What's the Next Verse in Apple's Song?

Iria · Sep 7, 2005, 01:25 AM

Under its digital music dominance, labels grow restless, and rival services and players are springing up. How can Jobs & Co. keep its lead?

If there has ever been a textbook example of how to turn a techie backwater into a mainstream market, it's Apple Computer's (AAPL ) runaway success in the digital music business. When Apple unveiled its first iPod in Oct. 2001, the market was a smattering of little-known devices used mostly for playing songs illegally downloaded off file-sharing Web sites. That's one reason why the music labels agreed to CEO Steve Jobs' plan to sell their music for just 99 cents a song.

Besides, with Apple's anemic 3% PC market share, few record execs figured Jobs would be able to win over anyone other than his loyal base of Mac buyers. It would be a safe little experiment, letting music execs learn about the market while Apple picked up most of the tab.

Some experiment. So far, Apple has sold more than 22 million iPods and more than 500 million songs via its iTunes Music Store. Last quarter, Apple reported that 38% of its overall $3.5 billion in sales came from its music business.
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Read More / Source: Business Week

Sep 7, 2005, 01:25 AM	#1
Iria DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 7,275 Rep Power: 89	What's the Next Verse in Apple's Song? Under its digital music dominance, labels grow restless, and rival services and players are springing up. How can Jobs & Co. keep its lead? If there has ever been a textbook example of how to turn a techie backwater into a mainstream market, it's Apple Computer's (AAPL ) runaway success in the digital music business. When Apple unveiled its first iPod in Oct. 2001, the market was a smattering of little-known devices used mostly for playing songs illegally downloaded off file-sharing Web sites. That's one reason why the music labels agreed to CEO Steve Jobs' plan to sell their music for just 99 cents a song. Besides, with Apple's anemic 3% PC market share, few record execs figured Jobs would be able to win over anyone other than his loyal base of Mac buyers. It would be a safe little experiment, letting music execs learn about the market while Apple picked up most of the tab. Some experiment. So far, Apple has sold more than 22 million iPods and more than 500 million songs via its iTunes Music Store. Last quarter, Apple reported that 38% of its overall $3.5 billion in sales came from its music business. __________ Read More / Source: Business Week