Progress on this over at Marketwatch…
IANAL (I am not a lawyer), and this one goes even further with being an issue in another country, so I’m not going to even bother to address the legalities regarding the transfer of the iPad trademark from Proview Technologies to Apple.
I’ve seen some asinine comments out there that all Apple needs to do is pay off the right officials. If Apple has to resort to bribing their way out of this, the media would be all over that, and AAPL’s stock would tank over 25% as a surefire FUD play. Look at the whole Foxconn issue where the media in general focused primarily only on Apple, and not the other tech firms. Furthermore, while Apple isn’t perfect, they’ve also tried to be far more transparent than their industry peers; something which the media also generally ignores, or how detractors tend to spin to advance their position on the matter. In otherwords, it’s the same old selective BS where Apple tends to be held to a different standard.
As far as the legal outcome is concerned, I believe the Chinese trade industry needs to tread carefully because their money grabbing action (in the guise of the potential fines which could be levied) could dictate the steps that Apple takes next in terms of continuing to do business in China. The economic impact of that would be damaging to China. Extricating themselves won’t be a quick and easy process though because the issue isn’t just on the manufacturing side; it’s also about the overall scale and flexibility of the entire component supply chain which are mostly in Asia.
This New York Times article explains in further detail why the U.S. has lost its manufacturing base in that regards, and why just automation via robotics isn’t a cure all. Apple used to have manufacturing facilities in both Colorado and Elk Grove in California. These factories were for the most part automated with robotics on both the production and distribution side (with around 1,500 overseeing the operations). Advances in factory automation (robotics) could offset some of manufacturing issues, but it does nothing to address the supply chain which feeds the manufacturers for these consumer electronics device. Simply put, that supply chain of components is also conveniently in Asia; the U.S. no longer has this ecosystem including a skilled workforce, or the mindset to live and work in this changed world (we’re talking about a lifestyle which is foreign to American’s). Jobs’ also hit a salient point when talking to the POTUS (Obama) about the lack of discussion (and more so, concrete action) with regards to solutions. This requires a sort of mindset which I believe is foreign to most of the lawmakers who run this country.
However, Jobs’ did say back then that it is possible that Apple could do its manufacturing again in the US if enough skilled engineers could be trained. That again is a larger issue which goes beyond one company. This goes back to our educational system and how that is structured. The government keeps making cuts to programs including scientific ones like NASA (which drives curiosity levels and has an impact of pushing children towards the scientific field) due to budget issues. These budget issues are a result of the inaction and wasteful spending by those elected to office. These were the same fools who threw an $800 billion lifeline to the corrupt financial industry (without having some form of accountability in place with regards to those funds); imagine if that sort of money funded actual initiatives which could have fueled economic growth rather than bailing out the egomaniac psychopaths on Wall Street who caused a multitude of problems with their various schemes to milk money out of everyones accounts.
Now I can see why Apple has been prudent with their cash balance. If push comes to shove, I personally would not have a problem with Apple using that cash to invest in not only bringing back manufacturing, but also using it to address some of the supply chain issues. The company would not be able to do it alone though as they need the support of the U.S. government in terms of being a part of the solution (making it attractive to do business in the U.S., allowing companies like Apple a tax holiday to repatriate cash held in foreign accounts, etc).
