Player upgrades, new devices on music horizon By Antony Bruno | July 16, 2006
SAN FRANCISCO (Billboard) - If the rampant speculation over the digital music plans of Microsoft and Apple Computer are to be believed, the digital music landscape is about to change radically in the very near future. Both companies are said to be readying portable digital music players in time for the holiday sales season that significantly raise the bar on features and functionality previously unavailable in their respective product lines. That Microsoft may actually introduce an MP3 player at all has generated the largest amount of buzz. Such a development would mark a major shift in the company's strategy. To date, the Xbox game console is the only product Microsoft makes itself. Historically, the company's model has been to license its technology to those creating the hardware and services, fostering an ecosystem of developers. But in the digital music market, neither the MP3 player manufacturers nor online music retailers using the company's technology have proved capable of successfully competing with Apple's iPod and iTunes Music Store. Introducing its own combined device and service essentially is a vote of no confidence in the very ecosystem the company has been trying to create. ... http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2006/07/17/player_upgrades_new_devices_on_music_horizon/ Reply with a "Thank you" if you liked this post. _____________________________ MEDIANEWS mailing list [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
