Apple's Acquisition of Beats Could Be Delayed Because of Valuation, Roles, and More

[Rettun1]

Originally Posted by Quu
"I didn't think that video Dre made would help the negotiations. It came off very smug and I'm sure Tim Cook didn't like it one bit."

If anything I think Tim cook would benefit from this.

If they are still going to buy it, it'll probably be for less money because beats needs to sweeten the deal again. And Apple saw many people freak out when the $3.2 billion, or so, price was leaked. Now Tim can pay less and apple will likely benefit more.

But that is all if the deal still goes through

 

[bushman4]

If there's no announcement by 6/2 (WWDC ) then we know that this was all a stunt. Seems like majority of forum participants don't see Any value in buying Beats

 

[Benjamins]

If there's no announcement by 6/2 (WWDC ) then we know that this was all a stunt. Seems like majority of forum participants don't see Any value in buying Beats

There is no announcement at WWDC not because the deal never happened. It's because apple wants this to be a secret.. Sources close to the negotiation reveals that apple already bought beats electronics for 50 billion dollars. And they will never talk about the deal in public ever. It will be a surprise to Microsoft and Google when apple conquers the post-post-PC world with headphones.

Sources also claims that apple is in negotiation to buy HP's inkjet printer business for 75billion dollars. Cook was quoted as saying "printer is the future of computing, we are going to have all printers running beats os"

 

[furi0usbee]

So just apologize. You misspoke. Anything else is just self justification.

Apologize for what? For you thinking something I said needs to be apologized for? I stand by what I said.

 

[Northgrove]

Haha, that's what Apple get for making billion dollar deals with rappers.

 

[thresk]

Should I be astounded by the racist armchair experts on this thread?

 

[dabotsonline]

I don't think Apple can indict Tyrese Gibson for his video, nor do I think it was detrimental to an imminent takeover in any way.

- In the eyes of Apple, until a product, service or acquisition is announced, all reports are merely speculation. Officially, it doesn't exist.

- The media reports that Apple will be buying Beats Electronics for $3.2bn. The following day, a video is posted featuring Tyrese wearing a pair of Beats headphones and exclaiming that it's rare that one gets the chance to wear them whilst in the presence of the co-founder ("Mr Beats himself!"). The co-founder referred to, Dr Dre, then appears in shot.

- Tyrese then says "first billionaire in hip-hop" - NOT "first billionaire in hip-hop as a result of Beats being purchased", nor "first billionaire in hip-hop as a result of Beats being purchased by Apple." Beats is not mentioned beyond the initial introduction, and that reference was completely in context in itself, and Apple is not mentioned at all. If a journalist were to conduct an impromptu video with an Apple executive right now and show him or her the video, he or she would turn to the journalist and, as a regular, polite citizen, congratulate Dre for increasing his wealth as a result of the unspecified business deal. If the journalist were then to ask the executive whether the unspecified deal referred to an Apple takeover of Beats, he or she would deny that such a deal exists. Apple cannot chastise Dre for leaking any confidential details on the deal because nothing incriminating has been said in the video. You cannot punish someone for something which has only been tangentially hinted at with an arched eyebrow - you would be laughed out of court for even attempting it!

My personal opinion is that Apple leaked the initial news reports on the takeover because they were aware that Google were planning announcements for I/O in early June that could be so huge that they might overshadow their own announcements at WWDC later that month. The deal was still being negotiated and they were weeks away from an announcement, but had to leak the deal earlier than usual to avoid Google I/O leaks gaining momentum instead. They would need to find a way to add focus and excitement beyond regular rumours to their announcement in advance and they did this in the same manner that a reality TV show might concoct a fake 'showmance' between two cast members in advance of an episode in an attempt to boost ratings. Apple leaked the video and were aware that speculation would arise as a result that Dre had shot himself in the foot by leaking the news too early, and this double-bluff would help to tide over the extra time needed to finalise the agreement. This was a controlled leak with very specific timing: if the video hadn't been released and Apple only leaked the initial reports then the media would speculate for a couple of weeks over whether it was down to headphones or streaming or talent, and then it would die down. At that point, Google I/O would completely steal their thunder to such an extent that an announcement either just before or at WWDC would, contrary to Apple's love of surprise, actually seem muted in comparison. This way, a 'will they? won't they?' suspense is maintained throughout I/O and dulls the impact of any Google products or services announced there.

Finally, I agree that the party looked tame for a bunch of hip-hoppers. Mainstream continental European lager (I'm British so I need to make the distinction!) rather than champagne - really? And where were all the women gyrating in bikinis atop supercars?!

 

[Rogifan]

Should I be astounded by the racist armchair experts on this thread?

Were people being racist when they sounded off on Apple hiring John Browett?

 

[MH01]

You can do whatever you like; I'm not here to stop you.

Though your happy to make statements to start a flame war

Stay classy!

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Should I be astounded by the racist armchair experts on this thread?

Nope. People of all nationalities buy and wear Beats.

You can be astounded by the people who are trying to turn this into a race debate, pathetic I say ! I just see suckers falling for marketing hype.

 

[TallManNY]

Anybody with even a passing interest in Apple already knows about their attitude towards secrecy, and I can't imagine that everyone involved wasn't warned off talking about the deal until it was made official. This is likely to be a much larger issue than the boasting and salty language. The real question is whether Apple can extricate themselves from the deal without looking like it was something they really wanted to do in the first place.

Could it also be the immediate and near universal panning of the deal that came out? There is a large segment of the geeky population that believe that Beats is basically ripping off its customers with overpriced headphones. Though that seemed to subside after a bit.

 

[winston1236]

Beats is going to go the way of Monster cable, its nothing more than a fad.

 

[rols]

Nope. People of all nationalities buy and wear Beats.

Are they big outside North America? I had never heard of them before the rumour broke. Checking the online Apple store here they are listed but the cost is eye popping vs other brands and I certainly don't recall ever seeing a pair, although I'm looking harder now I know what they look like.

 

[Azzin]

Were people being racist when they sounded off on Apple hiring John Browett?

Those of us in the UK just knew he was ****.

We knew him from his Dixons days, pure abomination of a company and a shining example of how not to offer good customer service.

The colour of his skin was 100% irrelevant, we just knew he was the polar opposite of great service.

 

[Tech198]

could be ? lol


This is stretching the truth a lot..

You really think "oh , ya, Apple is out-raged, but we'll pretend everything is normal and continue as if nothing happened."

 

[scottwaugh]

It'll be interesting to see if these deal actually comes to pass and if not, whether it was ever real (to more than the desires of Beats owners) in the first place.

 

[Avi360]

It's about the brand/image, not sound quality.

Time will tell whether this deal is fake or not, but you can't deny that ''Beats By Dre'' is a well known brand here in the states. As an avid audio enthusiast and recording engineer, I'm of the opinion that these headphones aren't anything special (I'll admit I don't like them and have technical reason not to) but we have to understand the context in which these things were introduced-

Since the iPod, the majority of the younger generation of music consumers have seldom listened to a real pair of headphones, let alone a real pair of speakers in a quiet room.

It used to boggle my mind that someone would pay $300 for a pair of headphones that don't sound as good (IMO) as the $150 pro pair that have existed for the past 10+ years. I eventually realized that these pro headphone manufacturers (the ones who have tried and true experience in developing this stuff for the best sound) don't really market to consumers and that might be their biggest mistake.

So how do you sell regular people better quality sound? how do you sell regular people headphones in general? ...I'll tell you how. You mass-produce any type of headphones you'd like, as long as their reproducible audio range is larger than the standard iPod ear buds, give them some visual appeal, and most importantly associate them with an already recognizable brand.

I mean, *****, who wouldn't want to buy a pair of bumpin' headphones from Mr. Beats himself, Dr. Dre? Distribute these things in all of the standard, over-priced, consumer electronics outlets and POOF! These things are ''what's up!''

After a while, they become less about the sound and more about the visual appeal of how they look on your head while walking down the street. It becomes a fashion statement that screams:

''See these things on my head? Yeah, that's how serious I am about my music.''

Well good for you dude, but you forgot that it's actually about the music...

But it doesn't even matter..

'Beats By Dre' had a niche opportunity to sell something that regular people have forgotten about. They took it. They succeeded- can't argue that. Genius, really.

Now they've delved into streaming music services from that success- I easily see why Apple would interested in acquiring this brand...it's a no-brainer. Geez, how many crappy android phones have been sold with that 'Beats' logo on 'em? it's the brand that matters- it's that image. I'd want that for the added edge if I were in Apple's position, especially now that's its proven popular and successful.

 

[Tech198]

well.. the guy does have allot of money...

You think it could be just because Apple wants the money, and doesn't care about the deal ?

We've seen this with many companies.. They buy out/merge companies, then start stripping away features to the point its a brand new product.

 

[flat five]

'Beats By Dre' had a niche opportunity to sell something that regular people have forgotten about. They took it. They succeeded- can't argue that. Genius, really.

i imagine they could be even more successful selling watches in a similar way they've done headphones.
a watch has more potential to be a high dollar techfashion item than headphones.

 

[IJ Reilly]

Could it also be the immediate and near universal panning of the deal that came out? There is a large segment of the geeky population that believe that Beats is basically ripping off its customers with overpriced headphones. Though that seemed to subside after a bit.

Do you seriously believe that Apple cares who approves, or least of all, about the views of opinionated geeks?

 

[The Barron]

Whose Company?

Our company? So, um... who are you?

I'm a long time shareholder in AAPL, thus, that makes me a legal part owner.

 

[bushman4]

Apple has never made a controversial acquisition yet. And they may very well be watching to see the response of Shareholders , analysts , fanboys etc before they finalize this deal. If they finalize it.
Big price to pay for what??? Beats is a fad
My big question is ........ Is this story real or just s rumor that snowballed from newspapers to web to broadcasters.

 

[okayde]

Apples racist!!!

Fail irony.

Look at your OS X’s dictionary.app for racism.

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i imagine they could be even more successful selling watches in a similar way they've done headphones.
a watch has more potential to be a high dollar techfashion item than headphones.

To whom?

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Thank you for the kind words.

In the same respectful spirit, may I give you - and others on this thread - some data points for consideration? I don't think an aversion to "Ghetto culture" should be painted (ha!) in terms of pigment whatsoever.

"Ghetto culture" Datapoint: Henrik Harlaut, a Swede whiter than Donny Osmond:
Image

"Ghetto culture" Datapoint: Justin "Megadork" Beiber:
Image

"Ghetto culture" Datapoint: Eminem:
Image

"Black culture" Datapoint: Dr. Ben Carson:
Image

"Black culture" Datapoint: Allen West:
Image

"Black culture" Datapoint: Condoleezza Rice:
Image

Etc., etc. I try to make a distinction in wording based a choice of behaviors, not the pigment of ones' parents

PLUS …


Elvis Plesley, Rock and Roll, 50’s and 60’s British Rock, Hard Rock, Punk = Chuck Berry, American pop music Culture …

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Apple has never made a controversial acquisition yet. And they may very well be watching to see the response of Shareholders , analysts , fanboys etc before they finalize this deal. If they finalize it.
Big price to pay for what??? Beats is a fad
My big question is ........ Is this story real or just s rumor that snowballed from newspapers to web to broadcasters.

Bull, it is bull!
controversial?

 

[jhwalker]

Are they big outside North America? I had never heard of them before the rumour broke. Checking the online Apple store here they are listed but the cost is eye popping vs other brands and I certainly don't recall ever seeing a pair, although I'm looking harder now I know what they look like.

Certainly big in Asia - they're overwhelmingly the top brand you see in Philippines, India, Japan, etc.

Not to say they're the best or even the top seller, but they're the one you see advertised and displayed everywhere.

 

[mrhick01]

Haha, that's what Apple get for making billion dollar deals with rappers.

Disgusting.

Annoyed and offended.

 

[MH01]

Are they big outside North America? I had never heard of them before the rumour broke. Checking the online Apple store here they are listed but the cost is eye popping vs other brands and I certainly don't recall ever seeing a pair, although I'm looking harder now I know what they look like.

They are quite common in London.

Your more likely too see them in larger cities, as the price is damn high.