Apple is a marketing company. Like Coke.

Pundits have recently clued into Apple's amazing supply chain capabilities and logistical optimization. This helps $AAPL, obviously, and, as Big Blog has finally realized, allows Apple to do clever things such as buy up 80% of some critical component for a year's supply of, say, flash drives.

I think they're missing a larger story. 

Apple may be a secretive company but they reveal more about themselves, honestly, in their commercials and (rare) public statements, than the totality of the blog entries, say, that Google posts where they talk about "open" and "choice" and "for the users", which I've long told you is just bullshit, straight up.

For the amazing power of the Apple supply chain, and the leverage it provides the company, pundits continue to view Apple Inc. as old Apple Corp. A company that will be marginalized, ultimately, to a small sliver of the (smartphone, laptop, tablet) market in large part because of Apple's "insistence" upon "control" and their "demand" for margins.

I think not. I watch Apple ads and Apple tells me something completely different. Apple wants to be everywhere. Like Coke. Of course, they will not sacrifice quality. They understand that to achieve their goals and continue -- as Apple -- they need to achieve a certain margin rate, and maintain the brand. And, yes, more integrated products across more product lines, soon even to include a television, means Apple can potentially make more money from fewer customers, provided those customers buy up all Apple products.

Still, watch the ads. Apple is telling us something. They are telling us that their great products work -- everywhere, for everyone. 

Folks at Apple are smart. They don't incorporate a message such as: everywhere, for everyone, unintentionally. Apple is committed to selling products. They are committed to scale. And, no doubt, they believe that over the long-term, quality wins out. Those premium Apple laptops, for example, no longer seem so expensive, do they? The price point stayed about the same but Apple made them better, every year, with every iteration. While maintaining super-tight controls over costs and keeping margins high -- ensuring you get the best. 

Others faltered. That's why a shitty Dell or Toshiba laptop, with Office and Windows, may now set you back about 2/3 the cost of a loaded MacBook Pro. Back in the day, it was 1/2, tops. 

Apple is committed to scale. Get that into your head. Only, they are committed to achieving scale over a longer period that most big companies plan for, or can even comprehend. 

This is why Apple ads are like Coke ads. It's (essentially) the same product around the world. Everyone loves it. It's affordable. And no one -- still -- is able to provide a *superior* alternative. 

Apple for Everyone.