Research In Motion, now Blackberry, finally released the long anticipated BB10 platform and phones today. Blackberry fans celebrated. The company's CEO received accolades. The company redeemed itself. Angels rejoiced. Meanwhile, Wallstreet was unmoved. In fact, Research In Motion's stocks fell 8% after the release. Why? Because stockholders were expecting revolutionary, and instead they got a solid, well thought out product. But wait, isn't a solid, well thought out product a good thing? Obviously not on Wallstreet.
The same situation transpired last week when Apple released their earnings reports. They made more money than they did last year, had solid profits, and iPhones were selling like hot cakes. Wallstreet's response? A sell off, driving Apple stocks down by over 10%.
Last year, when Apple released the iPhone 5, pundits were unmoved. It seemed ordinary. It had a slightly bigger screen, better specs, and a more refined operating system. But it wasn't revolutionary. Wallstreet analysts responded by downgrading Apple stock, saying they just weren't innovating anymore. It still sold millions, because people liked it.
There is a common thread in all these scenarios. The problem isn't that companies aren't working their butts off to build great products. The problem isn't that these companies aren't making a tonne of money. The problem is that large investors and analysts increasingly expect earth shattering breakthroughs, and brand new products - every quarter. And even when they have amazing financial performance, companies are punished for not meeting Wallstreet expectations.
Half of these nitwits don't know the work and effort put into seemingly simple refinements to already great products. Someone needs to tell these analysts that revolutions don't happen everyday, not even in the Middle East.
