商業生態體系價值分配之探討：iPhone全球供應鏈之利潤池分析

Abstract

智慧型手機產業發展至今，已形成以 APPLE iOS 與 Google Android 兩大主流作業系統之生態系相互競爭的態勢。本研究以 iPhone 全球供應鏈作為分析主體，透過次級資料分析智慧型手機市場在品牌之間的利潤分配，以及自行設計iPhone供應鏈利潤池的預估方法，再從商業生態觀點比較APPLE iOS 與Google Android雙方在商業模式、平台策略與生態體系的差異，以解析iPhone 供應鏈的利潤分配成因、平衡性與結構特色。 本研究發現，APPLE 不僅相對於其他主要智慧型手機供應商，獲取了絕大部分的利潤，對於己身的供應夥伴們，APPLE 亦取得了價值鏈上絕大部分的利潤。儘管APPLE供應鏈的利潤分配極不平衡，但其生態體系仍維持持續的成長。究其原因，本研究認為，在 Google 採取 Android 開放授權的政策下，雖然硬體廠商因此得到切入市場的機會，但產品因此而同質化也使得硬體廠商無法持續獲利，不似Google 可以從其他來源獲利，因此，Google 與硬體廠商之間的利益顯然不一致 性。相對地，在 iOS 的專屬生態體系裡，APPLE 與硬體廠商利益趨於一致。此外，由於 APPLE 近乎獨佔高階市場，使得競爭者必須轉往價格敏感度高的中低階市場競爭，更難以脫離免費授權的 Android 的選擇。這使得 APPLE 供應商即使極度不對稱的價值分配結構下，仍自我選擇與 APPLE 合作。據此推論邏輯，本研究提出對於生態體系經營的策略思考。

In the smartphone industry, APPLE iOS and Google Android have become the two mainstream operation systems and they compete as business ecosystems. This research depicts the structure of profit pool of iPhone’s global hardware value chain through our estimation methodology and studies the emergence and competition of business ecosystems. To discuss the underlying causes and structure balance of a profit pool within the context of smartphone competition, we focus on APPLE’s and Google’s business models, platform strategies and ecosystems. Our results indicate that APPLE captures a large portion of total profit created, not only between the smartphone vendors, but also in its own value chain. Although value distribution is the key factor of robust development in ecosystem, APPLE still outpaces the industry peers under the extremely unequal distribution. The reason leads to such a conflicting situation is due to Android’s open and free license policy. Such a policy gives manufacturers opportunities to entering into the ecosystem, however, it also makes the value chain partners’ Android-based product commoditized as Google still can profit from services, not smartphone. Therefore, there exists interest inconsistency within the Android ecosystem. Different from the case of Android ecosystem, the interests are aligned between APPLE and its hardware suppliers as the ecosystem is a proprietary system. Additionally, as APPLE almost monopolizes the high-end smartphone segment, competitors are forced to capture opportunities in the medium & low-end segments, which have to rely upon free Android OS to support cost competitiveness. As such, even under an extremely unequal value appropriate structure, suppliers would still like to stay in the APPLE ecosystem. Based on the above-mentioned reasoning, this research proposes the different strategic thinking on business ecosystem management.