Back on October 23, 2001, we were expecting something huge from Apple when we watched Steve Jobs discuss the digital media world in Apple's auditorium in Cupertino, which recently was also used to unveil the iPhone 4S. A 5 GB, HDD-based music player was hardly revolutionary and I was not the only one who felt that the device had no future with an MSRP of $399. Apple gave every person in the audience a beta-release iPod, with 25 free CDs to match most popular music tastes and transferred all songs via Firewire interface within a minute or so to the player.
Back at home – the iPod software was pretty buggy – the iPod failed to impress me, but I felt that Apple had invented something special. It was the first MP3 player I was willing to actually display in public and use with my regular stereo equipment in my living room. Ten years later, Apple has sold an estimated 320 million iPods with generated more than $60 billion in revenue. Since its original introduction in 2011, Apple launched 22 different models of iPods and the original version has survived in the form of the sixth- generation iPod Classic which is offered in a 160 GB version for $249. The current iPod line starts from $49 with the 2 GB Shuffle and ends with the 64 GB iPod touch for $399.
Current shipments are slowing down significantly as sales are shifting toward iPhones. Apple said that it sold 6.6 million iPods in Q3, down from 9.1 million one year ago. However, Apple claims that it still sells more than half of the world's MP3 players and still has 70 percent market share in the U.S. While Apple does not break out iPod model shipments from the total number, the high-end iPod touch is now the key model that secures profit margins for the iPod line and is aligned with Apple's iOS strategy. The company said in September that it has sold more than 250 million iOS devices (iPod touch, iPhone, iPad).
Over the years, the iPod has survived several high-profile lawsuits as well as Microsoft's Zune MP3 player, which was announced in 2006. Back then, Microsoft said that it was in the MP3 player game for the “long haul” and predicted that it could beat the iPod sometime in the future. Earlier this month, Microsoft announced that it will stop selling Zune players.
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