by , 2:30 PM EDT, August 25th, 2004
Rolling Stone magazine is reporting that a source close to Microsoft is saying that Big Redmond "made several overtures" to Apple to get iPod support for Microsoft's upcoming music store. According to the same source, Apple rebuffed those overtures. Microsoft will be opening its music store on September 2nd, according to the article, a couple of days after Apple Expo begins in Paris. From the article:
One source close to the matter says that Microsoft has made several overtures to Apple to make its store compatible with the industry-leading iPod but has been rebuffed. (Apple declined to comment.) Manufacturers of players that support Windows Media -- essentially all of them except the iPod -- are excited about the new site. "Any store selling music that our machines support is a great thing," says Gary Byrd, a spokesman for iRiver, a top-selling manufacturer. "When it comes to the market with Microsoft's might, that's a double bonus."
There is more information in the full article, including details on the number of songs the service will launch with, and other details that have been emerging in recent weeks.
What will be interesting to watch is what happens in the future with this subject. As Rolling Stone pointed out in the article, Microsoft's music service is most likely to eclipse the competition to become the #2 service behind Apple's iTunes Music Store. Should Microsoft gain significant traction, it is possible the day could some where Apple actually needs Microsoft's support to maintain iPod sales, which are far more profitable than iTMS sales. We don't expect that, certainly not any time soon, but it's a vague possibility.
Whatever the case, Microsoft's monopoly power in the OS market, and the enormous resources the company can bring to bear on a new market, mean its entry into this market offers the first real chance at disrupting the current power structure within the online music download business.