A gleeful Steve Jobs has taken a poke at Dell founder Michael Dell in the wake of Apple’s recent record results and share price – which has finally seen Apple overtake Dell in terms of market capitalisation.
A gleeful Steve Jobs has taken a poke at Dell founder Michael Dell in the wake of Apple’s recent record results and share price – which has finally seen Apple overtake Dell in terms of market capitalisation.
Back in 1997, soon after Jobs returned to the company he founded – then facing slumping sales – Michael Dell publicly said the best thing Apple could do would be to shut down and give any remaining proceeds back to shareholders.
At the weekend, with Apple shares at a record $86+, its market cap was $72 billion; Dell’s declining share price saw that company’s market cap at
$71.97 billion. Wrote Jobs in a short e-mail to Apple employees: “Team, it turned out that Michael Dell wasn’t perfect at predicting the future. Based on today’s stock market close, Apple is worth more than Dell. Stocks go up and down, and things may be different tomorrow, but I thought it was worth a moment of reflection today. Steve.” Michael Dell did not return press calls for comment. But several sources noted he had softened his stance on Apple recently, saying he’d gladly license Mac OS X, if Jobs were to make it available. Don’t expect that anytime soon, Mike.
