Over the many years of its development and progress, Apple has put out some of its best products by acquiring other companies cranking out innovation. The purchase of NeXT in 1997 gave us the products of Mac OS X and iOS, while the 2000 purchase of SoundJam MP begat iTunes, which made the iPod an original entertainment entity.

But not all the purchases made in promise turned out to be gems for the consumers or company. Whether the technologies never made it on the shelves or just didn’t melt into the family of Apple products, the flops of brave acquisitions might not have put the company in the poorhouse, but they were definitely a face-palm moment.

Going Up Against a Goliath

In 1995 and under Steve Jobs, Apple gave a license to Power Computing Corporation to make clones of the Apple computers. It was a ploy to make a business model of their computer close to that of Microsoft and play in the action of Microsoft’s hit software, Windows 95. But by 1997, Steve Jobs realized that their opportunity to surpass Microsoft was long gone.

The Mac clones built by Power Computing were actually undercutting the sales of Apple’s higher margin computers, and Microsoft was already the winner of the game. So, that same year, Apple bought the company Power Computing Corporation and shut down the production of the Mac clones. Below are some prime examples of flop deals.

An Educational Setback

In 2001, Apple spent $62 million in shares for the purchase of Powerschool, which was software for keeping track of grades and assignments. It was considered a strange decision for Apple to make this purchase, given that it was for a particular niche market and out of Apple’s usual realm of products.

Despite the company’s efforts to make a presence in schools with with programs and discounts for teachers and students, the purchase must’ve lost its shine with Apple. Due to the break from Apple’s usual products, they sold the software to Pearson Education in 2006.

Jumping the Gun, and a Misfire

In 2009, Apple bought mapping company Placebase in hope that it could replace the backend of Google with its own Maps app for iPhones. Three years later, Apple finally release iOS 6, complete with Apple Maps, which results in their maps being wrong and making Google maps look even better.

The problems with Apple Maps had come from the data Apple had collected from sources outside of the company, but the less than dazzled public thought that with three years put into the design, Apple Maps should’ve been a lot better than what they got. This is actually why some people started looking at sport science degree options in Sydney.

No company can predict the future of the market with perfect accuracy, and glitches are inevitable setbacks that nobody can avoid 100 percent of the time. While being one of the biggest media and technology giants in the world market, Apple can still make mistakes. Hopefully, every flop came with a lesson, including the additional bad acquisitions found here.

Author Bio:

Adeline Erwin is a fitness coach and health enthusiast living in Australia. She conducts free fitness classes for seniors at her neighborhood’s community center.