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Comment by utopian3 | Hacker News Reader

Sometimes a "public reference" is part of an enterprise's contractual negotiation. They can then use this (Tim Cook's visit + quote) to garner future sales.

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Tim Cook is a very private person, and he puts a lot of work into maintaining his public persona. Every word that he says publicly is vetted and checked to make sure that it aligns with his and Apple’s position on whatever the relevant topics might be. I doubt that a small supplier in Japan would make them reconsider that policy.

What makes you think such a contractually agreed upon tweet wouldn't be "vetted and checked"?

I’m saying that Tim Cook doesn’t just tweet things because a small supplier tells him to. It’s because it’s something nice that fits in with what Apple would like to say on a certain topic.

Suppose the small supplier is supplying 'something nice that fits in with what Apple would like to say on a certain topic.'

Uhhhhh... no.

Having worked with Apple in Japan directly (not just engineering related work, but having worked with former Apple Japan execs), I can tell you that the relationships they hold with companies over there are valued internally. It's part of the culture, for better or for worse.

I can't state for certain whether it matters in the context of Cook's Tweet, but it wouldn't surprise me in the slightest either. Don't be so quick to cast it aside. ;P

Of course they are, I’m not saying they’re not. But that doesn’t mean Tim Cook doesn’t have a reason behind his tweets. (Note that I’m not saying this is a bad thing; it’s just that if they have anything to do with Apple they always align with something that the company would like to comment on, be it education or the environment or immigration policy.)

I see no reason a tweet like that couldn't be a mutually beneficial one. Seiko gets the shout-out and in exchange apple gets a better deal and also telegraphs a little tidbit that shows thought and quality that go into Apple products.

This doesn't conflict with what I said. A public reference is something he can approve, and sure, he can tweet his own words.

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