You make it sound like the rest of the market is on the verge of bankrupcy.
I'm sorry you read that into my comment. Although some of them are not doing well at all, and are losing money because of the down economy, I was speaking in the past tense of a litany of brands that chased a big market with thin margins.
When tough times happen, and they do happen, the company lacks enough margin fat to weather the storm. It's wiser in the long-term to develop or choose markets in which you have an advantage so that you have room to breathe when belt-tightening is required.
The planet is swamped with companies that are doing splendidly without the obscene profit margins that Apple are gorging on.
In truth the "world is swamped" with companies making far better profits in their chosen markets than Apple ever has. Most companies outside of the electronics industry shoot for 33% gross margins.
However, in the electronic communications hardware market only one company in the world is doing better with thinner margins (Nokia). In the desktop/laptop market, only four other companies outsells Apple, and some of them are not doing so well at all due to their thin margins.
I'll rephrase one of my earlier comments: Any company that is knee-deep in a market where they barely make a profit, is in danger, because they haven't the cash, management, and research resources to build a market on a higher margin ground.
Someone should write a book on Apple's peculiar kind of supergreed, the audacity of it is nothing short of spectacular, if vomit inducing.
If you feel some opinion you hold in your mind is "vomit inducing", you really need to get some therapy. You are self-generating emotions.
Apple's profits are only out of line within their competitive markets. They are not out of line in general manufacturing of durable goods.
Let me give you a simple example. I represent a company that markets ergonomic products. They do not actually manufacture the products, just as Apple does not manufacture their products. A plastic pencil drawer, exactly the same drawer other companies market the same way, has a list price of $128. The dealer that buys that drawer at their net price pays $51.20, however I know that through different channels that same drawer can be resold at a profit for $22. This means the factory that made it put it into the market channel for even less that $22 (and still made a profit). The manufacturer, probably has about $5 of materials and labor invested.
Any of the profits percents in my real-life example are in excess of any Apple enjoys and it's only because it's not part of the electronic consumer market. If you buy a sofa, or a tomato, you will pay more of a markup than what you find "vomit inducing" if it's a computer from Apple.
I'm fine with capitalism and I think premium products warrant a higher pricetag, but Apple doesn't MAKE premium products. They sell the same Chinese garbage as everyone else (and as you can see below, I bought a LOT of that garbage before I decided to stop feeding the scam machine). They are the Faux News Channel.
From the tone of your comments I think you have a problem and it's not with Apple. While Apple's hardware is made from "the same Chinese garbage as everyone else", you have to admit that is also true of Asian-made cars... both the luxury models and the economy models. They often come out of the same door.
What separates one from the other in price is in the perception of the buyer, and that is put there by marketing. There are different costs in the different models, but not enough difference to warrant the price difference to the end user. The whole distribution channel makes bigger margins with a luxury car because they know the market will pay the price.
With Apple, the perception in the buyer's mind is that they will get a superior user experience due to the software Apple adds to the "the same Chinese garbage as everyone else". If Apple can make that perception a reality, then they win the consumer's money...at the margin Apple determines is satisfying to all concerned.
