“Toshiba Corp. plans to boost capital spending on semiconductors for the current business year by 13 percent, accelerating plans to expand output of flash memory chips, a senior company official said on Monday. Toshiba will increase chip investment to a record 203 billion yen ($1.92 billion) for the year to March 31, up from an originally planned 179 billion yen, Corporate Vice President Masashi Muromachi said on the sidelines of a news conference. Toshiba earlier announced that it would move forward the production schedule at a new flash memory plant owned jointly with U.S. partner SanDisk Corp., citing a rapidly growing market for flash memories and intensifying competition,” Kiyoshi Takenaka reports for Reuters.
“‘When it comes to the supply-demand balance we are currently unable to satisfy all customer demands,’ Muromachi said, noting in particular the launch of iPod Shuffle by Apple Computer Inc. in January. ‘Demand created by this new machine is so vast that our current capacity can in no way meet their needs,’ he said,” Takenaka reports.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Not bad for a “one hit wonder,” eh? A lot of people must not know that Napster’s CEO thinks they’re “stupid” for buying an iPod. Please note that every iPod sold, whether it be an iPod, iPod mini, or iPod shuffle means one more iTunes customer and almost certainly one less for the also-ran WMA music peddlers of the world. Napster et al. are hating life even more today than they were yesterday, if that’s possible. No word from the iRiver or “Creative” folks, yet. There must be no phone service out on the ledge.
And, yes, when Napster folds, we’ll the the first ones dancing the jig on their grave – accompanied by iTunes Music Store-purchased music playing on our Apple iPods.
Related MacDailyNews articles:
Napster CEO Gorog: ‘it’s stupid to buy an iPod’ – February 10, 2005
BusinessWeek: Rather than dismissing Apple products as fads, Dell should try starting a few – January 31, 2005
Dismissive Dell CEO not impressed with Apple Mac mini, calls iPod a ‘one-product wonder’ and a ‘fad’ – January 17, 2005
Creative CEO: Apple iPod shuffle ‘a big let-down, worse than the cheapest Chinese player’ – January 12, 2005
Yeehaw!
This is all lies, lies I tell you.
A position most companies can only dream of achieving.
Don’t let anyone give flack to Apple for messing up their ‘inadequate’ supply mechanisms.
Go Apple!
So despite the fact that the basic raw ingredients are sand, a bit of plastic and a very small amount of gold, Apple still manages to create a product that the supply chain has difficulties with.
I want Apple to create a line of bottled water, and let’s see whether that is basic enough to avoid any problems.
In all seriousness, an odd choice of words from Mr. Takenaka implying that – even if all of Toshiba’s output was sold to Apple – it still wouldn’t be enough. This is Toshiba FERCHRISSSAKE!!. What are the Q2 results going to look like?
Reason #1,067,832 why I love MDN:
“No word from the iRiver or ‘Creative’ folks, yet. There must be no phone service out on the ledge.”
ROTFLMFAO!
Just wait until Intel starts chipping in to supply chips to Apple for the iPod. Then the Gates of WinHell will open and brain-feasting zombies will walk the earth.
The iPod Shuffle is a failure!! All Mac products suck and I’m a PC bigot who has no life and most important of all, I’m an a$$hole!!
There is a 2-3 weeks wait for the iPod Shuffle at the Apple store.
With this news and the news from Austrailia, APPL should open much higher tomorrow.
“…Please note that every iPod sold, whether it be an iPod, iPod mini, or iPod shuffle means one more iTunes customer and almost certainly one less for the also-ran WMA music peddlers of the world….”
and one more installation of QuickTime…
BWA ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
ARRRRGH! THERE’S ROACHES ON MY SCREEN!
AL, Apple’s stock ticker is ‘AAPL’ not ‘APPL’.
MDN: “There must be no phone service out on the ledge.”
Bwaaaa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-haaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!!!
Sum Yung Gai: “Just wait until Intel starts chipping in to supply chips to Apple for the iPod. Then the Gates of WinHell will open and brain-feasting zombies will walk the earth.”
Ditto.
I’m still waiting on my shuffles. Ugh.
So, if the rumors are true about a newer iPod mini with increased capacity and a color screen AND it is available, I’ll get one of those instead.
I ordered my Shuffle on January 11th in Canada. Still waiting !
Whenever we go off on Napster like this, I think it should be made clear why we hate them, and all the iTunes competitors, so much. Too many non-Mac folks think it’s just because they compete with our beloved Apple or dis our precious iPod. Well, that’s not it at all.
We hate these scum-sucking vermin because they have the nerve to preach “customer choice” while refusing to support the Mac! A market victory for any of these bastards, God forbid, would mean the marginalization of our favorite platform once more.
So damn right I’m going to celebrate any time one of these WMA-peddling wannabes goes out of business.
I wish MDN would tell us how the REALLY feel. Holding back like they do can’t be good for them. It would be a lot better if they just let it all out.
Just received the four I ordered. Everyone loves them. It’s a little weird that something so feather-light can seem so powerful.
It’s gonna’ be an enormous hit.
MCCFR has the best line in this thread so far – loved it! (And too sadly true…)
Good point LordRobin.
“There must be no phone service out on the ledge.”
Hilarious; I almost feel sorry for them.
Are there not enough hand held portable gaming platforms that would work much better than the iPod?
guys check this out news on new ipods
http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2005/02/20050221164532.shtml
I said it once, I said it twice, I’ll say it tree-toimes:
Abandon all hope ye who thinketh to compete with the iPod/iTunes/iTMS juggernaut … it’s futile!
MDN – I like to dance the jig also.
Why is there a Napster ad on this page???
Oh yeah.. that’s what they said about our very first flash player! Not enough supply man. Apple has no idea what flash customers wants! Chinese players are crap too, man!
I’m so ronery.
and this is news, HOW?
everybody but Nappyster knew teh shuffle would be a hit….