September 2007 – nick piggott

iPhone + Jahah

iphone plus jajah by jahah @ flickr

It appears my scepticism about the rumours of the iPod to include Digital Radio was well founded. How on earth the real announcement got extrapolated to that is quite impossible to believe, but a salutary tale none-the-less.

The actual news is that the iPhone now has WiFi access to the iTunes store. (How clever not to go bunging up the tiny datafootpath of GPRS that is the iPhone’s sole contact with the real world). I’m not that impressed. Same application, different bearer, big deal.

The interesting stuff comes in the last breaths. Apple have linked up with Starbucks. A meeting of the brands – can you imagine the ponytails, chino jeans and lattés in those meetings? Starbucks, you might be aware, is also hopping on the music bandwagon by making big its policy of playing music in its stores. (I’m sure MacDonalds have done that for years?). But here’s the big revolutionary “oh my god, how clever are Apple?!” idea.

Starbucks will tell Apple the song that’s currently playing the store… and the last ten songs played. You can download them (using the WiFi in all Starbucks) with just a couple of clicks.

Wow. Wish I’d thought of that.

(Actually – wish I’d thought of taking the idea to Apple).

Now I wonder if Apple is interested in doing the same with radio stations, or if we’re just simply not cool enough for them? (Note to self – buy new Chinos, grow ponytail, drink more latté).

Crossed Wires or Groundbreaking Announcement?

iPod

my new ipod nano by baston @ flickr

My attention was drawn to this report that Apple will be announcing iPods with Digital Radio functionality this week. In summary it says that Apple will announce an iPod with “digital radio” and a “buy now” function to download and buy tracks (from iTunes) as they are being played.

I’ll admit that I’m bemused and intruiged.

This might be a re-heat of the news of a DAB Digital Radio plug-in for the iPod that kind of leaked out earlier in the year. But that’s strictly a DAB Digital Radio “sidecar” that clips to the bottom of the device. It’s a long extrapolation from that to the kind of device talked about in the report.

I still find it unlikely that Apple would add DAB Digital Radio functionality to the iPod for the size of markets that exist now. Whilst the UK, Denmark and Switzerland are doing very nicely, I can’t see how they would be sufficiently big enough markets to influence Apple’s global (or even European) strategy. Adding DAB technology still comes with a price that throws about £30 (US$60) onto the price of a unit. Would Apple add that price?

Most unlikely is that anyone has found a business model for downloading music via DAB Digital Radio capacity. If they have, I take my hats off to them. There is a model there somewhere, but tying up over the air data capacity to speculatively send a song never seems to add up to me. As far as I am aware, only UBC’s Cliq service has developed the pre-requisite technology framework to make this happen, and have been the only people talking to broadcasters about whether they want to transmit it or not.

Apparently we only have to wait until Wednesday for an answer. Then we’ll presumably get the truth. (Actually, the main reason for my scepticism is that Apple haven’t been furiously denying it for weeks, which is the most sure sign that something is true).

I still have high hopes for iRiver’s B20 device, which co-incidentally has also got some coverage this week here, here and here. It’s a great device, which is very well converged and the implementation of DAB Digital Radio is one of the best I’ve used. I’m also tremendously pleased to see the inclusion of a proper EPG (Electronic Programme Guide) and support for Slideshow visuals. It’s a bit pricey, but hopefully it will still be a big seller.