Apple seeing results from partnership with IBM
Apple valuation: $700 billion and counting (Part 2 of 14)
Apple and IBM release ten apps for enterprises
In July last year, Apple (AAPL) and IBM (IBM) forged a partnership to have IBM analyze data collected from Apple devices. With the data in hand, the partnership would then create 100 mobile apps specifically for enterprise customers.
In December, Apple and IBM announced delivery of the first ten apps for select industries:
banking
retail
insurance
financial services
telecommunications
government
airlines
For example, there’s an app for airlines named Plan Flight that helps pilots optimize the fuel requirements for flights. Another app, called Advise & Grow, is meant to help bankers get analytics-driven insights on clients’ banking needs.
Apple notes that more than a dozen enterprise clients have announced support for IBM MobileFirst for iOS solutions. These clients include big companies such as Sprint (S), Citigroup (C), and American Eagle Outfitters (AEO). Apple also says that 12 more apps will be released this quarter and will be appropriate for three additional industries:
healthcare
energy and utilities
industrial products
Apple hoping to penetrate enterprise market
Through this partnership, Apple hopes that its iPad and iPhone businesses will gain more traction, especially in the enterprise segment. Currently, only 20% of businesses have adopted the iPad, according to the International Data Corporation. In comparison, adoption of Mac notebooks in businesses is at 60%.
Apple believes its partnership with IBM will help it better penetrate the enterprise market. Building apps for enterprises and then using IBM’s big data and analytics capabilities to improve productivity is one way to provide better service to enterprises.
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