The Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com) research group has published a report on "The Future of Apple." And the research group says that future looks very, very rosy.

Since the turn of the century Apple evolved from a secondary computer company into the most potent force transforming media. Research and Markets says it's the premier digital media innovator as evidenced by the iPod, iPhone and, most recently, the iPad. Basically each introduction defined a new product category or enable an incipient one to cross the chasm into mass market acceptance. More of the same is expected in the future, not only from products but also from transactional services, according to the research group.

Research and Markets adds that most any business affected by the future of media will be directly impacted by Apple's future innovations. Moreover, its existing product lines alone will carry the company past the US$100 billion revenue threshold in less than five years. Among the major conclusions by Research and Markets are:

° Merely from existing product lines, Apple's revenues will exceed $100 billion in five years.

° Apple will introduce as yet unannounced products to address huge latent market opportunities in the digital living room and media and transactional online services.

° The company's ecosystem strategy will bifurcate, but management will not license operating system software.

° Android will not marginalize Apple like Microsoft did in the last century. The rise of digital media is rotating the industry's successful business model back to the vertical from the horizontal.

° Apple is far more profitable than implied by conventional metrics. Moreover, it is likely to remain so.

° Content providers should cooperate with Apple because the company's innovations will transform media.

° CATV operators will eventually abandon video producers in favor of the more profitable ISP and telephony services.