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February 09, 2005
Sirius iPod Rumor - Squashed!
You know we love any info on the possible Sirius / iPod Satellite Radio Rumor, but apparently Sirius Satellite Radio CEO Mel Karmazin said he has had discussions with Apple's CEO Steve Jobs about the possibility of adding satellite-radio service to iPods.
"I've spoken to Steve Jobs," said Karmazin, speaking Wednesday morning at a media conference in New York. He went on to say that the "current thinking" at Apple is that "they don't need to put a satellite radio in their box."
Karmazin declined to elaborate on his discussions with Jobs. Karmazin said he believes that adding satellite radio would be an enhancement to MP3s and other portable music devices. He likens the possibility to Sony Corp.'s (SNE) Walkman, a gadget whose popularity soared when radio was added. Sirius is likely to launch its own portable satellite radio device in time for this year's holiday season, Karmazin said.
"Do I think (a satellite radio-MP3 player combo) is going to happen some day in the future? Absolutely," said April Horace, a satellite radio analyst with Janco Partners. But whether XM or Sirius nabs Apple or another MP3 maker like Sony or Virgin first is anybody's guess, she said.
Thanks candlebougie!
February 9, 2005 12:24 PM
Comments
I listen to music in three places, in the office, at home, and in the car. None of these places requires a portable player (I don't need a battery, I prefer to plug it in).
Anyway, I don't need an ipod with sat. I need a sat plug-n-play with a hard drive - and the ability to record the streams.
A portable sat player doesn't seem all that ideal to me. I think the spotty reception would get frustrating. In the car your usually out in the open and get good reception but with a portable you would expect to use it indoors. I could be wrong because myfi owners seem to be happy.
Posted by: Monmin at February 9, 2005 02:09 PM
It's one of those things that you don't realize you'd like until you actually interact with it. Sure, millions of people were happy listening to MP3s off their computer, until portable MP3 players came out and the convenience of listening to anything - anywhere - was suddenly realized.
I think more importantly is the branding and advertising possibilities of partnering the iPod with Satellite Radio.
It's not over yet though - there's still the SkyPod:
http://www.orbitcast.com/archives/2005/01/ipod_satellite_2.html
Posted by: Ryan at February 9, 2005 02:46 PM
