“Eric Schmidt, the chief executive of Google, has joined the board of Apple, the dominant force in online music,” Rhys Blakely reports for The Times.
“The move comes as Apple prepares to fight off an assault on the music market by Microsoft and characterises the increasingly complex network of relationships between competitors that is coming to define Silicon Valley,” Blakely reports.
“While Google has surprised some analysts by resisting calls to sell music downloads, it has flagged an intention to compete in video – an area in which Apple’s online music store, iTunes, also operates,” Blakely reports.
“Now, Steve Jobs will be able to draw on Eric Schmidt’s demonstrably formidable foresight. Mr Jobs will also have a hotline into Google’s thinking – particularly useful, since Google, rather like Apple, is a hugely secretive company,” Blakely reports.
“However, signalling the prospect of greater co-operation between the two companies, Steve Jobs, the Apple CEO, said Mr Schmidt would play a key part in shaping the company’s future strategy,” Blakely reports.
“A deeper relationship with Mr Jobs, himself lauded as an industry visionary after the phenomenal success of the iPod, could mean a greater degree of interoperability between Apple and Google products, analysts said. Google, for example, has already developed a search tool that allows users to find songs and links them to sites including iTunes,” Blakely reports. “Further such tie-ups could form part of a grander strategy designed to curtail Microsoft’s expansion into new markets. Microsoft is set to launch Zune, an iPod rival, later this year.”
Full article here.
First a few pieces of business: “Mr. Jobs, himself lauded as an industry visionary after the phenomenal success of the iPod.” Yeah, and that little thing called Mac, Mr. Blakely. Oh, by the way, Zune is a brick. It’s also vapor. Let’s save the term “rival” for shipping products that have actually proven themselves capable of competing with iPod, not just cannibalizing market share from fellow also-rans, shall we? With Zune, Microsoft cannot win and Apple cannot lose. More on why we can confidently write that statement here.
Now, welcome aboard, Dr. Schmidt!
Related articles:
Google CEO Dr. Eric Schmidt joins Apple’s Board of Directors – August 29, 2006
Microsoft Zune is chunky brick made by Toshiba – August 25, 2006
now this is great news.. wow!
I am planning on launching a portable music player within the next year myself. The specs are as follows: play music (in some fashion), proclaim to be better than Apple’s iPod, have an extra feature which isn’t of much interest to the majority of people.
I will also be offering new software with it which is supposed to work, that being the only requirement I have. Actually working and working well would be a bonus not even worth hoping for.
My iPod rival has apple quaking in its boots since it has no track record and shows no signs of genuinely being any good or offering a viable alternative.
I have yet to settle on a stupid name for it.
Jobs’ health is in decline, despite what Apple claims. This is just the first step in creating a team to keep Apple moving forward once Jobs is no longer able to run the company.
Irrespective of Jobs’ health it makes sense to add talented people and plan for the future.
Now it is official; Apple is full of Schmidt.
Call me wrong but i have never seen so much praise heaped upon a board member. Might an heir be in the works?
Why is this good?
The CEO for Quickbooks is on the Apple Board, and QB on the mac sucks compared to the pc version.
Frank, my first thoughts exactly.
Whatever the true situation with Jobs health (and he looks a lot worse than 12 months ago) he won’t be around forever.
Big shake-up looming.
Eric Schmidt, Apple’s future CEO. Apple and Google to merge. Let the rumor mill start.
Okay….so when is Google going to buy Apple?
c’mon dude.
QB is a niche application. Google is a worldwide force
Point being, just because someone is on the board, it does not translate to new products for apple from the company they are from.
I just took a dump into a box, anyone want to buy it? It’s gonna crush the iPod.
Back on topic – I don’t think Jobs is looking ‘worse’ than he did 12 months ago, I just think he looks 12 months older than 12 months ago. Confused? So am I…
I really hope Google and Apple use their incredible talents to “crush” Micro$oft, and make Steve Ballmer eat his words.
MW: working. Google and Apple are WORKING together, unlike Micro$oft who like to ’embrace and extinguish’.
I’m appoplectic!
Where’s that chair? I need to throw something!
(Today’s magic word I hate! “Freedom” You want Fries with that? How does it make me more money?)
So Intel buys Apples Hardware half and Google buys Apples Software/OS half.
It was fun while it lasted.
Windows sucks and now my winblows friends will laugh at me when Apple gets cut up into pieces.
Google and Intel better take good care of the legacy.
huh?
Having Bill Campbell in the Apple board brought back 2 products that had been discontinuted but that are very critical to Apple. Quickbooks and Quicken. Despite their unfavorable comparisons to the windows versions mac users need these application and it is good to have him on the board because Intuit is in the top 5/10 largest consumer software companies.
I agree about the health issue … this sounds like Steve is paving the way for a successor.
Why did he not host all of the last keynote …. he seemed very tired and looked sad.
I’m very worried about Steve …
I think we will hear something very soon about his health …
He wants to leave Apple in good, powerful, innovative hands …
this is the dumbest thing i’ve ever heard, google knows it can not keep up its dominance the same way aol knew it could not keep up its dominance during the dot com craze and they merged with time warner, as a result they ruined time warner. now google is trying to ruin apple.
MXNT – How about naming your MP3 player “Motley Poo”?
Or maybe just mPoo for short?
I hope they now kick the Quickbooks dude off.
That app sucks – he couldn’t care less about the Apple environment.
Oh come on how can you compare AOL with Google? Like comparing chalk and cheese. Fact is Google is the prime player in the future of technology. Sure it won’t have it all its own way but its at both the heart and head of it where as its main potential competitor MS is like a wart on the big toe, it might spread and infect the system but only if it is allowed to by bead moves by others far more understanding. Yep IBM allowed MS to do it but that was back in the stoneage by comparison. Google and Apple can work very well to help prevent any such stupidity allowing that to occur. How close will be interesting, it may purely be advisory or it may lead to much closer ties. Longer term i think it will as both will benefit.
AOL on the other hand had no particular inherent advance to play off, their only advantage was to move early in what was pretty much just a service add on to the technology itself. pretty much like being the first car maker, sometimes it can be a disadvantage long term. It has tried to make for itself unique features but the scope is highly limited as compared to Google which is inherently at the creative end where AOL was and is at the supply end.
“The move comes as Apple prepares to fight off an assault on the music market by Microsoft…”
HAHAHAHAHAAAHHHAAAHHHAAAHHHAA
I just blew Diet Coke through my nose!!!!!!
Blakely should have opened the story with a two drink mimimum notice. Comedians can’t write this hysterical shit!!!!!
Boards of directors exist only to give each other raises. Jobs gives Gore a raise, Gore sitting on another board gives someone else a raise, that guy gives someone else who’s also on the Apple board a raise, then all the Apple board gets a raise to “match salaries.”
What the hell has Gord done for Apple? It’s a scam, a vicious circle that never ends. I hope their batteries explode.
Having Dr Schmidt on the Apple board should mean that Apple and Google can focus on competing with MS rather than wasting resources fighting each other.
MS is still very entrenched, but with Apple’s hardware/OS & consumer focus and Google’s web services it could provide a formidable alternative that is attractive to corporate goons while the Dell/MS entrenched partnership looses more and more steam daily.
If Apple licensed Google’s web services to run under X-Servers this could be the new hardware/software/services/content partnership to run our front-end and back-end in to the next three decades.