Remember yesterday when we reported about that new and ominous iTunes support article? The one that may or may not be a threat of breaking Palm's media sync, with Apple's exact words being "newer versions of Apple's iTunes software may no longer provide syncing functionality with non-Apple digital media players." Well Palm's not taking this lying down. AllThingsDigital is quoting none other that Palm's own Lynn Fox as saying:
"Palm’s media sync works with the current version of iTunes. 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, people 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."
Lynn Fox (who, we can't help but point out, is a former Apple employee) brings up the interesting unstable symbiotic connection Palm now has with Apple. Palm benefits from having the Pre be iTunes-compatible out of the box and Apple gains new iTunes users, customers who may potentially buy from iTunes until they upgrade devices. At the same time, Apple may lose iPhone sales to the Pre due to the iTunes compatibility but if they change how iTunes work, it could cause issues with Apple's own iPods or Palm could just issue an OTA update fixing that. It seems, at least currently, that Apple's best bet would be to allow the Pre's Media Sync.
Of course if Palm does get shut out, Fox points out there are alternatives. The regular USB mode would be good enough for many. And for most everyone else, DoubleTwist has its own third party iTunes syncing solution available for the Pre right now, which itself may contribute to Apple letting Palm keep Media Sync; people are going to sync with iTunes anyway. Regardless of what Apple ends up doing, it's clear there will always be options when it comes to the Pre.
Comments
this is hilarious. love it.
I think Apple is aware of all this and I agree with those who said that they're statement was more in the sense of "we only have an obligation to remedy sync issues that may come up with iPod devices, but not with non-Apple devices", and that's it.
hahaha nice
sorry apple but if you disable media sync you hurt your own ipods and iphones and yet the pre has other alternatives to syncing music and it only takes one OTA update to fix compatibility again with itunes
i love it!!
That is so lame. It hilarious because Palm really was able to get under Apple's skin!
Indeed. iTunes synching is such a small thing, but they got Apple to flinch. I think the value was cracking the protocol rather than the actual use. Nice little face smack for Apple "inventing" touch screen phone, app store and 3G service, years after Palm introduced them.
I guess whats he trying to say is that if the S(*&T hits the fan they somewhere else to go. If i was Palm I would just buy Double Twist...enough said.
Apple is so ridiculous, isn't iTunes a free applicaiton just like Windows Media Player? Isn't the object to get as many users as possible to use your software?!? Sheesh.
I guess playing songs on a Mac wasn't the original purpose?
Syncing music via USB Mode works fine (used MediaMonkey), EXCEPT you don't have any playlists because Pre Music app only works with iTunes proprietary playlists, not industry-standard .m3u. Syncing playlists via iTunes worked fine, but if I wanted to use that proprietary iTunes crud, I would've bought an iPhone.
A friend on friendfeed.com posted this, I thought it was interesting. From a blog post by Steve Jobs in 2007 "Thoughts on Music" http://www.apple.com/hotnews/thoughtsonmusic/
"Imagine a world where every online store sells DRM-free music encoded in open licensable formats. In such a world, any player can play music purchased from any store, and any store can sell music which is playable on all players. This is clearly the best alternative for consumers, and Apple would embrace it in a heartbeat."
I wonder what happened along the way?
He had a sudden dose of reality.
There's a reason these format exist, you can either accept that and work through it or sit around complaining about it for the rest of your life...
People need to make money, we love it, you love it, they love it.
Because the iTunes interface isn't a public API, they would be forced to put that disclaimer up regardless of whether or not they intend to disable iTunes syncing on the Pre. What happens if they put out an update to iTunes that unintentionally breaks Pre syncing? They don't want to be responsible for fixing it -- they would rather leave that onus on Palm (where it rightfully belongs).
I believe that Apple is just doing their legal posturing, with such a non-threatening initial statement. I mean, why would they want to turn anyone away from iTunes? The more subscribers the better, Apple device or not! If this was not the case, why would they create PC compatible iTunes software, if they wanted to force users to use Apple computers?! Matter of fact, I never used iTunes once before getting my Pre! Now I do. I am sure Palm and Apple have some sort of agreement here. Deep down I think Apple is kind of scared of Palm.
anyone try pre with songbird?
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