iPhone maker Apple says wearable computers may be the next big thing

RANCHOS PALOS VERDES, California: Apple Inc Chief Executive Tim Cook
said on Wednesday he expects the iPhone and iPad maker would be
responsible for "several more gamechangers" and that wearable computers
could be the next big thing.
"It's an area where it's ripe for
exploration," Cook told an All Things Digital conference, an annual
gathering of technology and media executives in the California coastal
resort town of Rancho Palos Verdes.
"It's ripe for us all getting excited about. I think there will be tons of companies playing in this."
His
remarks come at a time when worries are mounting that the company which
created the smartphone and tablet markets is no longer at the top of
its game, with a slowdown in earnings growth hitting its share price.
Cook stopped short of saying if Apple was working on wearable products, but added that wearable computers had to be compelling and that Google Inc's
Glass -- a cross between a mobile computer and eyeglasses that can both
record video and surf the Internet -- is likely to have only limited
appeal.
"There's nothing that's going to convince a kid
who has never worn glasses or a band or a watch to wear one, or at
least I haven't seen it," he said. "So I think there's lots of things
to solve in this space."
Cook also said he has a "grand vision"
for television that goes beyond an existing $99 Apple TV streaming
device, but did not go into details. The company has maintained for
years that it harbours an interest in the TV arena.
When asked
if Apple has lost its cool, Cook said "absolutely not" and went on to
list statistics of device sales and usage. He, however, acknowledged
that he was frustrated with the sudden downturn in the firm's stock
price.
Since hitting a record close of $702.10 last September,
the world's largest technology company has shed 44 percent, losing more
than $280 billion of market value - or more than the entire market
capitalization of Google.
In
April, Apple reported its first quarterly profit decline in over a
decade and was also shunned by some well-known fund managers in the
first quarter, with John Griffin's Blue Ridge Capital selling off its
shares and Chase Coleman's Tiger Global Management sharply cutting
their position.
Cook has tried to reset heightened expectations
around a company and he has stressed that the company's position
remains strong and has opened up more of its treasure trove to
investors, doubling its cash return program to $100 billion by the end
of 2015.
Cook's appearance at the conference follows his grilling by a Senate panel last week about Apple's tax management strategy.
The
Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations has found that Apple in
2012 avoided paying $9 billion in U.S. taxes, using a strategy
involving three offshore units with no discernible tax home, or
"residence".
But Cook, in his first congressional testimony
since becoming Apple CEO in 2011, said his company is a major taxpayer,
handing over nearly $6 billion in cash to the U.S. government in 2012.
Referring to the testimony, Cook said he felt strongly about the conclusions the subcommittee arrived at.
"So
I thought it was very important to go tell our story and to view that
as an opportunity instead of a pain in the ass." - Reuters