C|Net is running this article on Apple’s potential plans to charge iPod peripheral manufacturers. Not smart, Apple.
History gets really boring when you realize that not only is is just one bloody thing after another, it’s the same bloody pattern repeated over and over again.
Remember Firewire, anyone? Apple tried originally to get something like $1.00 per device. That didn’t go over too well … and they went down to something like $.10. Even that seemed to lay an egg.
Well, where are we now? Apple’s thinking that USB 2.0, an inferior standard, is the de factor standard in the world today for “high speed” peripherals.
Firewire is nowhere near where it could have been. Apple, you don’t want that to happen to the iPod economy.
A strong iPod economy supports the iPod infrastructure. It’s a reason for people to buy iPods. It’s a reason to use iTunes, and the iTunes Music Store.
Long-term, Apple will make more money by treating this as a platform, not a cashing-Hoovering opportunity.
Look at Microsoft: they go out of their way to make it easy to develop for Windows. Well, iPod and iTunes is Apple’s 800-lb gorilla. Apple should go out of its way to make it easy to develop for this emerging music platform.
Or Apple could just shoot itself in the foot, again.
Steve: you’re freakin’ smart. But are you teachable?