After the global success of the iPod, Steve Jobs wasn’t used to hearing the word “no.”

But when looking for the iPhone launch partner, that’s all he heard.

He had one last meeting with the only company who hadn't rejected him yet.

Here’s how he negotiated in that meeting 🧶👇

1) First, a bit of context:

Before the iPhone, the wireless phone industry could not have been more different than what it is today.

Wireless network providers (carriers) had pretty much all the control.
2) AT&T (then Cingular), Verizon, and others set the rules. They told phone makers how to spec the phones. They owned the distribution. They even controlled the phone’s software.

Phone manufacturers had little autonomy to do what they wanted.

Steve, obviously, had other plans.
3) He wouldn’t let anything compromise his vision of creating a device that combined an iPod, Phone, and Internet Communicator.

And, in classic Steve fashion, he wanted to be in control of it all.
4) Unwilling to compromise, Jobs knew that he needed to find a launch partner that would be willing to completely relinquish their control, in the hopes that his iPhone would be a massive success.

So he came up with his list of demands.
5) Steve mandated Apple would:

- own the full design, manufacturing, and marketing process
- sell the iPhone in its own stores
- control all the software
- receive a revenue split from each iPhone users phone bill
6) The partner also needed to do a few things, like create a new unlimited data plan (novel at the time) for iPhone users, and build visual voicemail.

Most importantly, they needed agree to all these terms at a time when the iPhone was just a concept and a couple of sketches.
7) In an industry where they weren’t used to be being told what to do, the carriers were less than excited.

So what was in it for them?

Being the exclusive partner of a potentially world-changing product, for 5 years.
8) So in 2005, Steve set off to find a partner who’d be agreeable to all his terms, for anything less would too compromising.

He first approached Verizon.
9) After several conversations with Verizon leaders trying to explain away their nervousness around this newly proposed business model, Steve was told “no.”

Verizon went on to say: "The iPhone product is something we are happy we aren't the first to market with.”
10) Steve was going to make them eat their words.

He met with other carrier CEO’s and each meeting ended similarly.

Eventually, Steve met with AT&T.
11) They had the same reservations. The upfront investment to restructure their network for unlimited data and visual voicemail would be huge - tens of millions at least.

But AT&T was his last shot at one of the nation’s top carriers, he had to make this work.
12) In a tense meeting, at his wits end trying to convince AT&T leadership, Steve took the bet himself.

“Let’s just give em $1 billion”

Steve wagered he’d cut AT&T a check today, and if the deal didn’t work out in their favor, they could keep all the money.
13) AT&T were stunned. They’d never seen such confidence.

Rather than accept the semi-serious/crazy proposal, they signed the original contract with Steve and became the exclusive launch partner of the iPhone for 5 years.
14) Apple and AT&T sold ~270M iPhones under their first contract.

270M new unlimited data plans for AT&T (and Apple got a $10/month cut from every phone bill)

The kicker? 40% of iPhone buyers transferred from a different carrier to AT&T, many of them Verizon.
15) Against the odds, Steve and AT&T launched one of the most successful products of all time and completely up-ended mobile phone industry.

Steve employed one of the oldest negotiating techniques: holding firm, with an unwavering belief in yourself.

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#ஆதித்தியஹ்ருதயம் ஸ்தோத்திரம்
இது சூரிய குலத்தில் உதித்த இராமபிரானுக்கு தமிழ் முனிவர் அகத்தியர் உபதேசித்ததாக வால்மீகி இராமாயணத்தில் வருகிறது. ஆதித்ய ஹ்ருதயத்தைத் தினமும் ஓதினால் பெரும் பயன் பெறலாம் என மகான்களும் ஞானிகளும் காலம் காலமாகக் கூறி வருகின்றனர். ராம-ராவண யுத்தத்தை


தேவர்களுடன் சேர்ந்து பார்க்க வந்திருந்த அகத்தியர், அப்போது போரினால் களைத்து, கவலையுடன் காணப்பட்ட ராமபிரானை அணுகி, மனிதர்களிலேயே சிறந்தவனான ராமா போரில் எந்த மந்திரத்தைப் பாராயணம் செய்தால் எல்லா பகைவர்களையும் வெல்ல முடியுமோ அந்த ரகசிய மந்திரத்தை, வேதத்தில் சொல்லப்பட்டுள்ளதை உனக்கு

நான் உபதேசிக்கிறேன், கேள் என்று கூறி உபதேசித்தார். முதல் இரு சுலோகங்கள் சூழ்நிலையை விவரிக்கின்றன. மூன்றாவது சுலோகம் அகத்தியர் இராமபிரானை விளித்துக் கூறுவதாக அமைந்திருக்கிறது. நான்காவது சுலோகம் முதல் முப்பதாம் சுலோகம் வரை ஆதித்ய ஹ்ருதயம் என்னும் நூல். முப்பத்தி ஒன்றாம் சுலோகம்

இந்தத் துதியால் மகிழ்ந்த சூரியன் இராமனை வாழ்த்துவதைக் கூறுவதாக அமைந்திருக்கிறது.
ஐந்தாவது ஸ்லோகம்:
ஸர்வ மங்கள் மாங்கல்யம் ஸர்வ பாப ப்ரநாசனம்
சிந்தா சோக ப்ரசமனம் ஆயுர் வர்த்தனம் உத்தமம்
பொருள்: இந்த அதித்ய ஹ்ருதயம் என்ற துதி மங்களங்களில் சிறந்தது, பாவங்களையும் கவலைகளையும்


குழப்பங்களையும் நீக்குவது, வாழ்நாளை நீட்டிப்பது, மிகவும் சிறந்தது. இதயத்தில் வசிக்கும் பகவானுடைய அனுக்ரகத்தை அளிப்பதாகும்.
முழு ஸ்லோக லிங்க் பொருளுடன் இங்கே உள்ளது
https://t.co/Q3qm1TfPmk
சூரியன் உலக இயக்கத்திற்கு மிக முக்கியமானவர். சூரிய சக்தியால்தான் ஜீவராசிகள், பயிர்கள்

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So the cryptocurrency industry has basically two products, one which is relatively benign and doesn't have product market fit, and one which is malignant and does. The industry has a weird superposition of understanding this fact and (strategically?) not understanding it.


The benign product is sovereign programmable money, which is historically a niche interest of folks with a relatively clustered set of beliefs about the state, the literary merit of Snow Crash, and the utility of gold to the modern economy.

This product has narrow appeal and, accordingly, is worth about as much as everything else on a 486 sitting in someone's basement is worth.

The other product is investment scams, which have approximately the best product market fit of anything produced by humans. In no age, in no country, in no city, at no level of sophistication do people consistently say "Actually I would prefer not to get money for nothing."

This product needs the exchanges like they need oxygen, because the value of it is directly tied to having payment rails to move real currency into the ecosystem and some jurisdictional and regulatory legerdemain to stay one step ahead of the banhammer.