Apple contemplating buying Facebook?

**Antithesis** · 2010-10-21 07:13

Is Apple thinking of trying to buy Facebook?
On what Does Steve Jobs plan to spend Apple’s $51 billion in cash? Facebook? On yesterday’s earnings call, Apple’s CEO said, “We strongly believe that one or more very strategic opportunities may come along that we’re in unique opportunity to take advantage of because of our cash.” While pointing out that Jobs has a history of saying one thing and doing another, Peter Kafka can’t help but do a little speculating, and he wonders, “What do you think of Apple buying Facebook?”

Now that you mention Apple-Facebook: Brian Caulfield writes: “That would certainly qualify as a “strategic opportunity.” Just as Apple has struggled to compete with Google’s web services, Google has been trumped in social networking by Facebook. …Ostensibly that involves finding a way to integrate Apple’s Ping music discovery service with Facebook.”

But here’s a question: Michael Grothaus wonders: “Apple has the cash to buy Facebook outright (Facebook is valued at around US $25-35 billion), but will they? Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg seem to share a lot of traits (not to mention both having had movies made about them), but could two of the most powerful people in tech — with equally powerful egos — work together?”

http://freedomist.com/2010/10/20/is-...ook-tech-news/

The Case For Apple Buying Facebook

The article makes the case that Jobs has been hinting that he wants to actually spend some of the $51 billion Apple has been sitting on, and that Facebook is a likely candidate. Considering how thin the Ping social network is, and the integration issues the two companies have had, there are some good reasons for such a deal. And a heck of a lot of reasons why not.

http://apple.slashdot.org/story/10/1...uying-Facebook

**Hyan** · 2010-10-21 07:20

This changes everything. Again.

**Omnipotent** · 2010-10-21 07:27

Just what we fucking need, more retarded status updates on how good people are doing with Angry Birds and other various apps.

**izembo** · 2010-10-21 09:30

id drop facebook on a dime if this happened

**Chun Liroy** · 2010-10-21 10:16

APPLE INVENTED FACEBOOK.

**Shenrien** · 2010-10-21 13:14

they'll rename it to iFace

**Correction** · 2010-10-21 13:38

Where's May to cream about how revolutionary and visionary Apple's acquisitions are?

**Yuri-G** · 2010-10-21 14:00

Mark won't sell. he's sitting on that shit for life. might be able to work something out depending on how much power he maintains in the deal, though.

**Guyverarmor** · 2010-10-21 15:43

Originally Posted by Correction

Where's May to cream about how revolutionary and visionary Apple's acquisitions are?

I agree. I am amazed that May did not start this topic... probably too busy on Steve Job's nuts.

**The_OG_Nelta** · 2010-10-21 16:01

It's not cool enough, he won't do it.

**Max™** · 2010-10-21 16:32

Peter Kafka can’t help but do a little speculating, and he wonders, “What do you think of Apple buying Facebook?”

THE METAMORPHOSIS IS COMPLETE!

**volcanicweather** · 2010-10-21 16:34

Think about this - if Facebook dropped its app from the iPhone, hordes of people would go out and buy whatever Facebook supported phone they had out there to receive their status updates and interact with their friends. It's easy to find a new phone / mp3 player / camera / etc but good luck convincing all of your Facebook friends to leave Facebook and switch to a new social network just because you want to read their status updates on your iPhone. Facebook has all the power here and it's because of people like you and me, not because of how much they have in the bank.

**SephYuyX** · 2010-10-21 16:36

I will love when this social networking fad is over with.

**Azull** · 2010-10-21 16:46

It's apple... they will likely just create something simular to myspace, call it iSpace, charge $50 bucks a year as a subscription fee, and people will eat it up.

**wyrmtung** · 2010-10-21 16:52

I think it would be smart of him to sell (to anybody) sooner than later. Just a matter of time before some new website does to Facebook what Facebook did to Myspace.

**sephir** · 2010-10-21 17:08

There is no money in facebook - at least they havent found a way to make money on it yet. Unless Jobs has some brilliant idea on how to make money from Facebook, he won't buy it.

**Silenka** · 2010-10-21 17:18

Is Apple thinking of trying to buy Facebook?
On what Does Steve Jobs plan to spend Apple’s $51 billion in cash?

Feeding starving children? Cleaning up the garbage patch in the Pacific? Funding cancer research? Helping the world convert to green energy? Creating housing for the homeless?

Oh duh, of course, buying facebook! That was the obvious choice, I should have known.

**Cheerios** · 2010-10-21 17:18

Originally Posted by wyrmtung

I think it would be smart of him to sell (to anybody) sooner than later. Just a matter of time before some new website does to Facebook what Facebook did to Myspace.

Or what Digg did to Digg

**Priran** · 2010-10-21 18:00

have people started using facebook ironically yet

**Mayareira** · 2010-10-21 18:18

Jobs could definitely lead Facebook much better than that Zuckerberg guy now.

Oh and, this reminded me of how retarded and annoying Adobe is. Jobs was friggin' right.

Here is the deal, I need Acrobat Standard version for my work and I was willing to pay the full price until I realized that...

1. Mac doesn't have "standard" version (why, nobody knows) I said fuck it, I was willing to pay for Pro since I've got student discout. Then I realized that they are about to release the newest version, Adobe Acrobat X in a month.
2. Ok...so I guess I can go for the trial version. Ding ding, there is only a trial version for Windows and it has been PULLED OFF because suckers don't want their potential customers to fill the gap with Adobe 9 trial. There is a huge difference between 9 and X, and they expect you to pay double for them?
3. Normally, companies like Apple and Microsoft offer FREE upgrades for their OS and other office suites motnhs, months before. For leopard it was almost a year in advance and for MS Office, it was 6 months. But what does Adobe do? Pull off the trial, direct customers who "can't wait" to "purhcase acrobat 9" page. Then? Next month, when X comes out they are screwed hardcore. No free upgrade, nothing. Same with CS5, buy 5 now and you get shafted when 5.5 comes out.

So...yea, lolAdobe. If you don't have student discount, they expect you to pay $499 for Acrobat 9, then the upgrade fee when X comes out in case you need the software now. Pulling off the trial was really the lowest they could get.

http://img46.imageshack.us/img46/7254/stevek.jpg

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