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Technology Stocks : Apple Inc. -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: slacker711 who wrote (56331)	8/25/2006 6:57:48 PM
From: Rick Julian	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 213183

I’d expect the message will be to try to marginalize the iPod as being the music player that dad, mom or your little sister uses, and Zune is for the cool kids. It’s a risky strategy but it’s better than trying to take Apple on directly head to head in the mainstream market. Of course, I also expect Cupertino might have a response or two of their own. If, in fact, this is their brand strategy, it will be a craptacular failure. If I had Microsoft's marketing dollars, I wouldn't bank on out-hipping Apple with a "we're cooler" positioning–Microsoft hasn't demonstrated any competence is singing that kind of song convincingly. Instead they need to find their own niche: perhaps a community/sharing facilitation vs. a me/mine framing of Apple's offering. Of course this kind of juxtaposing will only be valid as long as this disparity exists . . . one that might be erased before the Christmas buying season begins. The iPod is a wonderfully elusive moving target.