112 Macworld • October 2019FEATUREin the fourth quarter of 2009, three times the
number it sold during that quarter five years earlier.
And yet, for all the Mac’s success it had shrunk
to only 29 percent of Apple’s overall revenue.
This was an era driven by exploding iPhone
growth and still‑strong iPod sales. Apple sold
6.9 million iPhones during the period, and a
staggering 11 million iPods. Overall, the iPhone
represented 38 percent of Apple’s business,
and the iPod 13 percent.
Apple’s business was also much larger overall.
The fourth quarter of 2009 generated $11.5 billion
in revenue, more than four times the quarter five
years earlier. And as for profit? The profit had
started to flow in torrents. In the fourth quarter of
2009, Apple generated $2.2 billion in profit. The
money was finally rolling in.2014: iPods fade, iPads replace
By 2014, Apple more closely resembles the
company we see today. The iPhone dominates
revenue, with 53 percent of the overall total. The
iPod has faded away – its sales are so small (2.9
million) that Apple has hidden their revenue inside
the ‘other products’ category, which itself only
makes up 5 percent of the total pie. Replacing it
as a revenue engine is the iPad, which contributes
16 percent to the total. The Mac, now selling a
staggering 4.4 million units (170 percent more than
five years earlier), contributes 15 percent to the
total. Apple’s business exploded between 2004
and 2009, but it’s nothing compared to the inflation112 Macworld • October 2019FEATURE
in the fourth quarter of 2009, three times the
number it sold during that quarter five years earlier.
And yet, for all the Mac’s success it had shrunk
to only 29 percent of Apple’s overall revenue.
ThiswasaneradrivenbyexplodingiPhone
growthandstill‑strong iPod sales. Apple sold
6.9 million iPhones during the period, and a
staggering 11 million iPods. Overall, the iPhone
represented 38 percent of Apple’s business,
and the iPod 13 percent.
Apple’s business was also much larger overall.
The fourth quarter of 2009 generated $11.5 billion
in revenue, more than four times the quarter five
years earlier. And as for profit? The profit had
started to flow in torrents. In the fourth quarter of
2009, Apple generated $2.2 billion in profit. The
money was finally rolling in.2014: iPods fade, iPads replace
By 2014, Apple more closely resembles the
company we see today. The iPhone dominates
revenue, with 53 percent of the overall total. The
iPod has faded away – its sales are so small (2.9
million) that Apple has hidden their revenue inside
the ‘other products’ category, which itself only
makes up 5 percent of the total pie. Replacing it
as a revenue engine is the iPad, which contributes
16 percent to the total. The Mac, now selling a
staggering 4.4 million units (170 percent more than
five years earlier), contributes 15 percent to the
total. Apple’s business exploded between 2004
and 2009, but it’s nothing compared to the inflation