Just yesterday we commented that Apple invested US $ 390 million in Finisar, the company responsible for manufacturing a very important component of the iPhone X's TrueDepth (front) camera.
This investment left the Advanced Manufacturing Fund (Advanced Manufacturing Fund) created by Ma. Corning, famous manufacturers of glasses used in smartphones and mobile devices, was another that also received investment from Apple (more precisely, US $ 200 million). In total, the fund has $ 1 billion to invest in manufacturing and American soil, creating more jobs and training workers.
By making a bakery account, Apple would still have $ 410 million to invest in partners. But the company made it clear that it is not tied to that number and that, if it deems it necessary, it can invest even more.
Jeff Williams (Apple COO) at a company eventIn an interview for CBNC, Jeff Williams Apple's COO said that when the fund was created, the value was stipulated as an initial investment. But the truth is that they are not stuck on the number itself, thinking of a limit for it. If Apple understands that there is an opportunity somewhere in the United States to help companies that are creating advanced technologies essential for Ma as a result, creating jobs and further empowering these workers, it will do so.
In summary, Apple can easily break the $ 1 billion barrier in investments without any problem (not least because there is no shortage of money, there in Cupertino).
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About Apple's investment in Finisar, it is worth clarifying an important point. According to the Reuters, it is not an investment in the company, but a kind of advance payment for the receipt of the component manufactured by it (the VCSELs).
This means that, with the agreement, Apple not only guarantees the supply of a vital component to the iPhone X and its successors, but also makes it more difficult for other smartphone manufacturers to compete with it in this area since, currently, worldwide production of this very limited component.
As the components that Finisar supply are new and have a very limited offer, the agreement also helps Apple to block Samsung, Huawei and other competitors in the smartphone market premium, who are working to develop similar characteristics, analysts said.
For Gene Munster, from Loup Ventures, the investment will allow Apple to “get a better offer and better prices, making it harder for Android phones to compete”.
It is clear that an investment of US $ 390 million does not happen without a counterpart. And if we think that Face ID is now Ma's official biometric authentication system and that it reaches iPads and, who knows, in the future, Macs, Apple has more than to guarantee the supply of the component; otherwise, this plan will never happen in practice.
via 9to5Mac: 1, 2
