Agree. From my little understanding (and a little research), the issue is that memory manufacturing companies produce a certain amount of memory for the corporate (producer-services) and a certain amount for the consumer markets. Each are allocated by their projections of demand/need, sales vs. their resources and manufacturing capacities.
In the beginning for each year (but projected even probably a few years before). Memory manufacturing companies have already allocated their supplies to the consumer markets, but in Apple's case as other big companies who have contractual options in place, have already negotiated/contracted their supplies and needs years ago and/or a few years ago for an agreed purchasing price/per unit - this is why Apple already had a set price for their memory and did not need to raise prices earlier until now or soon.
What has happened is that the A.I. companies have bought out and used up their supplies too fast to meet the growing demand in the game to be the dominate or "it" for the A.I. boom. Any excess or surplus of memory chips etc. goes to that client(s) because the consumer markets are secondary on their priority list. The very same memory I bought last year has doubled or tripled in costs on Amazon... Supplier priorities are NOT the consumer markets. We get the "crumbs or what is the left-overs basically.."
So it is really not Apple or other type companies fault that sell in the consumer markets (but I wouldn't give Apple any pass for their decisions to raise prices (regardless) because they should have found a way to eat the costs without lowering standards as other industries do..Apple's memory costs were already high (including profit) before this shortage). Tim is a master at this, so if he actually says they are hurting, it is quite possibly and probably may be the case that they are...but ONLY in the sense that any changes or cuts to Apple would only hurt his profit margin, and he won't do it, maybe for the short term, but not toward Fall or 4th quarter. So instead, Tim nicely said we have to raise prices, but REALLY he is saying to us: "Tough..you have to take the hit, we won't.." Besides (as someone else said before on this tread), it would not look good for the next C.E.O. to raise prices as the first decision out the shoot or first at the helm.
So, as usual..we the consumer (peasant) take the hit...will have to try to convince my wife when I have to pay even more for my next Mac Studio...Don't look forward to
