Update: Apple does do MR – but they don't rely on it

Apple Insider has a report from Tuesday’s Apple vs Samsung court hearing in which senior vice president of worldwide marketing Phil Schiller took the stand to declare: “We don’t use any customer surveys, focus groups, or typical things of that nature. That plays no role in the creation of the products.”

What gives? It was only Monday that we covered the Wall Street Journal report on Apple’s iPhone Owner Study, while last year Apple Insider reported on the creation of an online survey panel to give regular feedback to the company. You’re probably thinking: “That sounds like research to me.”

And it is. Apple does do research: you know that, I know that (I once took part in an iTunes survey). But doing research isn’t the same as relying on it to create new products.