Apple: Don't underestimate our enterprise business

Tim Cook claims Apple is making "great strides" in the commercial space

Apple's chief executive Tim Cook has urged the industry not to underestimate the massive enterprise business it has "quietly built" over the last few years, boasting strong growth in the segment.

On an earnings call with analysts last night, Cook (pictured) said Apple's enterprise business was worth a whopping $25bn (£16.34bn) in its FY15, which ended 26 September, up 40 per cent on the year before.

"The enterprise business is not to be underestimated," he said. "I'd doubt many people knew that we had $25bn enterprise business that we quietly built in not too many years. Our penetration is low, but we have significant actions going on to really deepen that.

"We are making great strides in the enterprise market, announcing a new strategic partnership with Cisco in September while furthering our progress with IBM in building our mobility partners programme."

Cook added that the enterprise represents a "major growth factor" for the future.

For the full year, net profit at Apple grew 35 per cent to $53.4bn on sales which over the same period rose 28 per cent to $234bn.

For the fourth quarter, net profits were up almost a third (31.3 per cent) year on year to $11.1bn on sales which jumped 22 per cent to $51.5bn.