Holiday iPod Sales May Have Beaten Expectations

MacRumors · Dec 28, 2006, 01:45 PM

Hitwise has issued a report stating that the market share of visits to Apple's iTunes website was up 413% on Christmas Day 2006 when compared to Christmas Day 2005. Hitwise attributes the spike to new iPod owners flocking to download iTunes.

Indeed, the spike seems to have caused a slowdown of the iTunes store and error messages for some on Monday. However, analysts who spoke to CNN still believe the experience will be positive for Apple.

Quote:

"It's actually created more positive buzz among analysts -- traffic was so great it blew up the site," said Gene Munster, senior research analyst at Piper Jaffray. "If anything it could be a positive -- demand was better than they were expecting."

[...]

"What you're seeing is the tremendous success of the iPod," said Michael Gartenberg, vice president and research director with JupiterResearch. "No doubt it was a very, very popular gift, and no matter how well you plan on the server side of the equation, there are always times when you get caught short."

Apple topped Amazon.com's bestseller list for MP3 players, and Hitwise indicates that Apple continued to perform favorably against increased competition, beating Microsoft's Zune.net by 30 to 1 in site visits.

dashiel · Dec 28, 2006, 01:49 PM

talk about "i've got some good news and some bad news" apple's stock is certainly getting some schizophrenic news over the past week. i don't know about anyone else, but if it reaches $75 before MWSF i'm stocking up.

Lito · Dec 28, 2006, 01:51 PM

iPods will soon unite to take over the planet!

(And Homer will laugh at the cat falling down the stairs...

)

spine · Dec 28, 2006, 01:54 PM

Does all the xmas iPods mean poor sales for an iPhone?

narco · Dec 28, 2006, 01:56 PM

I thought iTunes came on a CD with every iPod?

Fishes,
narco.

balamw · Dec 28, 2006, 01:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by narco

I thought iTunes came on a CD with every iPod?

iTunes software: Yes
iTunes store music & videos: No

No sign of a free album sampler this year?

B

Synapple · Dec 28, 2006, 01:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by narco

I thought iTunes came on a CD with every iPod?

Fishes,
narco.

It doesn't anymore... since the last update I think. At least not in the nano: doesn't fit into the box.

cecildk9999 · Dec 28, 2006, 01:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by narco

I thought iTunes came on a CD with every iPod?

Fishes,
narco.

they used to, but now Apple's slimmed down the packaging and you have to download from the web (at least for shuffles and nanos)

balamw · Dec 28, 2006, 02:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cecildk9999

they used to, but now Apple's slimmed down the packaging and you have to download from the web (at least for shuffles and nanos)

Duh! I realized my mistake thinking about the new packaging.

B

danielwsmithee · Dec 28, 2006, 02:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cecildk9999

they used to, but now Apple's slimmed down the packaging and you have to download from the web (at least for shuffles and nanos)

The same is true for the new Video iPods. I would think they would just ship the iPod with the iPod in disc mode and have it contain the installers. That may be more of setup hassle then it is worth though.

I know my the Apple store near my house got dangerously close to running out of many different forms of iPods. Of course that was probably caused by not getting any shipments for a week because of the blizzards here.

neven · Dec 28, 2006, 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by narco

I thought iTunes came on a CD with every iPod?

Regardless of the basic confusion in your question, the answer is no. Nanos and Shuffles don't come with installation discs. I know that there are probably two or three people out there who don't have Internet access, but I think that inconveniencing them is a small price to pay for smaller packaging and fewer throwaway discs.

ChrisA · Dec 28, 2006, 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by narco

I thought iTunes came on a CD with every iPod?

Fishes,
narco.

No, With the new small plastic packaging there is no way a CD could possibly fit inside the package. Both the Nano and the Shuffle come in a package that is roughly 1.25 x 1.25 x 4 inches on a side. I think the full size iPods come in larger packages that might allow a CD to go inside.

Here is an Idea: Why can't Apple put the iTunes and Quicktime software for both PC and Mac INSIDE the iPod. Even a Shuffle has 1GB of RAM which is more space then a CD. So when I fisr plug in the iPod it mounts up on the desktop as a mas storage device and inside is the software. This would take a huge load off the servers at Apple.com I think to iPod should come with some demo music loaded too. I'm sure everyone wants to see how it works after they open the box.

MrPineapples · Dec 28, 2006, 02:46 PM

Isn't the lack of disk the reason for all the hits, they won't of been nearly as high last year if most of the people used the disk?

BornAgainMac · Dec 28, 2006, 02:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChrisA

Here is an Idea: Why can't Apple put the iTunes and Quicktime software for both PC and Mac INSIDE the iPod. Even a Shuffle has 1GB of RAM which is more space then a CD. So when I fisr plug in the iPod it mounts up on the desktop as a mas storage device and inside is the software. This would take a huge load off the servers at Apple.com I think to iPod should come with some demo music loaded too. I'm sure everyone wants to see how it works after they open the box.

I am not 100% sure but I think on Windows it doesn't even see the iPods as storage devices. I was able to mount a shuffle but not the disk-based iPod. Maybe that has changed in the last year.

SPUY767 · Dec 29, 2006, 07:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChrisA

No, With the new small plastic packaging there is no way a CD could possibly fit inside the package. Both the Nano and the Shuffle come in a package that is roughly 1.25 x 1.25 x 4 inches on a side. I think the full size iPods come in larger packages that might allow a CD to go inside.

Two Words: 7cm CDs.

winmacguy · Dec 31, 2006, 01:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by narco

I thought iTunes came on a CD with every iPod?

Fishes,
narco.

For some strange reason they have stopped doing it with the Shuffles and the Nanos. Might be that they don't want to incorporate the bigger CD with the smaller packaging.

PlaceofDis · Dec 28, 2006, 01:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spine

Does all the xmas iPods mean poor sales for an iPhone?

an Apple based cell phone really won't compete with the full line of iPods even if it is an MP3 player too. (oh and not to nit-pick, but Apple can't and won't use the name iPhone for any cell phone they release since its an actual product made by Cisco systems)

spine · Dec 28, 2006, 03:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PlaceofDis

an Apple based cell phone really won't compete with the full line of iPods even if it is an MP3 player too. (oh and not to nit-pick, but Apple can't and won't use the name iPhone for any cell phone they release since its an actual product made by Cisco systems)

The iPhone is obviously just the code name we're all used to.
If I was in the market for a new nano, I would be waiting until January.
If I bought one for xmas, and a nano-like iPhone came out, I would be frustrated. That's all I am saying...

gkarris · Dec 28, 2006, 06:04 PM

Okay, okay, I'll be the first to say...

What about the Zune? Isn't it killing the iPod?

Maybe because of the Zune, the iPod was not expected to do well at all, and it did anyways, which surprised most people...

(I earlier flushed some stuff down the toilet that was the same color as one of the Zunes...)

Quboid · Dec 28, 2006, 05:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spine

Does all the xmas iPods mean poor sales for an iPhone?

I'll buy an ifone if it's good enough. Apple cannot expect to aim the iPhone at the portable players market, its aimed at the Music phone market. Which to me are two different markets.

Some folks just prefer to listen to music from their phones i guess.

AppleIntelRock · Dec 31, 2006, 01:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spine

Does all the xmas iPods mean poor sales for an iPhone?

I don't think so. I think that possibly this is a good time for the iPhone to come out. By the holiday season of 2007, many companies will have it, and it will be easy to find. Cell phones are a little harder to get in people's hands then ipods because they carry contracts with them- and if they don't, a high price tag soon follows.

cecildk9999 · Dec 28, 2006, 01:57 PM

It's been so amazing these past few years to see the presence that Apple has built for itself out of the success of the iPod. My Dad got a new shuffle for Christmas, and quite a few of my friends got iPods; what surprises me most is the number of people who are expressing interest in getting their first ever Macintosh computer. People who I never dreamed would buy a mac (and attacked me all these past few years for having one) are now becoming genuinely interested.

Multimedia · Dec 28, 2006, 03:17 PM

Love the new clip-on Shuffle. Keep it clipped to my T-Shirt sleve 24/7. Headset wire runs down my back and in through the sleeve so now I have access to tunes any time I need them to fill silence. My iPod is now exclusively for Video when I am sitting in transport.

I will be very surprised if the iPod Shuffle isn't something that everyone needs and will become, if it isn't already, the fastest and biggest selling mp3 player in history. It is perfect form, design and functionality.

Amdahl · Dec 28, 2006, 03:20 PM

Merry Christmas to Apple! Scrooge & the Grinch were kept away this year!

Kid Red · Dec 28, 2006, 03:23 PM

So who's eating crow now? The Register is it? How can iTunes have a 400+% increase in sales when iTunes is in hot water falling out of profit? Hmm....

Dec 28, 2006, 01:51 PM	#3
Lito macrumors newbie Join Date: Jul 2003	Beware iPods will soon unite to take over the planet! (And Homer will laugh at the cat falling down the stairs... ) __________________ Perfect teeth; nice smell - a class act all the way!

Dec 28, 2006, 01:54 PM	#4
spine macrumors member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: warwick RI	iPhone Does all the xmas iPods mean poor sales for an iPhone? __________________ photographer/filmmaker/designer 24" iMac, white macbook, iPod 60g, nano 4G, iphone 3G.

Dec 28, 2006, 06:04 PM	#19
gkarris macrumors 601 Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Somewhere In The Universe	Okay, okay, I'll be the first to say... What about the Zune? Isn't it killing the iPod? Maybe because of the Zune, the iPod was not expected to do well at all, and it did anyways, which surprised most people... (I earlier flushed some stuff down the toilet that was the same color as one of the Zunes...) __________________ "This gate's plastic." Captain Carter, Stargate SG-1, "Touchstone" Mini/MacBook/iPhone/TV Olympus E-420/E-500, Canon 20D

Dec 28, 2006, 01:57 PM	#22
cecildk9999 macrumors regular Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: East Coast	It's been so amazing these past few years to see the presence that Apple has built for itself out of the success of the iPod. My Dad got a new shuffle for Christmas, and quite a few of my friends got iPods; what surprises me most is the number of people who are expressing interest in getting their first ever Macintosh computer. People who I never dreamed would buy a mac (and attacked me all these past few years for having one) are now becoming genuinely interested. __________________ Tobias Fünke: Well, I seem to have blown my wad on what was supposed to be a dry run, if you will, so now I have something of a mess on my hands.

Dec 28, 2006, 03:17 PM	#23
Multimedia Banned Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Santa Cruz CA, Silicon Beach	My Son Gave Me An Engraved Shuffle "Dad You're My MacDaddy!" Love the new clip-on Shuffle. Keep it clipped to my T-Shirt sleve 24/7. Headset wire runs down my back and in through the sleeve so now I have access to tunes any time I need them to fill silence. My iPod is now exclusively for Video when I am sitting in transport. I will be very surprised if the iPod Shuffle isn't something that everyone needs and will become, if it isn't already, the fastest and biggest selling mp3 player in history. It is perfect form, design and functionality.

Dec 28, 2006, 01:49 PM	#2
dashiel macrumors 6502 Join Date: Nov 2003	talk about "i've got some good news and some bad news" apple's stock is certainly getting some schizophrenic news over the past week. i don't know about anyone else, but if it reaches $75 before MWSF i'm stocking up.

Dec 28, 2006, 01:56 PM	#5
narco macrumors 65816 Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: California.	I thought iTunes came on a CD with every iPod? Fishes, narco.

Dec 28, 2006, 02:46 PM	#13
MrPineapples macrumors member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: London, UK	Isn't the lack of disk the reason for all the hits, they won't of been nearly as high last year if most of the people used the disk?

Dec 28, 2006, 03:20 PM	#24
Amdahl macrumors 65816 Join Date: Jul 2004	Merry Christmas to Apple! Scrooge & the Grinch were kept away this year!

Dec 28, 2006, 03:23 PM	#25
Kid Red macrumors 65816 Join Date: Dec 2001	So who's eating crow now? The Register is it? How can iTunes have a 400+% increase in sales when iTunes is in hot water falling out of profit? Hmm....

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