In recent years the company Apple Lossless Audio CODEC (ALAC), it originated in a completely different way the Pro product line and the users to whom it is dedicated. I'm talking here about Mac Pro, MacBook Pro, Final Cut Pro, Aperture, etc. Steve Jobs at one point he wanted to give up the Pro series products and focus entirely on commercial products, but he was convinced that this was not a good idea. The rationale behind keeping these products on sale is based on the fact that they attract a certain group of people who influence the buying decision of others.
I hope you're sitting down for this, but Steve Jobs did in fact once consider that very option. This was back in the days when the iMac had established itself as a global bestseller. During one of the agency's regular meetings with Steve, he shared that he was considering killing the pro products. His rationale was as you might expect: consumer products have an unlimited upside, while pro products are aimed at a niche market that eats up major resources. Obviously, the pro market has value for Apple, even if its numbers are relatively small. Pros have opinion leaders, influencers and evangelists. Their love of Apple shows up in the purchase decisions of friends, family and colleagues.
The people who use the Pro series products are opinion leaders, they influence the purchase decisions of others and the launch of products that please them could bring Apple much better sales than simply eliminating them. This reasoning convinced Jobs to continue their manufacturing process, but things changed. Apple has started to make the products from the Pro series a bit more friendly to regular users, and this is most easily seen in Final Cut Pro, where Apple has simplified some procedures that in the past had to be learned and done manually.
Apple is changing the way it views Pro products, but this won't affect its consumer base, at least not now.
