"Apple doesn't understand that talking to businesses about IT-related things is not the same as doing it with consumers," said John Welch, IT director at the Zimmerman Agency, a digital marketing and PR firm. "With consumers, when they don't hear anything and all the sudden -- ta da! -- they get a new iPhone, that's great. For us IT guys, that's a nightmare. We hate that."

Steve Jobs said as much in response to an irate Xserve customer: "Hardly anyone was buying them."

People aren't buying them because you don't know how to serve business customers, and in pulling the plug this way you just sent a clear message that enterprises should avoid trying to go down this road with you in the future.

In killing Xserve, Apple spooks enterprise customers - Dec. 7, 2010