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Apple's new Internet strategy offers little for the enterprise

Steve Jobs used his MacWorld keynote presentation in San Francisco last week to unveil Apple's latest Internet strategy, and although the new initiatives are a step in the right direction, there is little on the revamped site that will benefit non-Macintosh users or corporate IT professionals.

At the heart of Apple's Internet strategy is a major redesign of the company's Web site. The site now employs an Amazon.com-like file folder navigation bar on every page that allows quick and easy access to the Apple Store, online support, and QuickTime content, along with three new resources that are largely geared toward consumers. From a look-and feel standpoint, the new site is an improvement over the old one, which wasn't bad to begin with.

Beyond the box

As part of Apple's stated mission to move "beyond the box," Jobs introduced several Web-based services that are meant to position the Apple.com Web site as a portal, of sorts. Apple failed miserably with its eWorld online service debacle six years ago, so the company does not intend to offer the type of comprehensive resources one might find on Yahoo. Instead, the three new sections have a narrow focus: Web site reviews, online greeting cards, and Web-based services specific to the Macintosh platform.

The key addition to the site is the iTools service. Here, Macintosh users can get up to 20MB of storage on iDisk, Apple's Internet Server, or use tools to design and build a Web home page, or get an e-mail address at Apple's new Mac.com domain, (Jobs has already snagged steve@mac.com.).

Another new tool is KidSafe, software designed to block offensive Web sites from the eyes of children. Although the tool will undoubtedly be useful for many parents, one has to wonder why Apple has chosen to get into the Web site blocking business.

Everything within iTools is free, but the catch is you have to be running Mac OS 9 to be able to use the services. That operating system has been shipping for only a few months, so a limited number of people have access to the iTools features.

Even though Jobs kept referring to iTools as "revolutionary," with so many similar Web-based services already available these days, this is hardly the case. Those who access iTools with a Macintosh get the headline "iTools. At your service," yet Mac users need to have Netscape Navigator 4.0 or higher or Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 or higher installed in order to access the page.

Even those Mac users who meet iTools stringent software requirements haven't had an easy time of it. Within the first few day of iTools' introduction, many users were having problems getting the service to work properly, as detailed in dozens of messages in MacCentral.com's online forum.

The Web abounds with free e-mail and free file storage so it's unlikely that users will switch platforms just so they can access these services, although some Mac users might be compelled to upgrade to Mac OS 9.

So Steve, where's Sherlock?

Jobs demonstrated the other two new components of Apple's site, iReview and iCards, and as good as they appeared onstage at MacWorld, they both provide little or no value to business professionals.

The iReview section is well-designed from a navigational and graphical standpoint, but the content is thin. There just aren't a whole lot of meaty Web site reviews included in this section, and although users have the opportunity to submit their own reviews, this concept is hardly unique. Some Web newbies might find iReview a good place to start on the Net, but otherwise, this feature not exactly earth-shattering.

Again, not breaking any new ground, Apple.com's iCards section allows users to create online greeting cards. In his MacWorld demo of iCards, Jobs kept having problems getting the service to work properly and admitted that there were still a few bugs to deal with. The question here is: Does iCards really deserve a prime spot on Apple's home page alongside the other Internet initiatives?

Although greeting cards and site reviews get top billing, missing from the new site is a prominent placement for Sherlock, Apple's Web-searching technology. Perhaps Apple could provide links to Web sites that are custom-designed to allow searching with Sherlock. Or could it be that Apple has chosen to de-emphasize Sherlock?

With Job's presentation of Apple's Internet strategy, it is pretty obvious that as far as the Web goes, the company is out to tackle the consumer market and is doing little to court corporate accounts. The good part of Apple's strategy is that the company is looking for ways to leverage its installed base to move beyond hardware and software and into Internet-based services.

The bad part is that by excluding non-Mac users from key services, Apple furthers the perception that Macintosh is a proprietary platform that should be ignored by Wintel users. This could be a mistake. After all, wasn't the Web supposed to foster open computing?

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