeling a bit sad when I got that information. I guess the owner of Skype isn’t exactly sad when they receive $ 8.5 billions for their company, but I like Skype. I like it’s history with the Swedish entrepreneur Niklas Zennström and the dane Janus Friis, I like that they involved Estonian programmers Ahti Heinla, Priit Kasesalu and Jaan Tallinn and I like that they have been successful. I think their success have inspired a lot of other developers in Sweden, Denmark and Estonia. I like to use Skype. But, I don’t like Microsoft.

On one hand I feel sorry for Skype because Microsoft’s reputation as a partner is not the best when it comes to mobile partners – read the horrifying list on Asymco’s blog – it gives no good karma to bond with Microsoft, sorry Skype!

On the other hand, if everything goes well, measured by PC-scale, what will happen with Skype? Messy software in hundred alternate versions? 1 million bugs? Will they destroy the user interface? I don’t know, but if I was the creator of Skype I would worry. Though, $ 8.5 billions would probably make it easier to cope with that worry…

Now I got the news that Google is about to launch its music-streaming service which will work with with Amazon’s Cloud Drive and Apple’s anticipated iCloud service. Last week Spotify launched it’s iPhone/iPad-app. Hm?

What does all this mean? Well, from the PC-perspective the aim is obvious: to compete with Apple and challenge their success with iPhone both as a smartphone and a music player. That is logical, they have to do something if they want to survive. And exactly like they did with windows they try to copy Apple’s smart solutions.

I know what I will do however. I will probably stop using Skype. I have Facetime, iChat and Facebook so I will manage anyway. I have never used Spotify a lot, because I already got iTunes, so it’s not like I see a reason to use Google’s music-streaming service either.

Well, let’s see what will happen. Apple’s Brand Value is Number 1. There are several good reasons to why.