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WalMart To Sell iPod Shuffle?
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I have an inkling that the majority of posters here already own Apple products and will not shop at Wal-Mart for those products (regardless of whether or not they shop WM for other items). The point to understand are the people who do shop at Wal-Mart and whether the Apple brand will be enticing enough to go home with an iPod shuffle... to hook up to their $500 HP computer from Wal-Mart.
R3z said:
Not too many people would have said the same about a lot of companies (i.e., Gateway) that got a start in the "heartland." One thing that has not been mentioned is the economic data Wal-Mart Corp. possesses for the entire nation; Wal-Mart knows better what people want and where than any other organization, public or private. If this deals goes through, it is because Wal-Mart knows it will be able to move the Apple product; Apple fanatics will have to resort to saying, "I was into the iPod before it was cool." The US cannot be divided up into urban=tech, rural=non-tech. There's a reason iPod TV ads have been airing nationwide.
Laughable Thread
Having just read through this whole thread, I would like to point out the obvious:
1). APPLE IS A FOR-PROFIT CORPORATION, STOCK LISTED OVER-THE-COUNTER, WITH EXCITING NEW CONSUMER PRODUCTS.
2). WAL-MART IS A FOR-PROFIT CORPORATION, LISTED ON THE NYE AND IS THE LARGEST RETAILER IN THE WORLD, SUPPORTED BY CONSUMERS IN AN INCREDIBLE WAY, RESULTING IN BILLIONS IN PROFITS EACH YEAR.
3). THE TWO COMPANIES HAVE ENTERED INTO A SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIP.
4). EACH COMPANY WILL MAKE PROFITS FOR THEIR SHAREHOLDERS, THE RESULT NORMALLY WOULD BE ADDITIONAL PRODUCTS ADDED TO THE AGREEMENT.
Let's get real, this is a good deal for both companies. If it offends you individually, don't buy from Wal-Mart or Apple, in that case.....vote with you wallet.....however, you will certainly be in the vast minority.
Having just read through this whole thread, I would like to point out the obvious:
1). APPLE IS A FOR-PROFIT CORPORATION, STOCK LISTED OVER-THE-COUNTER, WITH EXCITING NEW CONSUMER PRODUCTS.
2). WAL-MART IS A FOR-PROFIT CORPORATION, LISTED ON THE NYE AND IS THE LARGEST RETAILER IN THE WORLD, SUPPORTED BY CONSUMERS IN AN INCREDIBLE WAY, RESULTING IN BILLIONS IN PROFITS EACH YEAR.
3). THE TWO COMPANIES HAVE ENTERED INTO A SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIP.
4). EACH COMPANY WILL MAKE PROFITS FOR THEIR SHAREHOLDERS, THE RESULT NORMALLY WOULD BE ADDITIONAL PRODUCTS ADDED TO THE AGREEMENT.
Let's get real, this is a good deal for both companies. If it offends you individually, don't buy from Wal-Mart or Apple, in that case.....vote with you wallet.....however, you will certainly be in the vast minority.
For those of you rant about the evil Walmart, did you ever stop to think how many people are employed by Walmart directly and through affliated companies indirectly? Granted stocking shelves doesn't pay the greatest but when did it ever. There are truck drivers, accountants, lawyers, assorted MBA's, salesman, buyers etc, etc, etc. As far as dealing with Walmart, they are no worse then most other companies I deal with. They are actually better then some of the big regional retailers, the big fish in the little pond companies who already squashed their competition in thier region. Every company in America puts price pressure on thier vendors. The vendors can resist with added value, lower their price or stand firm and take a chance, everyone in business knows this including Rubbermaid.
Big marketing plus, but big image problem. The only way it helps the image is to say that Apple brand doesn't have to be all that expensive. They just better not EVER sell the Mini at Wally World. Target is one thing, at least they've got a sense of style and hipness to them, but Wal-Mart just doesn't have it. It will sell a lot of Shuffles though!
Maybe they'll have a commercial with Gingy from Shrek 2 jamming to his Shuffle (since it's actually small enough for him to carry).
Maybe they'll have a commercial with Gingy from Shrek 2 jamming to his Shuffle (since it's actually small enough for him to carry).
Generally they aren't the best, nor are they the worst employer in the industry.macnulty said:
But their lowest prices, and their sheer size make them the biggest target in the industry. Heck, McDonalds is also the whipping boy of their industry... it's the price you pay for making it to number one.
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This is good for Apple because they can immediately move a quarter of a million (or more) Shuffles into a retail channel for sale.
joeboy_45101 said:
First, there's no guarantee that those reforms wouldn't have ended up in place anyway, but that's a question of devil's advocacy. The more important thing is that while unions have been a force for great good, they're now (and historically have been) extremely corrupt and barricades to progress. They're better than nothing in some cases, and Wal*Mart is one of those cases, but the unions are not unmitigated forces for good.
bretm said:
If you leave the government out of it, corporations will naturally tend to kill competition through any means possible. It's just good business. Laissez-faire economics has been pretty thoroughly discredited.
In exemplum, Microsoft. If it didn't need Apple for the antitrust suits it would have been the natural and proper response to put them out of business, and in the mid 90s they could have. They would also have the power to dictate to PC hardware manufacturers as they wished, so they could kill Linux easily enough. Dethroning them would not take the gradual process it is taking now, but a concerted effort by businesses against their own best interests in both the short and medium terms with no guarantee of positive effects in the long term.
bretm said:
Spoken like someone who doesn't comprehend how ugly true freedom is.
VicMacs: I've never purchased anything from Wal*Mart or Sam's Club either, but of course I'm a "liar" as well.
~J
autrefois
macrumors 65816
Does anyone truly think they're going to convince anyone on the Wal-Mart issue?
I believe Wal-Mart is an evil company that is ruining America, actively trying to destroy local businesses and put them out of business, and paying paltry wages with limited benefits to its employees.
Other people believe that Wal-Mart provides opportunities for people, provides convenience and low prices, gives to charities, and as a for-profit business has the right to do just about anything it wants to make a profit.
What can I possibly say to convince them that Wal-Mart is bad? What could they say to convince me it isn't?
It would seem more useful to send our comments to Apple one way or the other. If enough people complain or praise this move, then it might affect future decisions like this.
Otherwise, I think we can try to figure out what affect this will have on Apple as a company, or where Apple might be try to go as a company. This seems like something people might change their minds about.
First Apple announces cheap (ahem, inexpensive/affordable) products, for the first time in their history basically. But now with a Wal-Mart partnership in addition to that, won't it really lower the prestige/coolness factor, as has already been mentioned? They don't sell Rolls Royces at Wal-Mart.
They're already making profits like crazy at Apple. Is Apple only concerned about marketshare and profit now? Are they slowly becoming another Dell?
I think Apple should definitely offer Apple quality at inexpensive prices, which I one of the reasons I love iPod shuffle and Mac mini. But now I really don't know what I think about all this....
I believe Wal-Mart is an evil company that is ruining America, actively trying to destroy local businesses and put them out of business, and paying paltry wages with limited benefits to its employees.
Other people believe that Wal-Mart provides opportunities for people, provides convenience and low prices, gives to charities, and as a for-profit business has the right to do just about anything it wants to make a profit.
What can I possibly say to convince them that Wal-Mart is bad? What could they say to convince me it isn't?
It would seem more useful to send our comments to Apple one way or the other. If enough people complain or praise this move, then it might affect future decisions like this.
Otherwise, I think we can try to figure out what affect this will have on Apple as a company, or where Apple might be try to go as a company. This seems like something people might change their minds about.
First Apple announces cheap (ahem, inexpensive/affordable) products, for the first time in their history basically. But now with a Wal-Mart partnership in addition to that, won't it really lower the prestige/coolness factor, as has already been mentioned? They don't sell Rolls Royces at Wal-Mart.
They're already making profits like crazy at Apple. Is Apple only concerned about marketshare and profit now? Are they slowly becoming another Dell?
I think Apple should definitely offer Apple quality at inexpensive prices, which I one of the reasons I love iPod shuffle and Mac mini. But now I really don't know what I think about all this....
i_am_a_cow said:Walmart put Rubbermaid out of business!!! They are *******s and will try to drive Apple to cheap labor.
Wrong, the american consumer drives demand. Demand is for cheap products. Walmart is just giving the customer what they want. Think about the juxtaposition (sp?) Consumer who most needs/wants Walmarts pricing is the one that is most likely effected by Walmarts demands for efficiencies and pricing. BTW, Rubbermaid is still in business AND Apple is already using cheap labor. When was the last time you saw made in america stamped on an Apple product.
I just don't get the Walmart bashing. My guess is that there are very few people, if given the choice, would pay $2.00 more for the same item at Kmart or another retailer. Keep in mind, its sourced from the same factory in China.
The problem is paying someone $30-$40/hour to change lightbulbs in a bathroom at a US factory. The chinese are willing to work for USD$.67 A DAY...................
It's called market expansion.three60five said:
The MP3 market is still in it's infant stages. The market as a whole is expanding. Apple needs to expand with it to ensure that it continues to dominate.
Don't forget that there are plenty of manufacturers waiting in the wings to get a portion of the market should Apple stumble. Companies like Creative, RIO, iAudio, etc. Apple has to continue to push and expand the market to maintain/improve it's market share as the market expands.
Sushi
respect.
yeah. and my level of respect for Apple just went down several notches. this is actually quite a disappointing move on Apple's part.
I mean, it's so hypocritical to have tsunami relief advertised when they make a deal with a company that takes advantage of those very same people, and don't think Target isn't the same.
The fact that Wal-Mart would sell them probably means that they are produced by means of sweatshop labor. I am very concerned for what this means for the rest of their product line. If this is true then I guess I'm just going to have to give up caring about the rest of the world and just live my ignorant life as an Apple user.
I'm very disappointed overall. But like Mr.Bob said, I am the minority.
Arcady said:Now you can buy an iPod and help destroy America's economy at the same time!
yeah. and my level of respect for Apple just went down several notches. this is actually quite a disappointing move on Apple's part.
I mean, it's so hypocritical to have tsunami relief advertised when they make a deal with a company that takes advantage of those very same people, and don't think Target isn't the same.
The fact that Wal-Mart would sell them probably means that they are produced by means of sweatshop labor. I am very concerned for what this means for the rest of their product line. If this is true then I guess I'm just going to have to give up caring about the rest of the world and just live my ignorant life as an Apple user.
I'm very disappointed overall. But like Mr.Bob said, I am the minority.
If Target can sell the Shuffle so should Walmart. Will the PSP be sold at Walmart.........enough said!sushi said:
mian said:
This is exactly right. Where I live it's a 75 minute drive to an Apple Store. It's a 2 minute drive to a walmart. The Shuffle is priced for spur of the moment buying and they will sell more iPods this way. They'll also get more iPod music store customers this way. Apple has 70% of the market - they want to increase that percentage. They can't open Apple Stores everywhere. They can get Apple products into more areas though. I think it'd be great for Apple if they get the Mac Mini into these stores too. Make it easy for people to buy Apple products and more apple products get bought.
R3z said:Hm. People are talking about middle America like it's some untapped vein of technophiles just waiting to snatch up the ipod. Somehow, I'm not sure Arkansas is the promise land of retail computing...
A lot of those people currently have portable CD players, and believe it or not they have computers too. After cassette players you had cd players, and now we're getting into MP3 players. Wal-Mart wouldn't bother selling them. Apple wants market share, and they can't get it by ignoring a large portion of the m potential future market.
autrefois said:
How does where it's sold impact the quality? Apple isn't makign a cheaper version for WalMart? It seems some people here are too elitist. I knew someone when CD players first came out who thought of themselvs as an audiophile. They said "normal people" shouldn't be allowed to buy a CD player because they wouldn't appreciated it. That's the same attitude I'm hearing from some posters here - sell it at walmart and it's junk because too many people will have one or can afford one? How about, change the world by making products both easy to use and affordable?
It seems some here would prefer that Apple stand buy and let MS take away their market instead of aggressively trying to maintain and grow their 70% market share in MP3 players and and at the same time grow their computer market share. How is the world a better place if Apple stays forever a niche player instead of using the iPod as leverage to turn the tide in the OS battle that many think was long ago lost? How is it a good thing if the millions of people who shop and WalMart and spur of the moment buy an MP3 player don't even have an iPod as a choice?
ASP272 said:
As I've been saying: a lot of posters on this forum are afraid their cool products will no longer make them cool... "Yuck! You bought that at Wal-Mart?!?!"
alandail said:
But Wal-Mart is known for "influencing" the manufacturer into making a product cheaper or refusing to stock said item.
Wal-Mart is the devil, Pepsi makes kids fat, Best Buy sucks stop selling iPods, blah blah blah. Get over it guys, Apple is making money, helping stocks, helping the Mac, helping everyone but PC people.
This is not the first time that Apple has sold it's products through Walmart!autrefois said:
They sold computers/printers/monitors and software in the 90's.
While a new product, this is not a new relationship. Apple products rock. And now I can purchase them at more locations.
What's wrong with this?!
Sushi
They are already in Wal-Mart
I don't know about anywhere else, but the Wal-Mart in Bellevue, Nebraska has been selling the iPod Mini and mini docks for a couple of weeks. I was quite surprised to see 2 silver mini's sitting poorly on a shelf with no tags or display unit to show them off. It looks like they were just put anywhere they would fit and stacked sloppy - a tearjerking sight for an Apple fan. They are being sold at the Apple UMRP of $249. It looks like Apple has had a deal long before the iPod Shuffle came out.
I don't know about anywhere else, but the Wal-Mart in Bellevue, Nebraska has been selling the iPod Mini and mini docks for a couple of weeks. I was quite surprised to see 2 silver mini's sitting poorly on a shelf with no tags or display unit to show them off. It looks like they were just put anywhere they would fit and stacked sloppy - a tearjerking sight for an Apple fan. They are being sold at the Apple UMRP of $249. It looks like Apple has had a deal long before the iPod Shuffle came out.