Apple introduces new mini ipod Hifi

No iTunes movie store annoucements, but Apple took a step closer today. They announced that the Mac Mini will come with a remote and using Bonjour will be able to stream media from any computer (Mac or Windows) that has iTunes.

They also announced the iPod Hifi which looks like a portable Bose SoundDock. It doesn't have a HD or allow you to sync with iTunes without a PC. It does come with a remote and allow you to display your Album art in large format while music is playing.

Apple buys datacenter

In what could be Apple beefing up its server capacity in response to potential streaming movie demand, Apple has purchased a large datacenter. Originally designed for MCI as a TIER IV (i.e. high redundancy and security) it was sold at bargain basement price to Apple.

Apple to offer films to download on iTunes

More reports are coming out pointing to an Apple announcement of an iTunes movie store with streaming downloads. As Steve Jobs has mentioned before, downloading a full movie off iTunes would take to long, this would be solved by streaming the movie to your computer. Since this would prohibit the watching of the movie on one's iPod perhaps there will be a download version as well?

Think Secret - iPod "Hi-Fi" Boombox arriving next week

Previous speculation that the location of the Feb 28th Apple event would imply a boombox seems correct. Thinksecret reports that Apple's iPod Hi-Fi boombox will be announced. It will have more features than a typical docking system, previous speculation was that it would include a hard drive to allow syncing without the use of a computer.

iPodNN | Bravo to join iTunes

Bravo network is adding episodes of Project Runway and Inside the Actors studio starting February 28th. This announcement came after NBC stated that it would debut the new show Conviction on iTunes before airing it on TV.

Apple sells 1 billion songson iTunes

No announcement yet, but according to Apple's counter which generally underestimates songs sold, Apple has crossed the 1 billion mark. Perhaps billiontunescounter.com, will count down the next billion tunes sold by Apple.

Apple "fun" event for Feb 28

Apple has issued an invitation to the Appl campus for Feb. 28 stating that it will introduce fun new products. As it is being introduced on the Apple campus, seemingly outdoors rather than in their traditional indoor location, I would imagine the product would be something that would be used for fun outside. Sources seem to indicate that it will most likely be an iPod boombox.

The Joy of Tech comic... laughter is the best tech support.

The Joy of Tech comic... laughter is the best tech support.

Comic commenting on Dvorak's Apple switching to windows comments.

ROKR song limit upgradeable

While U.S. phones may not be upgradeable past their 100 song limit, it would appear non-U.S. phones can be upgraded from their 25 song limit to 100 songs. Whats interesting is that ROKR phones had the capability to have their limits upgraded it.

Amazon May Take On iTunes, iPod

Amazon is looking to get into the iPod/iTunes business. While it has been rumored for some time that Amazon would sell songs digitally, it seems that Amazon is taking a different tack than usual. Rather than developing the software for its music store in house, it looks like it will be outsourcing this step. According to the Wall Street Journal, Amazon is in talks with four digital music companies to set up a service with features that would set it apart. Amazon will also set itself apart by having Amazon branded MP3 players designed and sold at a steep discount if purchased with a subscription to their music store. Hoping to follow the model of the cell phone industry, Amazon will preload these MP3 players with tunes and sell them with a subscription. Will the idea of a free MP3 player and unlimited tunes be enough to convince people to fork over $15/month ($180/yr)? Will Amazon be able to sell enough subscriptions (they sell 10% of the MP3 players on the market) to cover their costs?

EFF: RIAA says ripping CD's illegal

The RIAA, while stating the making backup CD's is ok and previously stating that ripping CD's and putting those songs on an iPod was ok, is now saying that its illegal. Their basis for contradicting themself? They claim that their statement was that the recording industry was letting users rips CD's to their computer, i.e. they authorized it, but not that its actually legal. So basically the RIAA can change its mind whenever it wants.

iPodNN | Digital sales drive Warner Music profit

i.e. Bronfman Jr. sucks it. For all the complaining that Warner Music CEO Edgar Bronfman Jr. did it seems that digital downloads (internet and ringtones) brought the company THREE times the revenue of what they made a year ago. Most likely he would credit it to the profitability of ringtones, but of course considering that Warner music has no distribution costs selling iTunes songs, basically iTunes sales are pure profit. Here is what the CFO had to say, "Our digital revenue was up dramatically year-on-year, especially after MP3 players went live on December 25th," Chief Financial Officer Michael Fleischer said before the company released results. "The naysayers of digital music on the Street have been proven wrong." So it would seem that iTunes fixed price songs will be around for a little while longer.

iPodNN | iTunes Music Store sells 12M videos

After announcing that CBS content from Showtime would be available, Apple announced that it had sold 12 million videos through iTunes. iTunes currently has more than 50 TV series available for download. The NHL and NASCAR look to be adding sports content adding to what was made available by ESPN.

AppleInsider | Apple unveils new 1GB iPod nano at $149

Apple has unveiled the rumored 1GB iPod Nano. The 1GB version has the same features as other Nanos, but holds 240 songs and will be priced at $149. The 1GB shuffle will be reduced to $99, with the 512MB shuffle being sold for $69.

Dell discontinues DJ MP3 player

While this may indicate Dell acknowledging failure in the MP3 market, it could just mean that they are going to focus on large flash based MP3 players as most of Apple's MP3 sales are flash MP3 players now. The company is discontinuing its Jukebox hard drive based player but will continue to sell its flash based Ditty.

Networks' iTunes gamble paying off | CNET News.com

News.com covers the increase in viewership that iTunes has created for the shows that are available to download. NBC's "The Office" gained viewership after being added to iTunes and has now been moved to NBC's thursday night lineup. Currently iTunes seems to be additive to revenue though it might potentially affect DVD sales. IMO considering DVD is much higher quality than what is available on iTunes, its unlikely.

CBD dumps Google, in talks with Apple among others

CBS which has partnered with Google and Yahoo to distribute new shows is in investigating various digital distribution strategies. It would appear that CBS is quietly dropping Google as a video distribution partner. They are in talks with various companies including Apple to distribute their shows via iTunes. While CBS.com will offer Survivor for $1.99 as well, it is only a 24 hour rental of the show rather than iTunes purchase for $1.99 model.

ITunes U and lockin

Jon Udell at Inforworld has a piece on the iTunes U. He complains that even though the service is free it in practice will fuel iPod sales. The podcasts available on any iTunes U store are available in AAC, Apple's proprietary format. While it is possible to convert this to MP3 or other formats, Udell argues that this should be unnecessary since podcasts should be universal. He sums up his argument by claiming that he is using a powerbook and could EASILY switch :) I guess he could switch about as easily as he could convert his AAC's into MP3's

iTunes: The 99c Question

An independent labels take on the the $.99 pricing of iTunes. He points out that album pricing is variable, its only pricing for individual tracks that is fixed. By allowing variable pricing for individual tracks music companies are looking mainly to make more money. As the industry is still more maturing he argues that until things like bootleg CD's and the culture of not paying for things has been reduced, forcing Apple to charge more for single track downloads could cause more problems. Its interesting to see his take on the music industry woes and that most of the problems have been caused by CD piracy/bootleg CD's which only require a spare bedroom to create bootleg CD's in.

Analyst: 'Trouble Brewing for iTunes' From Verizon's V Cast

On the basis that music capable cell phone sales will outpace iPod sales a new reports predicts problems for Apples iTunes. The research firm Strategy Analytics mentions Verizon's new high speed music service as being a competitor. The report states that since Apple has partnered with Motorola that it will not create its own Apple cell phone and cell phone network. The research report does not mention that even though total music capable cell phones will increase, each will be compatible with only that services music service thus far. Considering that this past christmas, more people planned on purchasing iPods over cell phones, Apple probably still has a few years left as the market leader.