Dogfight: How Apple And Google Went To War And Started A Revolution

By Fred Vogelstein

This is the story of how Apple and Google have reshaped our world and redefined the meaning of content and how it is distributed.

It begins with the iPhone, which has transformed the concept of what a smart phone can be. Now everyone wants one, or else a smart phone like it. Apple and Google are fighting to find a way to control the software that runs these phones so they can manage the content that runs on top of it. The battle has become vicious, although Google makes more than half the apps that run on Apple devices. There may be room for both, but the history of technology suggests that only one player will be dominant in the long term. Author Fred Vogelstein recounts that struggle and describes the impact it is having on the rest of the media and on technology.

Filled with in-depth interviews of key players and behind-the-scenes accounts of corporate strategy, Dogfight is a must-read for anyone interested in the biggest societal and technological shift since the Industrial Revolution.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Group
• Release date: Nov 12, 2013
• ISBN: 9780143190301

Fred Vogelstein

Fred Vogelstein is a contributing editor at Wired magazine, where he writes about the tech and media industries. He has been a staff writer for Fortune, The Wall Street Journal, and U.S. News & World Report. His work has also appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The Los Angeles Times, and The Washington Post. He is the author of Dogfight: How Apple and Google Went to War and Started a Revolution.

Reviews for Dogfight

[terrell_sanzone · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I received this book as a giveaway on Goodreads in exchange for an honest review.

I wasn't sure what to expect when I entered the drawing but am happy to say that I have found this book interesting, witty and quite informative. Not only are many questions answered but there were quite a few tidbits which I hadn't even thought to ask. For geeks like us this book gives great insight to how things are done in this highly competitive field. I enjoyed it so much I had my boyfriend read it and he is recounting things to me as he makes his way through the pages. Wonderful read!

[scottcholstad · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Rarely has a book incensed me the way this one has. First of all, let me announce that I am an iPhone lover and Android hater. No need to take pot shots at me. Just the facts. If you don't like it, read something else. Anyway, I thought this book was going to be a reasonably objective look into the war between Apple and Google on smart phones and tablets. Boy, was I wrong. The author lets us know right away where he stands. He starts by mocking Apple and Steve Jobs as they get set to introduce the iPhone to the public, making them look like total dunces and then pulling one over on the public's eyes with a brilliant demo. Then, poor Google. They loved the iPhone. They loved Apple. So imagine how hurt they were when Jobs and Apple got wind of their development of the Android and didn't appreciate it, of how badly their feelings were hurt. They even went for walks with Jobs assuring him that they weren't going to go ahead with Android -- only to do it. And this was somehow justified by the author. The author also went out of his way to explain that Apple has never sued Google, just the phone and tablet manufacturers. Okay. Nonetheless, Apple has the patents and it's winning. This is a hatchet job disguised as journalism and it pisses me off. It also pisses me off that I spent good money on this damn book thinking I was getting one thing when in fact I was getting something else. If I wanted to read something by a Google cheerleader, I would have bought something else. So too, if I had wanted to read of a Jobs smear job on Google, I would have bought that -- but I didn't. I wanted something balanced. This was not. So I didn't finish it. I made it to the seventh chapter before giving up. I'm trying to get my blood pressure down now. I can't believe what a crock this book is. What a Google lover this author is. How open software trumps closed systems every time, which isn't necessarily the case -- look at the facts. Of all of the books I've not recommended, this comes in at the top of my list. Most definitely not recommended!