Palm Pre & iTunes Tussle
Created by hasan.kamal under Palm Pre
Hot on the heels of the new iPhone 3GS, Palm released the Pre, another intensely anticipated phone. Within hours of it being released, the usual community of developers had already flashed the firmware and created another homebrew application scene for the Pre. Eagerly anticipating the potential growth in the applications but more importantly media support with iTunes, the Pre managed to access iTunes in a manner that Apple calls illegal, developers call questionable and consumers call “unique”. Resultantly, a slew of corporate press releases and open threats ensued between Apple and Palm.
The core issue that Apple is contesting with Palm is that the Pre accesses iTunes by mimicking the software identity of a standard iPod. Apple has openly claimed that this means is illegal. Palm’s response is that Apple’s rather draconian actions will hurt consumers overall as they will be denied a “seamless synchronization experience”. After trading many barbs and considering that former Apple employee, Jon Rubinstein, is now currently the CEO of Palm; tensions are running high. Apple’s response has been to immediately block the Pre from syncing with iTunes, while the Pre development community has refused to update iTunes and resultantly began looking for hacks to bypass the new update.
Taking into the current open standards policy that companies are adopting in an effort to maintain software and hardware compatibility, the problem is that this hurts both companies. Apple’s new update to iTunes actively blocks out the Pre, which from a technical viewpoint make some sense, primarily based on the assumption that there is no official support for the Pre as such. However, considering that Palm has attempted to remedy this problem of support by identifying the Pre as a standard iPod, the responsibility has shifted to Palm to provide support for the phone.
Surprisingly, most tech-savvy consumers have supported both Apple and Palm in unusual ways. Many of them have adopted a very business centric approach, such as Andrew Tingle, who has very clearly mentioned the loss of repeat business that Apple faces by locking out customers through this update; the same viewpoint that Palm is advocating in its press releases. Some have actively pulled Microsoft into the debate in interesting ways as showcased by this comment by Reggie:
“I love my palm pre & also own several ipods. I think that apple is being ridiculous! What if microsoft blocked itunes or stopped the outlook sync? Instead of wasting time figuring out how customers would be using their application on their computers why don’t they create an itunes app for the palm pre for song purchases? […] Ugh, sorry for the lengthy reply, its just that I think this is stupid (of Apple).” – Response by Reggie
Rather interesting logic considering that all of Apple’s products can run on Microsoft’s Windows without excessive problems. However, Apple is correct in stating that the responsibility inherently lies with Palm to coordinate their efforts so that the Pre syncs with iTunes.
The ideal situation would be for Jon Rubinstein to use his contacts in Apple and get to the negotiation table as quickly as possible. Although Amazon’s music store is an excellent alternative to iTunes, the cult following of Apple is hard to find elsewhere. Nonetheless, however Apple’s immediate response seems poorly thought out. It would make more sense to create a situation where Palm would pay for its access to iTunes synchronization while taking a percentage of profits from the increased revenues to Apple via media downloads. Not only does such an action allows Apple to increase its customer base but also ensures that the burden of phone support lies with Palm’s tech support while revenue is divided amongst the key players.
The final outcome of this situation will be very important for both companies, but there is a larger stake for Apple’s repute in this situation. Already, many consumers have looked poorly upon the sudden blockage of iTunes from their Pre phones. Considering that many people utilize iTunes to manage their media, they are now faced with a situation where they cannot listen or watch their media. This is aggravating for consumers considering that cell phone service providers are not necessarily prevalent in every location, making switches to other service providers difficult. Not only are they locked out of their collections, but they now have to carry an extra device if they want to listen or watch their media. Considering the rather fickle nature of consumers nowadays, such an action will certainly hurt the overall image of Apple.
If Steve Jobs is a savvy business professional, he’ll probably re-think this decision and get to the negotiation table as quick as possible. What do you think? Will Apple let the Pre sync up with iTunes or stay the course with its current actions? Is Palm to be held responsible for their actions? Leave your comments below.