“In a bid to dethrone Apple Computer as the king of the online music market, Microsoft formally launched its own service Tuesday,” Rex Crum reports for CBS.MarketWatch. “‘iTunes has done a great job of helping to elevate the [digital music] market,’ said Christine Andrews, lead product manager of MSN. ‘We’re different because Apple is a closed system. If you want Apple, you have to use the iPod. A lot of people want choice and we offer that.’
“In its response, Apple said its products remain the favorite among consumers. ‘Ninety-two percent of customers buying hard-drive based music players are choosing iPods, and over 65 percent of customers buying any type of portable digital music player including flash-based players are choosing iPods,’ Apple said in a written statement. ‘This means that the iTunes music store, with its catalog of over 1 million songs, works with 65 percent of all MP3 players and 92 percent of all hard-drive based music players being sold today. There is a lot of customer choice happening today, it’s just that Microsoft doesn’t like the choices customers are making,'” Crum reports.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Steve Jobs just had to have written that statement; at least the last line. Beautiful. Just beautiful!
Ouch!!
…..who’s got the monopoly again…?
NO one could have been said better. Bravo Apple!
This war is about to get REALLY good
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�War�! I think if you knew what the word truly meant, you would not use it.
This is Corporate America at its best, and I really do hope someone comes out with a better player, and cheaper. At least it will keep Apple on their toes and we will all benefit from the competition.
You said it, Ed! This is a great time to be alive.
The whole podcasting revolution in itself is exciting, and that’s just an offshoot of the iPod revolution. When Apple unveiled the iPod three years ago (on my birthday!), I struggled with the name, but now I see it’s absolutely brilliant.
Way to go, Apple!
Poker, someone will come out with a better player than the current iPod…. Apple!
We’ve already seen a dozen other companies try to compete, and none of them come close to creating the elegance of the iPod/iTunes experience. It’s the simple things in life that matter.
About simplicity mattering… point in fact….
Safari is being rated right up there with all the cross-platform browsers, but it only runs on Macs. Safari doesn’t feature all the dongles and gadgets that other browsers have… but it’s making headlines because of its simple elegance and because it works really well.
You don’t need a swiss army knife when you just need to cut cheese.
Whose your daddy, MS?
Go Yankees!
I spelled it “whose” so that Red Sox fans would have SOMETHING to make them feel superior!
waaaahhh Im Bill Gates and Steve Jobs and Apple just handed me my lungs. I think ill go sulk and try to remove that spyware on my home computers.
M$ complaining about a monopoly. ‘Pot calling kettle Black’.
M$ uses WMA – not exactly an open standard. They just licence it; but then when you aren’t the market leader that’s what you have to do to gain market share. Again something M$ also knows all about.
“There is a lot of customer choice happening today, it’s just that Microsoft doesn’t like the choices customers are making”
Priceless.
How refreshing it is for Microsoft to be the underdog with a losey 2% global market share – LOL!
I bet Bill Gates is in hospital in shock with this one with Ballmer sucking his tiny cock!!!
Go for APPLE! – Now knock down the windows OS market share!! It should be easy as Microsoft is run by Accountants these days!!
tick, tick, tick… Microsoft You are the weakest link – goodbye (AND GOOD RIDANCE!)
I luv it!
The biggest competitor to the iPod is old versions of the iPod.
This is just another thing that Micro$in can lose money on and possibly compete, just like the Xbox.
With 50 billion in the bank, they eventually could take half the marketshare and never make a single penny. They and possibly Sony are the only ones who have a chance against Apple. I expect Apple, with their huge lead, to up a knotch and up the ante. Even though Apple is making only dimes on songs sold, they at least have a piece of hardware
from all this to make money on, whereas, again, Micro$in doesn’t. They always have an iron in the fire and with that cash reserve, always can if they wish to do so.
I love the last line also.
I’ve thought all along that they should be playing up the fact that people HAVE made their choice. The competition just didn’t like that everyone was chosing the iPod. Maybe Apple should play up the choice issue now.
Apple has opened up such a commanding lead now that I still say M$ has come to the game too late. If by this time next year Apple still has 60+% of the total market and 90+% of the HD based market, the digital music player race will be all over but the shouting. The consumers have spoken, it’s just that M$ hasn’t been listening.
Re: Micro$in & Sony.
If Sony have such a strong position why have they decided to remove the bar on their latest player being able to accept MP3. The truth is they as so far behind the power curve they have had to surrender their own DRM and or WMA to compete in the hardware department.
Grin
At the end of the day consumers are not idiots.
When yourre spending �299 on a digital jukebox you are gonna do your research and make an educated choice.
It just so happens everyone has chosen the ipod!!
So Microsoft saying that bullshit about choice is TOTAL CRAP!
There are over 50 digital jukeboxe’s out there – THERE IS PLENTY OF CHOICE!
Maybe Microsoft should look closer to home and think WHY people are chosing Apple’s ipod from their own free will…
People arn’t idiots and they know what’s best!!
The thing with Sony is that they launched their ‘ipod killer’ 3 years too late!
Apple’s 1st generation ipod is even better than Sony’s player!
Sony should have kept an eye on that tiny company from Cupetino! As it happens they didn’t – and in not doing that they gave Apple the whole digital music market!
LOL!