The Power of Convergence

CHAPTER 2Convergence: Concept to Value

IN MAY 2010 APPLE did what many people thought was impossible just five years prior. It surpassed Microsoft for the title of the world’s most valuable company in terms of market capitalization. Through a combination of business execution and external stock market volatility, Apple’s total valuation hit $222 billion while Microsoft’s value shrank to $219 billion. Making matters worse is how fortunes have changed for these two companies over the past decade. When Bill Gates turned over the Microsoft CEO office in 2000 to longtime successor-in-waiting Steve Ballmer, Microsoft’s market value was nearly $560 billion. That same year, Apple was just beginning to execute on its future vision and its market value ...