AFP, Washington :
Big Tech firms face a critical test in the coming days with quarterly updates that may offer clues on whether the world’s largest companies are seeing growth or retrenchment ahead. Apple reports its latest quarterly earnings on Tuesday, with Facebook and Microsoft on deck a day later, followed by Amazon on Thursday. Google parent Alphabet rounds out group with its update on February 4. The results come after a roller-coaster period with drops of more than 20 percent in the value or Apple and Amazon, which have lost their trillion-dollar status, and with Facebook and Google seeing increased pressure to deal with concerns on privacy and data protection.
Here are some of the challenges facing the major technology firms:
Apple, facing sluggish growth in the global smartphone market, has been pushing harder in services but still relies on the iPhone for the lion’s share of revenue and profit.
For the upcoming results, Apple will no longer detail the exact number of iPhones sold in the quarter, leaving analysts to guess the mix of devices based on revenues.
Apple delivered a stunning admission earlier this month that iPhone sales and overall revenues would be below most forecasts, citing economic weakness in China and trade frictions between Washington and Beijing. “The mobile market is reaching saturation, and so is the smartphone market,” says Benedict Evans of the investment firm Andreessen Horowitz, in a recent blog post.
Big Tech firms face a critical test in the coming days with quarterly updates that may offer clues on whether the world’s largest companies are seeing growth or retrenchment ahead. Apple reports its latest quarterly earnings on Tuesday, with Facebook and Microsoft on deck a day later, followed by Amazon on Thursday. Google parent Alphabet rounds out group with its update on February 4. The results come after a roller-coaster period with drops of more than 20 percent in the value or Apple and Amazon, which have lost their trillion-dollar status, and with Facebook and Google seeing increased pressure to deal with concerns on privacy and data protection.
Here are some of the challenges facing the major technology firms:
Apple, facing sluggish growth in the global smartphone market, has been pushing harder in services but still relies on the iPhone for the lion’s share of revenue and profit.
For the upcoming results, Apple will no longer detail the exact number of iPhones sold in the quarter, leaving analysts to guess the mix of devices based on revenues.
Apple delivered a stunning admission earlier this month that iPhone sales and overall revenues would be below most forecasts, citing economic weakness in China and trade frictions between Washington and Beijing. “The mobile market is reaching saturation, and so is the smartphone market,” says Benedict Evans of the investment firm Andreessen Horowitz, in a recent blog post.
