This is a very important point. With iPhone and Android neck & neck in the marketplace there's a tremendous incentive for both companies to make the best products they can and to make their users happy. Let's not forget how stagnant desktop computing became in the years of the Microsoft monopoly.
With iPhone and Android neck & neck in the marketplace there's a tremendous incentive for both companies to make the best products they can and to make their users happy. Let's not forget how stagnant desktop computing became in the years of the Microsoft monopoly.
I agree that that monopolistic era was especially pernicious. It wasn't just that Microsoft controlled a huge share of the desktop market; it was that this made them a de facto gatekeeper with regard to technology before the Web. Also, there were a lot of startups that couldn't get fair acquisition prices because there was only one buyer. The only good thing that comes out of monopolies is R&D (e.g. Bell Labs)... but I'd rather see R&D propelled by employee demands for autonomy (when there's lots of competition for talent) than by executive largess within a monopoly. One of the most exciting things to come out of Microsoft's research department is F#, and that emerged after the monopoly era was over.
Apple and Google both make excellent products, with completely different approaches but an end result that's great for users. Competition is good for products and also good for employees within companies (competition for talent).
