If there's one fundamental lesson to learn from Apple's (Nasdaq: AAPL) meteoric rise to the top, it's that Cupertino has proved that an integrated approach to computing has its charm.
Part of that integration has always involved content sales and management. While revenue derived from the iTunes Store, App Store, and iBookstore is just a fraction of total sales -- those stores contributed less than 6% of last year's sales, while the segment grew 28% year-over-year -- content control represents a huge part of the user experience.
Korean electronics giant Samsung has been getting a lot of flak lately for copying Apple, and its latest development shows yet another way Sammy may be trying to be like Cupertino. The conglomerate has recently hired veteran content executive David Eun as an executive vice president to help shape Samsung's global media strategy, which will leverage the company's growing arsenal of gadgets.
Eun earned his stripes by contributing to Google's (Nasdaq: GOOG) content and media strategies, and was most recently at AOL (NYSE: AOL), where he helped drive that company's content initiatives.
Lacking any details on what Samsung's strategy precisely entails, the presumption I'm forming is that Samsung hopes to create an integrated content platform to deliver content and media to its installed base of smartphones, tablets, TVs, and hopefully my washer and dryer. Sammy has been making smaller pushes into content, so bringing Eun on could signal a larger effort.
Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) also recently detailed its coming Windows Store, and its policies happen to resemble Apple's App Store in an uncanny fashion, albeit with some differences. Like Apple's, the Windows Store will be curated and the only method to get Windows 8 Metro apps, a fundamental shift from Mr. Softy's long-standing open approach. Once an app's sales break the $25,000 threshold, the developer will earn an 80% cut, up from the 70% cut before reaching that mark.
Amazon.com (Nasdaq: AMZN) is also building its own integrated Android-based content ecosystem, while Google recently also launched its own integrated Music Store.
The emerging trend is that many of these tech giants are now seeing the value in Apple's integrated content approach. The good news for Samsung is that I doubt Apple has patents on that.
The mobile revolution is huge -- as in, 13-digit huge. Getting content and apps on smartphones and tablets is just one facet of what's now forming and promises to be The Next Trillion Dollar Revolution. Don't forget to check out this 100% free report that's fresh off the press that details one stock that is set to be at the forefront of the revolution, a stock that's also positioned to reap the benefits of the explosive growth in China.
