Apple 2011 Annual Report Download - page 4

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Consumer and Small and Mid-Sized Business
The Company believes a high-quality buying experience with knowledgeable salespersons who can convey the value of the Company’
s products
and services greatly enhances its ability to attract and retain customers. The Company sells many of its products and resells third-
party products
in most of its major markets directly to consumers and businesses through its retail and online stores. The Company has also invested in
programs to enhance reseller sales by placing high quality Apple fixtures, merchandising materials and other resources within selected third-
party reseller locations. Through the Apple Premium Reseller Program, certain third-
party resellers focus on the Apple platform by providing a
high level of product expertise, integration and support services.
The Company’s retail stores are typically located at high-
traffic locations in quality shopping malls and urban shopping districts. By operating its
own stores and locating them in desirable high-
traffic locations, the Company is better positioned to ensure a high quality customer buying
experience and attract new customers. The stores are designed to simplify and enhance the presentation and marketing of the Company’
s
products and related solutions. To that end, retail store configurations have evolved into various sizes to accommodate market-
specific demands.
The Company believes providing direct contact with its customers is an effective way to demonstrate the advantages of its products over those of
its competitors. The stores employ experienced and knowledgeable personnel who provide product advice, service and training. The stores offer
a wide selection of third-party hardware, software, and other accessories and peripherals that complement the Company’s products.
Education
Throughout its history, the Company has been committed to delivering solutions to help educators teach and students learn. The Company
believes effective integration of technology into classroom instruction can result in higher levels of student achievement and has designed a
range of products, services and programs to address the needs of education customers. The Company also supports mobile learning and real-
time
distribution and accessibility of education related materials through iTunes U™, a platform that allows students and teachers to share and
distribute educational media online. The Company sells its products to the education market through its direct sales force, select third-
party
resellers and its online and retail stores.
Enterprise and Government
The Company also sells its hardware and software products to enterprise and government customers in each of its geographic segments. The
Company’
s products are deployed in these markets because of their power, productivity, ease of use and the simplicity of seamless integration
into information technology environments. The Company’s products are compatible with thousands of third-
party business applications and
services, and its tools enable the development and secure deployment of custom applications as well as remote device administration.
Business Organization
The Company manages its business primarily on a geographic basis. Accordingly, the Company has determined that its reportable operating
segments, which are generally based on the nature and location of its customers, consist of the Americas, Europe, Japan, Asia-
Pacific and Retail.
The results of the Americas, Europe, Japan and Asia-
Pacific reportable segments do not include the results of the Retail segment. The Americas
segment includes both North and South America. The Europe segment includes European countries, as well as the Middle East and Africa. The
Asia-
Pacific segment includes Australia and Asian countries, other than Japan. The Retail segment operates Apple retail stores worldwide. Each
reportable operating segment provides similar hardware and software products and similar services. Further information regarding the
Company’s operating segments may be found in Part II, Item 7 of this Form 10-K under the subheading “Segment Operating Performance,”
and
in Part II, Item 8 of this Form 10-K in Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Note 8, “Segment Information and Geographic Data.”
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