Apple’s pivot to services is really paying off as iPhone continues to dip
Apple is celebrating record Q3 profits, although digging into the numbers reveals some troubling trends as the company’s main money drivers continue to shift around.
The headline figure is that Apple managed to rake in a total of $53.8 billion in revenue, which is up from $53.3 billion this time a year ago. As growth goes, that’s pretty anaemic, but it’s still growth and allows the company to accurately call it a new record.
The company’s best seller remains the iPhone, which managed an impressive sounding $25.99 billion worth of revenue – but that’s still down year-on-year, raking in $29.47 billion a year ago.
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That means it’s up to other parts of Apple’s empire to plug the gap, and they ably stepped up to the mark. Macs accounted for $5.8 billion, and iPads $5.02 billion, while the wearables business – Apple Watch, AirPods, Beats and so on – grew by nearly $2 billion on this time last year.
But perhaps the long-term key is Services, which enjoyed a record quarter, hitting $11.46 billion, up from $10.17 billion. Services covers a broad range of things from Apple Music and the App Store to iCloud and Apple Care, and it’s pretty clear that Apple sees this as a big driver of revenue in future.
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And with three new subscription services coming this year – Apple TV+ for video, Apple Arcade for games and Apple News Plus for magazines and newspapers – the services column looks set to continue growing for the foreseeable future, whether or not iPhone sales continue to move backwards.
Are services the way ahead for Apple, or is the iPhone due a resurgence next year? Let us know what you think on Twitter: @TrustedReviews.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
