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Originally published October 9 2005

Analyst claims iPod's competitors miss the point

by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor

Analyst Ted Schadler says that focusing on the mp3 device itself is a mistake in trying to compete with the iPod. It is only an accessory, and the real competition is with the PC. Schadler goes on to say that the combination of iTunes with the iPod is what makes it so successful.



Just an Accessory "Targeting an MP3 player is a mistake," he declared. "If you're Samsung or Dell (Nasdaq: DELL) or Sony (NYSE: SNE) making an MP3 player and you're only focusing on a feature-function battle with an iPod, you're missing it," he said. More Than a Jukebox The survey of 5216 online consumers aged 12 to 21 found that 84 percent of that demographic group listened to music on their PCs. According to a copy of the report obtained by TechNewsWorld, "Windows PCs and Macintoshes are more than a jukebox for young consumers; they are also the tool for ripping CDs, making custom CDs, and uploading and downloading MP3s. Unbeatable Package Rob Enderle, president and principal analyst with the Enderle Group in San Jose contended that iTunes music isn't the best of the online music services, but as part of a digital music package, it's hard to beat. CD Exchange Popular The Forrester report, which is titled "Musical Youth: Still Stealing, But Also Buying," also revealed that 21 percent of online youth buy music downloads, compared to zero percent in 2003. "Of consumers that have stopped downloading songs because of fears of prosecution, 49 percent still share songs by exchanging CDs." "It's really good to know that fewer of this age group is using peer-to-peer networks and more of them are opening up to the possibility of buying music," Napster Corporate Communications Senior Manager Dana M. Harris told TechNewsWorld. The survey also found that consumers who share and buy music -- which represent 15 percent of the respondents -- spend more on music and music services -- on average, $27.33 a month -- compared to consumers that buy but don't share, who represented six percent of the survey sample and spend an average of $24.70 a month.


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