› A sum of money paid regularly (typically quarterly) by a company to its shareholders out of its profits (or reserves). › A payment divided among a number of people, e.g., members of a cooperative or creditors of an insolvent estate.

 In 1976 Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak found Apple Computer, Inc.  In 1980 Apple converted to a public ownership.  1982: Apple becomes the first personal computer company to reach 1 billion dollars.  1991: PowerBook line of notebook computers is released.

 1994: Power Macintosh line is released.  1997: Steve Jobs is named interim chief executive officer.  1998: The all-in-one iMac is released.  2000: Jobs, now firmly in command as CEO, oversees a leaner, more tightly focused Apple.

 Apple Computer, Inc. is largely responsible for the enormous growth of the personal computer industry in the 20th century.  Though battered by bad decision-making during the 1990s, Apple continues to show the same desirable characteristics in the 21st century that catapulted the company toward fame during the 1980s. The company designs, manufactures, and markets personal computers, software, and peripherals, concentrating on lower-cost, uniquely designed computers such as iMAC and Power Macintosh models.

 Headquarters: Cupertino, California.  Number of Employees: 60,400 employees  Main source of income: Technology, iPod, Macbook, iPhone, iPad, Mac Desktops etc.

Mac Family  MacBook  Macbook Pro  Mac Desktops  iMac  Mac Pro  Mac Mini

iPod Family :  iPod  iPod mini  iPod shuffle  iPod Nano  iPod Video  iPod Touch iPhone family: iPhone iPhone 4 iPhone 4S

 Price: $  Exchange: NASDAQ GS  Current Change: 4.29 ^ (0.70%)  Historical high: $  Historical low: $22.00  Dividend amount: $2.65 per share

1. Hardware monoculture. Unlike any other smart phone vendor, Apple creates both the hardware and software for the iPhone and iPad. That means everything just works, there are no concerns about fragmentation. 2. Business model monoculture. Apple's smart phone success has flourished amidst the dominant business model in the mobile phone world. Carriers pay full price upfront for phones at $600 or more a pop but sell them to customers for much less in return for lengthy service contracts at high monthly rates. That has made it very difficult for competitors to compete on price. 3. Brilliant, visionary leader. Without question, Steve Jobs is the greatest CEO working in tech-land today. His return to Apple in 1997 marked the beginning of the company's rise from near-bankruptcy to the overwhelming and dominating colossus we see today.

1. The cloud. Apple has been bragging about how the iPad 2 is a "post-PC" device, but you still need to plug it into a computer to activate and sync it. 2. Social. Apple has tried to do "social" a bit with Ping, its social network based around iTunes music, and GameCenter, its social gaming service. They aren't huge hits. 3. The living room. The new Apple TV just got a small upgrade, in the form of live video streaming for MLB and NBA games. But it's still the weakest of Apple's products, with a relatively limited selection of video.

 Very loyal customer base which has expanded beyond the Mac-heads of the 1990s with the iPod and the iPhone. The iPad has had a very successful launch. This seems to be leading to more sales of computers.  Has a well-deserved reputation for high-quality products that work smoothly.  Move into other computer or media product spaces that are not served well. Can continue to design the standard-setter for those spaces.  A new version of Apple TV could take advantage of today's more highly developed Web.

 Big ideas are easy to copy. Microsoft copied the graphical user interface, and even Linux has a version. The touchscreen interface is being used in other phones (e.g. Android). Apps are being developed for other smart phones and devices.  High-priced products. Apple priced itself out of the personal computer market, and that remains a problem. Other smartphones that look and behave similarly to the iPhone are less expensive.  Google is moving into Apple's smartphone space by giving away the operating system, and it has announced that it will also be moving into the TV space.

 I believe that I would buy Apple stock because it is a very popular and reliable business. It is a very expensive stock though because of its popularity, if I was rich though, I would most likely buy.

Works Cited  "Apple Computer, Inc." Funding Universe. Web. 03 Apr  "APPLE IPod Timeline " Timetoast. Web. 03 Apr  "Apple by the Numbers: Sales, Stores, Staff All Grew in 2011." PCWorld. Web. 18 Apr  "Apple Inc. - Overview." Apple Inc. Web. 18 Apr  "What Are the Apple Order Numbers for Every IPod, IPod Mini, IPod Nano, IPod Touch, and IPod EveryiPod.com." Mac Specs, Prices, Answers & EveryMac.com, Est Web. 18 Apr  /index.html  also-vulnerabilities/ weaknesses-opportunities-threats.aspx