weev said:
Apple should seek business alliances with ethical corporations. Falling out with maccas is good, really.
codycartoon said:
phew! I really hoped that mac wouldn't get involved with Mcdonalds.
God forbid a few years down the road, the iTMS fails due to a lack of marketshare, or for some reason the iPod loses it #1 spot atop the mp3 player market, I will look back on these type of statements and think about what could have been.
For the first time in a very long time, Apple is the dominant player in a market. For now, because of their dominance, they can have the iTMS play nice only with the iPod, and the iPod only play nice with the iTMS.
I say, if they want to do this (and not open up to other players or stores) they must work proactively to get their products as the de facto standard. You may think they already are, but they are not there yet.
Just think, Pepsi - iTunes saw 5 million redemptions; McDonald's is offering 1 billion. With a simple extrapolation, they will see 50 million redeemed. Adjust for the fact that McDonalds has a lot more exposure than Pepsi, add a a bunch more songs onto that. What do you get....?
Close to 70 million maybe?
Sound familiar?
I want the iTMS to be an overwhelming success. I want the iPod to be the best music player for the rest of eternity. It is not going to happen if Apple does not promote their product, and then we, as the Mac community, sit back and go, "Gee, I don't like McDonalds anyway, I am glad the deal didn't go through," or "McDonalds inhumanely slaughters thousands of cows for their hamburgers, and Apple should not associate with them."
And then to hear some people assert that partnering with a company like McDonalds may
hurt sales because it would reflect negatively on Apple??? Are you kidding me?!?!?!?
This is
Business! I would bet my life that the overwhelming majority of people don't give a hoot about the "negative image" of these mega-coporations, and even if they did, most of them are not going to refrain from getting free music because of it.
It is nice to be supportive of companies that share similar values, but that is not my primary concern, nor should it be for Apple. In 5 years from now, if we are all sitting around with hundreds of Protected AAC files and no where but the iPod to play them, and with a Microsoft music store engulfing all the competition, I will look back to statements like I originally quoted and remember the contributing factors to how we got there.
If you disagree, please respond respectfully and with dignity. I am sure many will not agree with my position, but do so in a way so that this does not because a screaming match.
