The Battle For The Bulge

Now Apple has released its first portable video product, Apple’s next battle can now commence. Forget the iRiver, the Sony MP3 players and even the PSP. They don’t even register. Apple’s true enemies are the mobile phone brands.

Apple must face this battle - the Battle For The Bulge - because the mobile phone brands have already got the upperhand. You see, in the end we’ll only want to carry one device in our pockets. A phone AND a media player is one bulge too many in our tight designer London Denim jeans.

Phones are already omnipresent in a way Apple can only dream of. Your phone rides the train to work with you, goes to the beach with you, watches over you at night and wakes you up in the morning. Your phone keeps you in touch with your mates, even sends and receives pictures of them - and now your phone even plays video clips. It’s a wherever, whenever product. The iPod, even the video iPod, looks distinctly 2D compared to standard cell phone.

Yes, the iPod is a beautiful product with an amazing user interface and amazing memory. But memory capacity is not a defendable position - cellphone competition is just a matter of time (or the use of an iRiver memory chip). And what’s more, an industry that can create the ROKR, will surely one day create something as desirable as the iPod.

Apple can defend its position in the short term through iTunes. It stops the phone brands in their tracks. But consider iTunes as an early version of Windows - it’s an inflexible monopolistic proprietary system just waiting to be cracked and reworked over by some Linux dudes. Soon, if not already, a Web 2.0 version of iTunes will be available where you can download from the iTunes library AND any other library you choose from. The monopoly ends. True democratization of music to be listened to on the device of your choosing. And remember: you only want one ‘device’ to squeeze into that pocket.

Apple needs to get into the phone space quickly. The Battle For The Bulge has begun. Apple had the chance to get early advantage by siding with Motorola but then they did a true Brutus when they jammed a little shiny device in Motorola’s back on the day of the ‘Nano’ launch… a tragedy that might come back and haunt them.