The iPod Comet and Third-Parties Or Why Apple “Scares” Pre Owners With iTunes Threats

June 17, 2009 ·Filed Under Technology News

The iPod Comet orbits the Earth in a bi-annual rotation, bringing new devices and attendant accessories into our view every Spring and Fall. The constellation is followed by a set of third-party developers and manufacturers who bolster the cloud as it swings into view and next vanish as the excitement wears off, relegating the devices to CostCos and Sam’s Clubs until the next rotation. But that season the orbit brought an anomaly: the Palm Pre, a device that is ostensibly compatible with the cloud, namely iTunes, but is definitely not of Apple’s world.

The Pre, as you’ll remember, masquerades as an iTunes-compatible device, a feature that Apple promises will

soon be remedied through software updates. To that Palm replied:

“Palm’s media sync works with the current version of iTunes,” Palm spokesperson Lynn Fox told me. “If Apple chooses to disable media sync in a future version of iTunes, it will be a direct blow to their users who will be deprived of a seamless synchronization experience. However, society will have options. They can stay with the iTunes version that works to sync their music on their Pre, they can transfer the music via USB, and there are other third-party applications we could consider.”


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