Study reveals Apple continues to gain share in music markets

“After recently completing its 12th bi-annual teen survey, research and investment firm PiperJaffray said Apple Computer continues to gain share in the digital music player and online music markets, despite the constant emergence of new competitors,” AppleInsider reports.

“The survey, which polled nearly 1,000 high school students, found that iPod market share grew to 79 percent from 77 percent over the past six months. ‘Of the students surveyed in the fall 2006 PJC teen survey, we found that 72 percent own an MP3 player and 79 percent specifically own an iPod,’ analyst Gene Munster wrote in a summary of the survey results,” AppleInsider reports.

AppleInsider reports, “According to the study, 45 percent of students expect to buy a new digital music player in the next 12 months, up from 41 percent who said they expected to buy a player in the 12 months after the firm’s spring 2006 survey. Of those expecting to buy an digital music player in the next 12 months, 76 percent indicated they would buy an iPod — a figure which was slightly down from the 88 percent who said they planned to buy an iPod in the spring. ‘While Apple may have lost some ground in this category, 76 percent is still significantly higher than the next highest at 8 percent (Sony),’ Munster wrote.”

AppleInsider reports, “Meanwhile, the study found that 79 percent of students are currently downloading their music online. However, most (72 percent in fall 2006, up from 65 percent in spring 2006) continue to use free (P2P) music sharing networks instead of paying for music legally. ‘But of those students who use legal online music services, 91 percent said they use iTunes, which is up significantly from our spring 2006 survey, in which 71 percent of legal music downloaders said they use iTunes,’ Munster explained. ‘We believe this is a result of the increasing variety of content on iTunes.'”

Munster maintains an “Outperform” rating on shares of Apple Computer with a price target of $99.

Full article with much more, including detailed survey results, here.

24 Comments

  1. ==
    “72 percent own an MP3 player and 79 percent specifically own an iPod”
    ==

    That’s totally correct. There are two sets of people in that sentence (one a subset).

    (1) 72% of the people surveyed own some kind of MP3 player and (2) of those people 79% of them specifically own an iPod.

    :shrug:

  2. readitagain:

    Yes, that’s what he meant, but its not properly written. Hence, he needs an editor.

    “”we found that 72 percent own an MP3 player, 79 percent of which specifically own an iPod”

    Fixed.

  3. q*bong is kinda slow too with his statement. Remember that these are only teenagers which I believe makes up only about 18% – 20% of the total US population. I think it is facinating that 562 divided by 720 equals 78.8888% of the group fortunate enough to be able to own a mp3 player choose Ipod. I wonder what the demographics for the other age groups turns out to be?

  4. “What is hysterical is that 3% responded they intend to buy a “Dell” MP3 player in the next 12 months.”

    Perhaps they are desperately trying to unload their Dell DJ and want to generate buzz. You can probably find tonnes of discounted Dell DJs on eBay.

  5. “Of those expecting to buy an digital music player in the next 12 months, 76 percent indicated they would buy an iPod — a figure which was slightly down from the 88 percent who said they planned to buy an iPod in the spring.”

    I bet those 12 percent are the ms fanboys who are waiting out for the zune/turds.

  6. What “new competitors” are Apple constantly facing? If anything, Apple is constantly killing their competitors – blood on the click wheel. That probably has more to do with any precentage growth in Apples market share position than what this guy claims. It’s still good, but his analysis doesn’t make sense.

    This sounds like a fluff piece to me. Designed to keep the stock price up.

  7. The note from ‘b’ has it right:
    – What was the sampling methodology?
    – What are the margins of error in the figures?
    – How was the survey conducted?
    – How are the questions phrased?
    – Where did these students live?

    Without answers to these questions, this survey is a bunch of meanlingless numbers that look nice. It’s like the current crop of “qualitative research” in education and ‘soft-sciences’: interview 4 or 5 subjects and generalize like anything from the results. Total lack of meaning.

  8. 76% planning to buy an iPod, down from 88% is not a ‘slight’ decrease. I think of a ‘slight’ decrease as like 5%. This is a 13.6% decrease in the students’ stated desire to buy an iPod. (And no don’t ask me to explain my math, figure it out for yourself.)

    That’s a significant slip in the ‘desire’ quotient: i.e. ‘cool’.

    I am pro-iPod and pro-Apple and this worries me.

  9. “76 percent indicated they would buy an iPod — a figure which was slightly down from the 88 percent”

    Slight decrease? if that translates into a 12% drop in market share for Apple, I wouldn’t call that “Slight”

  10. It seems as if 1000 teens is a VERY small number to conduct any study relevant to billions statistically. Also, the general music loving populace is not strategem in the just teens market anymore. Real indie musicians sell to real fans without the media hype and BS and fans like the attention. That is sort of where the indies are stumping the major labels I think, and the not so authentic indies (major acts pretending to be indie) is trying to target teens who like the survey says, gets free music! What a pointless survey ” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”grin” style=”border:0;” />!

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