Some facinating data on research & development data at Apple, Google & Microsoft

Few business teachers and students would argue against the view that Apple is a very innovative as well as successful firm. Its record on new product development in the consumer electronics industry is probably second to none. So how much do you think Apple spends on research and development (measured as a percentage of revenues)? Do you think it is more, or less than competitors such as Microsoft, Google?

The answer is shown in this fascinating chart from BusinessInsider which illustrates the total annual R&D spend of a selection of major software and computer businesses, and also shows the relative R&S spend (as a percentage of revenue).

As you can see, Apple spends significantly less than the likes of Microsoft on R&D - yet seems to be much more successful? Why is that? What is it about the corporate culture at Apple that might allow it to get away with spending less? Does it have a better track record of developing winning products and services from its investment that its competitors?