ABSTRACT
The chapter highlights how Apple’s market dominance parallels a growing trend of corporate consolidation. Then, it places the wider mythology of independently created technological innovation associated with Silicon Valley in historical context, highlighting the role of government and a wider university complex. Next, it examines Apple’s claims to protect user privacy in the US in contrast to its track record in dealing with authoritarian regimes abroad, especially China. Then the chapter explores criticisms of how Apple manages its global supply chain, highlighting the problematic nature of its relationship with manufacturer Foxconn in China. It also highlights how China is now aggressively promoting its own high-technology industry leaders. We examine how market fundamentalist ideas legitimized global trade agreements during the 1990s that have come under increasing scrutiny, particularly how the US embrace of innovation and cutting-edge R&D could never support the levels of employment needed to offset the outsourcing of global supply chain manufacturing. The chapter concludes by examining Apple’s especially high levels of profitability due to its positioning as a luxury brand. This is juxtaposed by Apple’s now notorious global tax avoidance schemes along with the overall lower tax rates that big tech firms pay overall.
