Apple and Hon Hai, truly equal partners


Another point I want to make about this report on iPod manufacturing, and the blog is the perfect place to do this, is that our relationship with Hon Hai Precision Industry and its Foxconn division is truly a partnership, in the full sense of the word, with lots of give and take, sharing of ideas and so forth. I know it’s been depicted as a kind of exploitation. But that is not what we’re about. Believe me, these folks are tough negotiators. And I thought if you could see some pictures of our top Apple managers interacting with their counterparts at Hon Hai you’d get a better sense of how our partnership works. So here are just some ordinary shots we’ve grabbed from our Apple-Hon Hai company newsletter. First one, above, is a photo of Charles Whitman, Apple’s PacRim director, at the signing of the extension of our agreement with the two founders of Hon Hai, Bill Hon (rear) and Luke Hai (front). Check out Mr. Hai and tell me if you think he looks unhappy to be doing business with Apple Computer. Right, I didn’t think so.