Reuters Gets Lazy And Publishes An Apple-Related Non-Story

Reuters has published an “exclusive” report that suggests demand for the 9.7-inch iPad is so bad that it has led one supplier to slow to a trickle production of Apple’s larger tablet. While this information may be correct, the conclusion Reuters draws from it may not be. The report, quoting two sources, says that Japan’s Sharp has “nearly halted production” on the iPad. In fact, production has “fallen to the minimal level to keep the line running this month.” From this, Reuters concludes that production has slowed “possibly as demand shifts” to the iPad mini. They state:

Sources were unable to say how much of the slowdown was due to seasonal changes in demand or consumers opting for the smaller iPad mini and were unable to characterize Apple's overall tablet sales.

In other words, they have no idea why iPad production has slowed in January. This is just the latest in a string of published stories recently that have been published that attempt to take Apple's financial temperature without hard data to back anything up. Hopefully, this practice will end very, very soon. On Wednesday, Jan. 23, in fact, Apple will be announcing real sales numbers and almost certainly use the time to discuss the company's future growth outlook. Until then, the crazy talk continues.

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