HP Drops iPod Reselling

[yg17]

Would anyone buy a BMW with a Hyundai logo on it? Same car, same price, different logo?

Yes, as I own a Hyundai already and would qualify for owner loyalty rebates for the already cheap Hyundai-badged BMW.

Now as someone who had a really crappy HP printer, is sick of troubleshooting his paren'ts crappy HP printer and is sick of troubleshooting his grandfather's crappy HP computer, I wouldn't touch another HP product, made by HP or not, with a 10 foot pole, even if it was made by Apple. Likewise, if I had a bad experience with a Hyundai car in the past (which I haven't) then no, I wouldn't buy a Hyundai even if it was made by BMW.


Probably why the HP iPods didn't sell. A lot of HP's products are of low quality and people know that. People didn't want to have anything to do with HP, even if the only part of the product that actually came out of an HP factory was the box it came in. They'd rather buy it directly from Apple so they know that a dime doesn't go to a company they had bad luck with in the past. Not like there was an advantage to buying the HP Pods anyways. The rebadged BMW would probably be cheaper sold under Hyundai's name, giving an advantage to buy the rebranded product. But the HP Pods were the same price as the Apple ones, so there was no reason to not buy it straight from Apple.

 

[yg17]

Target: Apple iPod

Thus, places that don't want or haven't gotten around to becoming an Apple authorized reseller and already sell HP stuff get to sell the iPod. Without the HP iPod you wouldn't be able to get an iPod at all these places.

Target isn't an authorized reseller. I work there so I know that. I assume authorized resellers are required to pass on Apple knowledge to their employees, which Target doesn't. The extent of my Apple training there was "Here are the iPods. They play music. Here's the cabinet where we lock them up. Here's the key to the cabinet. Since they are expensive, make sure you high pressure any guests purchasing an iPod to open up a Target credit card account to save 10%. If you don't high pressure them, Dan the Target Card Nazi will chew you out for 20 minutes and threaten your job even though he can't fire you for that. Have fun." Had I not owned an iPod myself and knew a lot about it, I would have been answering a lot of questions from customers with a blank stare. Apple would be foolish to require stores that sell only the iPod to go through everything to become authorized, as most stores, Target included, would rather pull iPods from the shelves than do whatever it takes to get authorized.

Famous Barr (clothing store for you people not from around here) also sells (sold? dunno if they still do) iPods in the mens department where my dad works. We would always joke when they first started selling them, because my dad, who doesn't know how to turn the computer on, was responsible for selling iPods. So again, I highly doubt they were authorized either.

 

[iGary]

I never considered HP a smart move by either party. Bad branding.

 

[finchna]

I don't think HP accounted for a large percentage of iPod sales. No biggie.

I read someplace that it's been about 5%.

 

[mad jew]

I never considered HP a smart move ny either party. Bad branding.

Me neither. I couldn't really see either company winning hugely from the deal.

 

[echeck]

I think I see this as a bad thing, not a tremendously bad thing, but bad nonetheless. I only say this because, although HP computers aren't all that great, it did open up the iPod to a new group of users, the ignorant PC users. After HP began selling the iPod I had four people come to me and ask me why HP would sell something that only worked for Mac. Once I told them that they were idiots and that the iPod works with Windows, two of them had iPods within the week.

I don't neccessarily dislike HP as a company, absolutely love their printers, but I don't think this decision won't hurt iPod sales.

 

[mpw]

I don't think so. I think it was just a bad idea to begin with.

Would anyone buy a BMW with a Hyundai logo on it? Same car, same price, different logo?

The VW range sells pretty well badged as Skoda/SEAT.

 

[Sirus The Virus]

To be perfectly honest I never was too exited about them selling HP branded iPod's anyway. There's something about an iPod that makes it an iPod and one of those things is the Apple logo on the back. There's something weird about the HP logo on the back, and I don't know what it is. But HP does make nice printers.

 

[macnews]

Good or bad, I think the reason why HP stopped has more to do with the move to intel chips and the mac mini - as well as new management in place. A digital hub is most likely the future for many computer makers. The mini makes a great new digital home hub. Moving to intel leaves very little differentiation between Apple and other companies like HP in terms of hardware PCs to the average person on the street.

Thus, if HP is selling iPods with iTunes on the desktop, why should I buy an HP digital hub home entertainment computer when I can buy an Apple digital hub home entertainment computer. HP, despite the "HP" in their branded iPod, did more to help brand Apple. Think halo effect which people denied but now everyone points to and cites for Apple's growth.

 

[Don't panic]

"GM thought they could take a Chevy Cavalier, slap some Cadillac stuff on it, add an extra $5,000.00 and sell a bundle. Tragically enough, they pulled it off-for a while."

"Hands down, worst car for the money spent. Yugos were junk, but at least they were cheap. This heap had a Caddy price tag!"

"A stupid marketing ploy. Nothing more than a Chevrolet Cavalier, which Roger Smith gussied up and called a Cadillac."

"When we traded it in my wife was upset because we didn't keep it long enough for her to buy a gun and shoot it."
Cadillac Cimarron

This is from http://www.cartalk.com/content/features/Worst-Cars/results1.html

hehehe
fun link. the best quote is about the chevy VEGA:

"As near as I could tell, the car was built from compressed rust."

 

[makeme]

Target isn't an authorized reseller. I work there so I know that. I assume authorized resellers are required to pass on Apple knowledge to their employees, which Target doesn't. The extent of my Apple training there was "Here are the iPods. They play music. Here's the cabinet where we lock them up. Here's the key to the cabinet. Since they are expensive, make sure you high pressure any guests purchasing an iPod to open up a Target credit card account to save 10%. If you don't high pressure them, Dan the Target Card Nazi will chew you out for 20 minutes and threaten your job even though he can't fire you for that. Have fun." Had I not owned an iPod myself and knew a lot about it, I would have been answering a lot of questions from customers with a blank stare. Apple would be foolish to require stores that sell only the iPod to go through everything to become authorized, as most stores, Target included, would rather pull iPods from the shelves than do whatever it takes to get authorized.

Famous Barr (clothing store for you people not from around here) also sells (sold? dunno if they still do) iPods in the mens department where my dad works. We would always joke when they first started selling them, because my dad, who doesn't know how to turn the computer on, was responsible for selling iPods. So again, I highly doubt they were authorized either.

Actually, they are authorized or they couldn't be legally selling them. They may very well be just an iPod authorized reseller, but they are authorized. I know Apple well enough to assure you of that.

 

[fixyourthinking]

Me neither. I couldn't really see either company winning hugely from the deal.

It put the iPod into 7000 MORE retail locations that Apple iPods were NOT!

 

[dornoforpyros]

wierd, although I agree the HP iPod was pretty dang stupid in terms of "why would anyone want an iPod with an HP logo on it?" I'm still surprised HP would drop it like that. I mean didn't they just announce a few weeks back they were gonna start selling HP iPod shuffles??

 

[mad jew]

It put the iPod into 7000 MORE retail locations that Apple iPods were NOT!

The majority of whom do not sell Macs, therefore diminishing the power of the halo effect.

 

[springdaddy]

Second part of your statement is an even worse example. The Taaurus and Sable were for years based upon thesame chasis, but in no way were they the same car. The interior options, luxury levels and in some instantces powertrains were different.

Back on topic. I don't see this as a big deal for Apple, but if the iTunes preinstallation goes away... I vote negative.

I disagree. They were both the same car with different badging; and one of the main reasons GM, Ford and Chrysler are getting their a$$es kicked by the Japaneese(sp?) automakers.

 

[ryannel2003]

Who Cares?

I really don't think HP was smart by rebranding an Apple iPod. 1, I don't want a HP logo on my shiny new iPod. And 2, HP isn't known as the most reliable computer manufacter out there. There was the risk of people buying a HP iPod and thinking that it could be of the same quality as one of they're desktops or notebooks. Let's just put it this way, I wouldn't buy a HP iPod becuase the only thing HP actually knows how to make is a printer. Even if it was made by Apple.

 

[itsbetteronamac]

I personally think that HP got out of the iPod reselling biz for one reason... that the iPod wasn't going were HP thought it would go. I bet that HP was hoping for a video iPod, and that it would be a big part of their digital media center/hub/piece of crap. And, as we have all relized, Video iPods are not comming anytime soon, (if ever). Also, I bet that HP wasn't making any money, and finally said, "were not making any money, and we won't be for a long time... maybe let just forget about and do something else." Also, like other people said, I bet there was pressure from microsoft and some other big players to dump the ipod.

 

[Lanbrown]

I vote negative...people were always going around "not understanding" why HP sold iPods. It simply opened up so many more channels for the iPod to be sold in. It also put iTunes on HP desktops and notebooks...no downloading needed. When this deal was announced in Jan 2004 I saw tons of positives for Apple and virtually no negatives.

The end of this relationship is something I feared would happen, and is bad for Apple in my opinion.

Last quarter Apple shipped over 6 million iPods. Each quarter HP represented around 5% of the sales. So when you talk about so many more channels, you need to look at the sales they brought in and it wasn't much. Some of those channels that had volume sales would be looking at keeping the iPod around and would look at getting them from Apple. Now that is much better for Apple then the HP deal, as now they have their foot in a door for other products.

HP could also view that Apple will be competing with them much more in the future with their switch to Intel processors.

 

[SpaceMagic]

Um.. most importantly..

This deal was done under the last ceo of HP.. they got rid of her.. and probably hate all the agreements she made.

So! The new CEO wants to get rid of all her initiatives and make some for himself. Sound familiar?

 

[Lanbrown]

You wanna know what I think. I think MS offered HP a much better deal to offer WMP on their computers INSTEAD of iTunes. Or maybe they threatened them, no more windows unless you ditch iTunes. MS is so evil, why are they allowed to exist?

Sure, that's exactly what happened. MS would not be that stupid, as HP still sells a lot of systems that come with Windows. Second, what do you think the EU would do to MS if they caught wind of that? MS does have to ship a version of Windows without WMP.

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20041222-4480.html

 

[pubwvj]

Ouch, I suppose someone is not happy with the iPod outlook. Perhaps without Carly around, there is a different direction being taken with regards to HP's strategy.

No, this is just a "purge Carly's works" action.
HP will suffer for it in the long run. Bad move.

 

[Lanbrown]

Correct me if im wrong, but didnt HP announce bad quarterly results or something? i was away at the time, probably saw it on CNN at 4am drugged up on Migraleve trying to shift a monster headache. and that they have been asked to focus on one or two specific items rather than trying to cover all bases?

So would that be printers, medical equipment, software, services, big iron servers, x86 servers or desktop/laptop machines? That's the core of their business and they just can't concentrate on one or two.

 

[SiliconAddict]

*virtually shakes his head* Only Apple users.

Weeeee someone who was selling Apple's wares is gone. WOO HOO! *breaks out the party cake*

 

[~Shard~]

*virtually shakes his head* Only Apple users.

Weeeee someone who was selling Apple's wares is gone. WOO HOO! *breaks out the party cake*

Yah, without HP selling Apple wares, Apple's market share might drop 0.02%!

 

[MarcelV]

Of course, the presumption being that HP even HAS a digital strategy

I think HP was rethinking their digital media strategy for a while. This was coming. You have to say, it was just odd. They have media center PC's but for media player it was the non-integrated iPod that was not even native supported. I am not saying anything about quality of MS Media Center (good or bad) at all. Haven't played with it, so can't comment. But to me it always seemed odd.

I have a feeling, and this is not based on hard evidence (but I have some 'soft' evidence) that they will build there own player with a media center console. And I think it will support audio and video. And if true, they will go complete WM9.