Apple and Microsofts’ Unholy Union: Why “Frienemies” is a Terrible Strategy
I am a long time Apple computer user. I have no intention of switching to a PC. So when years ago Microsoft introduced Office for Apple it seemed like a match made in heaven. I got to use my computer platform of choice and have access to the most used and robust office tools reserved previously only for PCs. Awesome, right? I get to have my cake and eat it to! Seemed great in theory but there were some major flaws centered mainly around the mail program. For some bizarre reason, Microsoft released the Apple version with Entourage as their mail server rather than the business standard Outlook. This meant that a major piece of the Office solution for Mac users was out of sync with the rest of the world. Entourage was ok but had limitations when compared to its big brother Outlook.
Entire the iPhone (moment of silence please)! This is where the fun begins. On an Apple the iPhone will only sync with Apple’s calendar and address book. So if you are using (at the time) Entourage for those functions good luck getting all your information transferred from your laptop to your phone. Problems included it syncing multiple times (I would have 25 Christmases on my calendar), multiple duplicates, not syncing period, and losing contacts (at one point I lost everything). Most of the time it just didn’t sync period. A visit to the genius bar to try to solve these issues was consistently met with “That’s a Microsoft product, we can’t help you with that”. Thus began several years of frustration looking for solutions on line and elsewhere. Step by step tedious instructions sometimes worked but only until I made some kind of change or updated the system.
Enter Office 2011 for Mac with Outlook! At last, this will solve all of my problems. The powers that be have finally seen the light and have come to the rescue. No such luck! Outlook will NOT sync with the iPhone – Google it! Doesn’t work. So we have a major Office tool provided on an Apple platform whichis supposed to interact with dominant cell phone and they won’t play nice or even play at all?!
One of two things is going on. 1. Apple doesn’t want it to work so you are forced to wean yourself off of Office and switch to their solutions (address book, iCal, mail). I would gladly do this but Apple’s suite provides the most anemic, limited, featureless, unimproved over years, solution for these functions! 2. Microsoft doesn’t want it to work hoping Apple users will become frustrated and switch to PC where they are the dominant player. Either way, it doesn’t work and hasn’t for a while now. You cannot tell me that these two software engineering giants cannot easily engineer their “joint” offering to work!
When voicing my complaints at an Apple store recently the Apple employee referred to Apple and Microsoft’s relationship as being “frienemies”. Friends and enemies. They work together out of necessity but neither of them is happy about it. This is a horrible business solution no matter what the companies. In the meantime, Microsoft sells a premier product on a platform which doesn’t work. Class action lawsuit? Evidently something like that is the only way to get these “frienemies” to make their products work together. Googles online solutions are looking better everyday.
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I provide strategic consulting for businesses and organizations on change mastery, innovation, growth strategies, and culture development. I grow companies by helping them build more innovation, efficiency, and strategic and critical thinking into their business. I assess company cultures and develop a strategic plan to better align their culture with their desired results.
