Strong iPhone sales help Apple avoid economic slump

by Stevie Smith - Oct 22 2008, 13:20

Computer and gadgetry titan Apple Inc. has this week posted its latest quarterly revenue report, which has shown the Cupertino-based company to be clearly standing apart from the current economic downturn thanks to the performance of its iconic iPhone handset.

According to Steve Jobs, the equally iconic CEO of Apple, the company’s hugely popular touch-screen smartphone has grown to secure some 40 percent of market sales since its initial launch in July of 2007.

In terms of quarterly gain, Apple’s report returned revenue of $7.9 billion USD, which is a considerable 27 percent increase over the $6.2 billion USD logged during the same period in 2007.

While earnings rose from $904 million USD to $1.14 billion USD, Jobs was keen to point out to gathered analysts during a Tuesday conference call that quarterly sales and profit had actually risen far further.

Highlighting that “subscription” accounting forces Apple to spread iPhone sales impact over two years, Jobs said that revenue would otherwise have been some $11.6 billion USD alongside earnings of $2.4 billion USD.

Referring to the iPhone’s market progress as “stunning,” Apple also noted that it has now seen 13 million iPhone units snapped off shelves around the world, which is 3 million units above the 10 million sales Apple predicted for the smartphone’s first year of availability.

According to USA Today, Apple also used the conference call to plant an elbow firmly into the ribs of smartphone rival Research In Motion (RIM), which produces the popular BlackBerry device.

In outlining the quarterly growth of its iPhone, Apple boasted that it sold approximately 6.9 million units while RIM sold 6.1 million BlackBerry handsets.

Not just enjoying improved iPhone performance, Apple revealed strong sales connected to its line of computers and iPod music and media players, with the former shifting a quarterly record-setting 2.6 million units, while the latter posted its best non-holiday quarter with 11 million unit sales.

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