[Ratm]

I saw this while checking Apple's stock in sherlock.
The info from Apple.
http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2004/jan/08hp.html

HP and Apple Partner to Deliver Digital Music Player and iTunes to HP Customers

8 January 2004, 1:06pm ET
LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 8, 2004--Working to provide consumers with the most compelling digital content whenever and wherever they desire, HP (NYSE:HPQ) and Apple (Nasdaq:AAPL) today announced a strategic alliance to deliver an HP-branded digital music player based on Apple's iPod, the No. 1 digital music player in the world, and Apple's award-winning iTunes digital music jukebox and pioneering online music store to HP's customers.

As part of the alliance, HP consumer PCs and notebooks will come preinstalled with Apple's iTunes jukebox software and an easy-reference desktop icon to point consumers directly to the iTunes Music Store, ensuring a simple, seamless music experience. This offering is yet another way that HP is helping consumers enjoy more from their personal digital entertainment content.

"HP's goal is to bring the most compelling entertainment content and experiences to our customers," said Carly Fiorina, chairman and chief executive officer, HP. "We explored a range of alternatives to deliver a great digital music experience and concluded Apple's iPod music player and iTunes music service were the best by far. By partnering with Apple, we have the opportunity to add value by integrating the world's best digital music offering into HP's larger digital entertainment system strategy."

"Apple's goal is to get iPods and iTunes into the hands of every music lover around the world, and partnering with HP, an innovative consumer company, is going to help us do just that," said Steve Jobs, chief executive officer, Apple. "As the industry balkanizes by offering digital music wrapped in a multitude of incompatible proprietary technologies, consumers will be reassured in getting the same unparalleled digital music solutions from both HP and Apple, two leaders in the digital music era."

According to internal HP research, more than 54 percent of current HP consumers download music to their PCs.

More than 2 million iPods have been sold since its introduction, solidifying its position as the No. 1 digital music player in the world. All iPods work seamlessly with the award-winning iTunes digital music jukebox software and the iTunes Music Store, which has sold more than 30 million songs, providing music fans with the best digital music experience on either a Mac or Windows(R) PC.



The iTunes Music Store offers Windows and Mac users a music catalog of more than 500,000 songs, the same "gold standard" personal use rights and the same 99 cents-per-song pricing. The iTunes Music Store features online gift certificates for family and friends; Apple's innovative and patent-pending online "Allowance" feature, which allows parents to automatically deposit funds into their kids' iTunes Music Store account every month; more than 5,000 audiobooks, which can be purchased with one click and listened to on a Mac or Windows computer as well as on iPods; Celebrity Playlists; and new exclusive tracks from more than 60 artists. The iTunes Music Store offers music from all five major music companies and over 200 independent music labels.

Pricing and availability

HP's digital music player is expected to become available this summer and be priced competitively to other digital music players currently available.

Beginning this summer, the iTunes software and a desktop icon guiding users to the music site will be preloaded on HP Pavilion, Media Center and Compaq Presario desktop and notebook consumer PCs.

[Krypton]

This will silence the cheap iPod demands

But will this be purely licensing money for Apple?

[Kenneth]

cool!

Apple put this image up a couple months ago..



iTunes Music Store with HP and iPod

Anyway, Steve uses a DELL to give the demo on stage.

[Ratm]

Reaction to this news over at MacRumors. This is HUGE!.

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthre...threadid=54361

[scottiB]

DIE111 WINDOWS MEDIA DIE1111

[Nonsuch]

I'm really curious what an HP music player "based on" the iPod will be like. Will it just be an iPod with an HP logo on it? An HP-designed enclosure with the iPod OS? Scroll wheel or no scroll wheel? Very ambiguous�but excellent news all the same. Consumer PCs shipping with iTunes pre-installed is wonderful.

[edited to remove mistake]

[Jayznkelc]

Originally posted by scottiB:
DIE111 WINDOWS MEDIA DIE1111

forgot the shift key, but I share your feelings111

[itai195]

Originally posted by Nonsuch:
I'm really curious what an HP music player "based on" the iPod will be like. Will it just be an iPod with an HP logo on it? An HP-designed enclosure with the iPod OS? Scroll wheel or no scroll wheel? Very ambiguous�but excellent news all the same. Consumer PCs shipping with iTunes pre-installed is wonderful.

[edited to remove mistake]

According to CNET -- it's basically an "HP Blue" color iPod that has all the same features/design and shows an Apple logo on startup.

Having iTunes preinstalled on all HP computers is great news! According to CNET it's also an exclusive multi-year deal.

[Apple Pro Underwear]

Originally posted by itai195:
According to CNET -- it's basically an "HP Blue" color iPod that has all the same features/design and shows an Apple logo on startup.

hey, that sounds cool...

but i already decided on a iPod mini silver for my next iPod

[zigzag]

Excellent. Don't forget that the iTMS is already available to almost 30 million AOL subscribers. This new deal not only puts iTunes right on the desktop of all HP/Compaq buyers, but HPs/Compaqs are mostly sold via retail, so Apple will now have a presence in all the retail outlets where most people buy machines - Best Buy, etc. It's great exposure, not to mention another revenue stream.

HP is trying to compete with Dell, which just brought out its own music player. This way, HP doesn't have to do any research or development - they just stick their name on the iPods. Dell will probably win on price but Dell doesn't have a retail presence.

I don't care if these people buy Macs as long as they help keep Apple alive and healthy.

[Kenneth]

HP stock jumps ~5%..
My parents and I own many Compaq shares (now turns to HP)...

I'm happy.

[perryp]

Another cloning disaster..... don't Apple learn?

[Nonsuch]

Originally posted by perryp:
Another cloning disaster..... don't Apple learn?

Nothing of the kind. iTunes is already available for the PC�this just ensures HP users have ready access to it. And while the music player aspect is sketchy, it sounds like Apple will simply build iPods for HP to sell under their own brand, and that will only help Apple.

[fizzlemynizzle]

Apple is out to leverage themselves as Lexus while allowing HP to play the role of Toyota.

[Ratm]

Originally posted by perryp:
Another cloning disaster..... don't Apple learn?

my post paste/copy from MR

Apple will move to the all new concept design of the iPod mini and will abandon the current design; allowing HP to continue to market the pervious while making money off both (brilliant).

I've perviously owned the 2G iPod and now the 3G and automatically identified the flaws of the touch technology for the iPod -- the buttons were much too sensitive but the iPod mini solves all this.

The iPod minis are not just so that Apple can compete in those markets but is intended to be the future of the portable music player for Apple.