The Information's TITV
00:06:03 · Barton Crockett
[00:06:03] S1: Yeah. I mean, look, I mean, games are one of the most profitable, they're probably the biggest and most profitable element of the App Store. And, you know, the consumer is just not downloading. They're not monetizing like they were. You know, perhaps that's a reflection of, you know, just some challenges on the consumer, and, you know, perhaps they're spending, you know, a little bit more of their money and some other things like, you know, AI subscriptions. But, you know, but that's something that Apple's been calling out, And, you know, and that's an important part of the App Store, which is an important part of services. In terms of search, you know, we've seen, you know, Alphabet had a a slight disappointment in search revenue growth in the September quarter, decelerated a little bit. And, you know, and that's as people are using AI overviews, they're not getting as many of the five, 10 blue links that you used to get and not clicking on them like they used to. And that's a bit of a headwind for revenues. And, you know, it's not clear how quickly that turns around. I mean, I think that, you know, Google is very hopeful that they can monetize AI overviews better over time. But that's TBD because that's a very different form factor where you're not just clicking to purchase, but, you know, you've... You are kind of getting educated and maybe there's, you know, fewer things to click on, but higher intent when you go through. So it's a very different sale process. And, you know, there's more competition for that as well because people are using OpenAI and others. So, you know, there's
00:07:31 · Akash Pasricha, Barton Crockett
[00:07:31] S0: a So they they called us out last night? They called the... They they called us headwind out? [00:07:35] S1: They called out licensing. They said licensing, you know, had decelerated, and that's the Google search license fee. [00:07:42] S0: Got it. Got it. And I want to get back to Ternus here in a second, but on the gaming front, so is this a category headwind that gaming altogether is facing? You mentioned the state of the consumer. I'm thinking about Microsoft's Xbox business, for example. Are these two separate stories here or is it one and the same? [00:08:04] S1: Yeah. Xbox is your game console. Think you're talking about apps, right? Your gaming apps that you're downloading. [00:08:10] S0: Yeah. I just wondered if maybe people were gaming less here, if they were tied together or what's
00:08:10 · Akash Pasricha, Barton Crockett
[00:08:10] S0: Yeah. I just wondered if maybe people were gaming less here, if they were tied together or what's [00:08:16] S1: Yeah. I mean, apparently, they're... You know, on the on the iPhone, they're seeing pressure in the App Store from that category. And so, yeah, so that that's a headwind. I think that that is not clear a 100 in my mind what is behind that, but, you know, we do see a consumer that is stretched in many ways. I mean, they have new toys to play with in terms of AI, and they have a lot of pressures in terms of inflation. And, you know, and this is a highly discretionary, obviously, you know, clicking around on a stupid game on your iPhone, pretty discretionary. And people do that when they're looking to kill time, and they don't worry about spending a couple of bucks. But if you're more worried about a couple of bucks, and maybe you're spending more time on something else, that seems to be pressured. [00:08:59] S0: So Ternus made the decision last night to bring on the COO for part of the conference call, and he also took a fair share of the questions I saw as well with the CFO, Kevin Parekh. What did you make of that decision? [00:09:17] S1: Well, I think he's highlighting a talented executive who's been promoted into a more prominent position, And this is, you know, I think great. I mean, I think that they, you know, should highlight him. I think the answers were very helpful and, you know, and I applaud it. Think it's great thing to do.
00:09:17 · Barton Crockett, Akash Pasricha
[00:09:17] S1: Well, I think he's highlighting a talented executive who's been promoted into a more prominent position, And this is, you know, I think great. I mean, I think that they, you know, should highlight him. I think the answers were very helpful and, you know, and I applaud it. Think it's great thing to do. [00:09:37] S0: Did you... I'm just asking here, did you see it at all as a change in the way he runs the company? Or maybe you could make the argument too, perhaps, he was not as much in the details as perhaps the COO was in terms of how... In so far as how he answered the questions. Did you see that come across at all? [00:10:00] S1: Well, I mean, you know, certainly, you know, the chief operating op... You know, Apple has, you know, vast operational exposures and, you know, and Tim Cook kind of came up through that operational side and Ternus came up through the product side. So, you know, I think if that's the gist of your question, I think it makes sense. I mean, they're, you know, Ternus has his strengths and he's bringing up someone beside him who also, you know, has great strengths that are complimentary. So put them all on the call, and I think that's great. Why not?
00:10:00 · Barton Crockett, Akash Pasricha
[00:10:00] S1: Well, I mean, you know, certainly, you know, the chief operating op... You know, Apple has, you know, vast operational exposures and, you know, and Tim Cook kind of came up through that operational side and Ternus came up through the product side. So, you know, I think if that's the gist of your question, I think it makes sense. I mean, they're, you know, Ternus has his strengths and he's bringing up someone beside him who also, you know, has great strengths that are complimentary. So put them all on the call, and I think that's great. Why not? [00:10:32] S0: Right. And last question for you, Barton. So we had the story this week about Apple's robot ambitions, and this is another category that they are likely to try to expand in. What do you make of that? And also, where are we on sort of the AI headwinds that we talked about with Apple and Siri? It's not the first thing that people talk about anymore, although it was them being behind on AI. So have we weathered that storm, and does that tell us anything about how their robot ambitions might go?
00:11:07 · Barton Crockett
[00:11:07] S1: Well, look, you know, I think they're two separate things. I mean, I would say in terms of their AI execution, clearly, were dead in the water and now, you know, they're they're treading water, you know, and they're certainly not in the race, you know, their capabilities are not, you know, leading edge, but at least they have something that's credible. And, you know, they did that by, in part by working with Alphabet and in part by changing their team around and, you know, and that's helpful that they're making progress there. You know, I think the real question for Apple is what is the next big thing that really accelerates growth? And this is a stock you love to own when they're coming up with some disruptive new innovation. Obviously, did that with iPhone, they did that to a smaller degree, you know, with the watch and, you know, what could that next thing be? You know, maybe it's robots, you know, not based on the form factors we're seeing in Home View or anything related to that, but, you know, they have skills all around that. Maybe in, you know, coming years, they could come up with something that is exciting, and an Apple robot running around your home could be pretty cool. Maybe they do that in AR glasses, you know, where Meta's been showing some traction, you know, and maybe they they are able to innovate better in AI, and we're certainly seeing, you know, Meta innovate with their muse and, you know, and there is every reason to think that Apple could do that. I'm not sure they've shown the skill to do it, but, you know, if I was to bet on their disruptive innovation, it'd be more on the hardware side than on the AI kind of software front, but we're looking for something, and, you know, and one of those things maybe is it.