Tim Cook pushes back on Apple Watch sales estimate
Despite a damning analysis by the International Data Corporation (IDC), Tim Cook says the Apple Watch is 鈥渄oing great.鈥�
On Monday, an IDC report claimed in the third quarter, while fitness trackers lead the wearables market. Apple鈥檚 chief executive conveyed a different narrative to Reuters, however, writing that the company鈥檚 smartwatch sales growth was actually 鈥�,鈥� but declining to share actual sales figures.
鈥淚n fact, during the first week of holiday shopping, our sell-through of Apple Watch was greater than any week in the product鈥檚 history,鈥� Cook wrote. 鈥淎nd as we expected, we鈥檙e on track for the best quarter ever for Apple Watch.鈥�
In the original report, IDC analysts identified an 鈥渁ging lineup and an unintuitive user interface鈥� as the cause of Apple鈥檚 apparent sales decline.
鈥淎s user tastes change, so will their needs,鈥� Ramon Llamas, research manager for IDC's wearables team, said in a statement. 鈥淭hat's the opportunity for smart wearables with multi-functionality and third-party applications, both for consumers and business users. To get there, we need to see more intuitive user interfaces, seamless user experiences, standalone connectivity, and applications that go beyond health and fitness and into personal and professional productivity.鈥�
But that analysis may hinge upon uncertain data. Apple , notes ComputerWorld tech columnist Jonny Evans, so IDC鈥檚 estimates may or may not be entirely accurate. It鈥檚 also unclear whether the research firm included sales estimates from non-tech department stores, where the Apple Watch is commonly sold.
Even if IDC鈥檚 sales estimates are correct, the overall narrative may not be. The report combines high-end smartwatches and low-end fitness trackers in the same 鈥渨earables鈥� sales category, which may skew overall market trends. Meanwhile, the third quarter was also a 鈥渂ridging period鈥� between the announcement of the Apple Watch Series 2 and the device鈥檚 actual release in September 鈥� in other words, consumers may have stopped buying the previous Apple Watch while waiting for the new model.
In a post for ComputerWorld, Mr. Evans :
The headline should be 鈥淎pple Watch sales slow while customers wait for a new version,鈥� not 鈥淎pple Watch sales fall 71 percent.鈥�
The first is what happened, the second is also what happened but divorces the events from the time in which they took place, and what they represent.
In this way, reports of plummeting sales represent a trickier type of fake news story. The IDC report and Cook鈥檚 statement are competing realities, both presented as fact even though neither can be easily debunked. And until some actual figures are released, it will likely stay that way.
