Hasta La Gadget!

RIM being a thriving and profitable company is hardly a new story — as confirmed by third quarter earnings of $628 million off the back of a record-breaking 10 million units sold — but the way it’s making its money seems to be changing. More than 80 percent of new BlackBerry subscribers in the quarter were private customers, marking a distinct shift — maybe not away from the corporate arena, but definitely toward embracing the consumer market. In an effort to further consolidate its global empire, RIM has also announced a partnership with China Telecom to go along with its earlier China Mobile deal. Oh, and there’s the small matter of the 75 millionth BlackBerry being sold, but we’re sure the cool cats up in BB HQ aren’t counting handsets, they’re probably too busy rolling around in piles of money.

BlackBerry shipments break record in Q3, RIM profits jump 59 percent originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 18 Dec 2009 09:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft just turned in its first quarter financial report card, and while the good vibes around Windows 7 launch haven’t yet begun to fade, the numbers here aren’t exactly cheery: revenue is down 14 percent from last year at $12.92b, operating income is down 25 percent at $4.48b, net income is down 18 percent at $3.57b, and earnings per share are down 17 percent at $0.40. Not wonderful, but it’s better than analysts were expecting, and the stock is actually way up on the news. Adding in the deferred revenue from early sales of Windows 7 makes things look a little better still, with only a four percent decline in revenue and an eight percent increase in earnings per share, and the Entertainment and Devices Division — home of the Xbox 360 and Zune HD — is also a bright spot, increasing income from $159m to $312m on essentially unchanged revenue. Of course, the big test will actually be next quarter, after Windows 7 has really had a chance to make an impact — we’ll see if all these warm fuzzies translate into cold hard cash.

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Microsoft first-quarter income down 18 percent, still beats expectations originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 11:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’d heard Apple was pushing the Financial Accounting Standards Board to change the rules by which Cupertino’s accountants reported iPhone and Apple TV revenue, and it looks like the effort was successful. The new rules allow Apple (and other companies like Palm) to report revenues on products that bundle hardware and software all at once, instead of parceling out the revenue over time using subscription accounting to enable free software upgrades. For investors, that means Apple’s quarterly earnings reports will more accurately reflect the state of the company’s cash flow, but we’re more interested to find out if this means iPod touch OS updates will be free now, since the previous rationale for charging was that iPod revenue wasn’t recorded using subscription accounting. We’ve got a feeling Apple’s all too happy to take your $4.95, but we can hope, right?

[Via MacRumors]

Filed under: Cellphones, Misc. Gadgets

Standards board changes subscription accounting rules, Apple CPAs drunk with power originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 25 Sep 2009 16:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple’s pretty famous for using subscription accounting for the iPhone and Apple TV as a way to bend the rules and offer free software updates after purchase — basically, instead of putting all the money from the sale on the books at once, the company’s accountants spread the revenue out over two years, extending the “transaction” to cover upgrades. That’s great for iPhone owners, but it’s not so great for Apple or its investors, since the company’s stock price doesn’t always reflect the true amount of iPhone money coming in — in fact, Apple earnings reports now include a second, unofficial balance sheet that does away with subscription accounting to show off the real numbers. Yeah, it’s confusing, but it might finally be about to change, since the Financial Accounting Standards Board just tentatively approved new rules that could allow Apple to do away with subscription accounting and still deliver free updates. That means Apple’s quarterly earnings will now feature much larger official revenue and profit figures — last quarter’s official revenue was $8.34 billion, while the unofficial number was $9.74 billion — the lawyers and accountants will be happy, and we’ll still get free iPhone updates. Good deal all around — except for iPod touch owners, who will still have to pay $9.95 and not get a camera.

[Via Yahoo]

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Apple pushes to change subscription accounting rules originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Sep 2009 18:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft’s fiscal year 2009 just came to a close, and the new milestones for the company aren’t too boast worthy. Year-over-year, the company saw a 3.2 percent decline in sales, its first drop in the company’s history — guess that third quarter report was a pretty good indication of things to come. Net profit, too, fell 17 percent to $14.57 billion. Looking at just the fourth quarter, sales fell 17 percent to $13.1 billion, and profits saw a pretty massive 29 percent drop, to $3.05 billion. Attributing to the decline were legal charges and severance claims from laid off employees, a referral of revenue from the Windows 7 Upgrade program, and of course overall drop in PC and server sales across the industry. So far the stock market has acted as you’d expect, and shares have dropped a notable eight percent. Despite all this gloom, let’s not forget that the boys in Redmond are still pulling a profit — and hey, cheer up Steve, you’ve got one helluva bright light for fiscal 2010.

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops, Software

Microsoft sees first annual sales decline in its history for fiscal 2009 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 23 Jul 2009 18:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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