“Apple Computer and RadioShack have entered into a strategic partnership that will deliver Apple’s full line of iPods to the shelves of thousands of RadioShack electronics stores in time for this year’s holiday shopping season, AppleInsider has learned,” Kasper Jade reports for AppleInsider. “According to industry sources, RadioShack, the nation’s No. 1 electronics specialty retailer, has agreed to carry Apple’s full mix of iPod digital music players at several thousands locations beginning the fourth calendar quarter of the year.”
“The Fort Worth, Texas-based retailer operates nearly 7000 stores, which combine to fall within five minutes of where 94 percent of all Americans either live or work. Of the 7000 stores, approximately 5000 are company-owned stores with the remainder being dealer/franchise-operated locations,” Jade reports. “Through both its online and brick-and-mortar retail stores, RadioShack currently carries a very small assortment of iPods from HP. The retailer sells a silver 6GB mini, 1GB shuffle, and 60GB iPod. However, in the case of 60GB HP iPod, RadioShack continues to list the player at its old retail price of $449 (about $50 above most advertised prices).”
Jade reports, “According to sources, RadioShack has been unable to reduce the cost of the player to fall inline with Apple’s recent iPod price cuts because HP, due to its own iPod licensing agreement with Apple, cannot offer proper price protection on the players. As a result, sources say RadioShack jumped at the opportunity to work directly with Apple, knowing it would be offered an amicable price protection policy on the players moving forward.”
Jade reports, “If iPod sales at RadioShack boom — and they are expected to — sources say both companies will be open to a pilot program that will test sales of Apple’s Macintosh computer line in the electronics stores.”
Full article, with many more details, here.
MacDailyNews Take: We always thought that the Mac mini would be the perfect Mac for Radio Shack outlets. Very affordable, enticing to hobbyists, works with existsing keyboards, mice, and monitors, etc.
Lucy always pulls the ball away from Charlie Brown when he tries
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to kick it…maybe this time she’ll play nice.
CT ======]———– Funny Papers
I was talking wiith the owner of a Radio Shack around holiday time last year and he said he couldn’t keep the iPods on the shelf!
Why doesn’t Apple buy Radio Shack and turn them into mini Apple Stores?
IMO Radio Shack is dead. They’re doing good business with cell phones, but I don’t see a uture direction; they need outside help. Either way a strong Apple presence at RS would be good for both companies.
uture, future
Nice, as there are 3 Radio Shack locations within 15 minutes of my house, but I’d still rather have an Apple store that is closer than 5 hours away. I’d leave my current job (which I like very much) in a heartbeat just to work at an Apple store.
what the hell is CT ======]———–
uhh i think people are buying ipods.. what a huge announcement RS.. way to see the future..
BB has Mac minis? I was just there today and didn’t spot any in the computer area. Wasn’t looking for them, but if they were there they sure weren’t prominently displayed.
It’s important that if they carry Macs, whether Mac Minis or otherwise, they carry the softwarte as well. Why isn’t the Mini selling well at Best Buy? No f-in’ software on the shelves. Why would anyone buy a computer in a store where you can’t buy software to run on it?
Besides the odd cable or adaptor, does anyone under 65 actually buy electronics from Radio Shack? Their stuff is so junky and their staff are universally clueless arse-clowns (how do they do it? Every location I’ve ever visited in my life, coast to coast, has the worst customer service of any retail chain bar none. It’s actually pretty amazing.)
One upside – is it possible we’ll get a Tandy branded ipod? 😀
Radio Shack’s customers are either desperate or regulars. Either thier
desperately looking for an answer or they regularly stop by to see
what they have on thier shelves. They might even be franchises, I’m
not sure. I do know that they have lots of gadgets and material for
hobbyists ect.
If they had “commission orientated” salespeople and a healthy supply
of iPods…they would sell. <•>|<•>
CT ========]——– The sound of breaking circuits is music to my ears!
Sigh. Good service in electronic stores is rare all-around. Generally, there are two types of stores: those that don’t pay commission (like Best Buy), where the salespeople ignore you and could care less if you buy anything, and those that do, where the salespeople won’t leave you the @#$% alone and try to push you into buying whatever gives them the biggest bonus.
What the solution is, I don’t know. Maybe a commission system that rewards any sale regardless of price?
I shop at my local Radio Shack all the time. They carry alot of connectors and adaptors that no one else carries. Also, if you do any electronics work, they carry the best supply of transistors, etc.
Everytime I go into mine, there are at least 2 -3 other people there looking at TVs or Computers. That doesn’t paint the picture of a dead store.
On the other hand, Apple will have to figure out a way to train their employees about the Mac. The sales people there know exactly where everything is in their stores, but I’m sure they’ll know nothing about Macs and why people should be buying them.
“You want a cell phone to go with that Mac?”
This will not work out too well for Apple…..
They’d be better off getting into Circuit city or some other major chain like Target.
“…their staff are universally clueless arse-clowns”
You sir, are an arse.
Doppler wrote:
“One upside – is it possible we’ll get a Tandy branded ipod? :-D”
Maybe. Or an updated TRS-80 that runs Mac OS X.
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