Apple's iMessage is stuck in the depressing past
commentary I'm generally an optimistic guy, but iMessage left me feeling that the cup is half empty.Apple's new service for iOS 5 devices lets people send messages to each other through a system that embraces and then extends the traditional text-messaging world. It's got plenty to be excited about, but overall I'm sad that a powerful computer is repeating the mistakes of the instant-messaging market.Here's why: I'm glad somebody with Apple's clout is sticking it to the carriers when it comes to overpriced text messages. But I need another proprietary messaging network like I need a hole in my head.With iMessage, somebody with an iOS 5 device can address messages with either any e-mail address their correspondent has registered with Apple or with an iPhone's phone number.Like the iOS messaging app it replaces, iMessage integrates with the SMS (Short Message Service) and MMS (Multimedia Message Service) that wireless network operators offer. Also like regular messaging, iMessage messages are delivered with Apple's push servers and thus arrive with an attention-getting notification.Unlike the iOS earlier messaging method, though--and here's the big deal--iMessage communications sent from one iOS device to another are free on Wi-Fi and use only a miniscule amount of data on data subscription plans. That could save some folks some real money, especially if they text with iPhone-toting friends or relatives who are overseas.Apple's iMessage service lets iOS device users send text messages to each other for free. It also dovetails with existing SMS and MMS messaging services from carriers.Screenshot by Jason CiprianiAnd a broader role for iMessage seems likely. It's for iOS right now, but especially that it can use e-mail addresses, it seems obvious that Apple would build iMessage abilities into iChat, its instant-messaging app for Mac OS. It's also conceivable that Apple would extend iMessage by building apps for other devices, of course, but I wouldn't bet on it.What's good about iMessageLike most people I know, I have no love for the carriers from whom I've purchased phone and data subscriptions over the years. Ideally, they should reliably send and receive bits wherever I am and otherwise stay out of the way.It can be tough being a carrier. There's a constant need to upgrade and expand the wireless-network infrastructure. Soaring data demand means a large number of customers are disgruntled from congestion and reliability problems. And as much as carriers want to have a relationship with their customers, the fact of the matter is those customers care far more about the companies at the other end of the pipe--Facebook, Google, and so on--than they do about the pipe itself.But one reason I have no special love for the wireless operators, though, is the fees they exact for text messages.Take Verizon as an example. With its pay-as-you go plan for messaging, text messages cost 20 cents each, and MMS messages, which include a photo or video, cost 25 cents each. Alternatively, $20 a month gets you unlimited messaging, a better deal if you send and receive more than 100 messages a month.So for text messages with a 160-character length costing 20 cents each, that's a price of $1,250 per megabyte. Verizon's smartphone data plans, by comparison, starts at $30 for 2GB for the lowest tier, which is to say 15 cents per megabyte. So by that measure, text messages cost a factor of 8,333 more.Text messaging adds up. According to a Sanford Bernstein analyst estimate quoted in The New York Times, the U.S. wireless industry brings in $20 billion in messaging revenue each year.I'll grant that text messages carry much greater value per bit than most data, in part because of their immediacy and the fact that they can be exchanged using only phone numbers for message addressing.But I still resent what looks an awful lot like gouging to me. For that reason, I welcome Apple's iMessage. The carriers might just raise rates elsewhere through data caps or other means, but at least that will be more honest pricing.I expect iMessage will gain enough adherents that even if you can't use it directly, it could lead to more rational text-message pricing from carriers. And it's likely to draw attention to new or existing alternatives--BlackBerry Messenger, Samsung's ChatOn, WhatsApp, Skype, Google Talk, Yahoo Messenger, AIM, and who knows what else.What's bad about iMessageHere's what I don't like about iMessage, though: it's yet another proprietary service.There are times when I'll grudgingly step into somebody's walled-off online service. I've bought videos and apps over iTunes that I can't play without Apple's software. I've bought plenty of Android apps from the Android Market and stored plenty of files at Google Docs. I've posted innumerable moments of life history at Facebook, uncomfortably cognizant of the fact that Facebook then effectively owns an important part of social interactions with my friends and relations.But when it comes to sending tidbits of text here and there, I don't want lock-in.I want a standard.I've been spoiled here by e-mail. All I need is your e-mail address, and I can drop you a line, and vice-versa.It's not CompuServe e-mail, AOL e-mail, or Prodigy e-mail, for those of you who can remember back to the proprietary networks of the 1980s and 1990s. Those went extinct when the Internet's standards won out.But no such thing happened with instant messaging. To this day, I have to deal with three instant messenger networks, AIM, Yahoo Messenger, and Gmail Chat. People ping me with Facebook chat, Skype IM, and Twitter direct messages. And from a practical point, it's hard for me to archive and search all these disparate communications channels. It's not the end of the world, but I do think that the fact that the networks didn't cooperate on something as fundamental as exchanging real-time text was important in the history of the computing industry.Specifically, I expect that if Yahoo, Microsoft, and AOL had reached some agreement in the 1990s about IM protocols, then we wouldn't be having this discussion about iMessage and SMS today. If instant messaging had been standardized, it would have become just as ordinary as e-mail is today on smartphones. SMS may or may not have integrated, but I believe its utility would have been comparatively low with effective IM that spanned computers as well as phones. And the carriers wouldn't be able to charge so much for text messages.Overall, I see iMessage as a useful addition for people who have lots of iFriends, and Apple shouldn't be criticized for bringing it to market any more than Skype should be blamed for undermining per-minute voice-call pricing. And who knows--with iCloud and iMessenger, Apple is finally building a suite of compelling online services that could make the company a player on the Internet as well as on computing hardware.But unless iMessage lays the foundation for an industry-spanning messaging standard that sweeps away today's proprietary networks, I'm afraid I see it as just the latest in a series of disappointments.
NBC says bye to iTunes, hello to piracy and lost revenue
NBC says bye to iTunes, hello to piracy and lost revenue
I'm not quite sure what any of these companies are thinking.First, Universal Music Group steps away from the third-largest music retailer in the world because it thinks iTunes is suffocating it, then NBC walks away to make more money and stop people from stealing its media.But what both companies don't understand is that they need Apple far more than Apple needs them.Let me paint a scenario for you of what happens as soon as NBC pulls its programming off iTunes.First, the company will tout its new video service, Hulu, as the savior for this generation.After that corporate-speak is completed, it will begin telling the world about the issues with iTunes in an attempt to downplay its importance.First, NBC will use the line, "Well gee, shouldn't we be allowed to make some money too?"And after that doesn't work, the company will resort to the classic, "Well, look at all of these pirates!It's the actors who are getting hurt by this.Think of them!"After this new PR campaign is complete, NBC executives--obviously without any grasp on reality--will sit there and expect their assistants to bring them financial numbers that show exploding growth in programming sales.With cigars firmly in place, the big shots will open up the revenue reports and come to one damning conclusion: revenue from programming has gone down, yet piracy has increased tenfold.Meanwhile, back in Cupertino, Steve Jobs and company are left counting their iTunes revenue with nary a blink at the modicum of lost revenue they experienced from the NBC move.Give it about six months and NBC will be calling back with an olive branch in hand, hoping to get back onto iTunes.Only this time, NBC will have an even worse agreement with Apple.How many times do I have to say it until someone at NBC finally hears me?There is no way you can benefit from leaving iTunes.People who would normally have purchased shows like The Office are now going to their favorite torrent site and downloading each episode to their hearts' content.From there, they'll be adding those illegally downloaded songs directly to their iTunes account and will enjoy them on their Apple TV or iPod.It's about time that NBC, Universal and the rest of these bozos realize that without iTunes, their online presence is nil.Sure, Universal can sell its music to Wal-Mart or the Zune Marketplace and do um, fine, but is it really willing to lose all of the revenue iTunes has provided for it?I guarantee it'll be back.Right now, Universal is a lone duck on an empty pond--it's in for trouble.But more than anything, this NBC move really baffles me.If you want to stop piracy of your programming, why would you take it off legitimate services?Am I missing something here?Is it the company's greed or belief that it can go it alone?Either way, it's a dumb move.Sad as it is, there's no way to fully eliminate piracy.Whether you want to believe it or not, the best way to stop piracy is to give people most of what they want: no DRM, an affordable price and ease of purchase.NBC wants stronger DRM and higher prices and it's making its product less available.Sounds like a recipe for trouble.NBC is in for a rude awakening.Because it currently can not see through its greed and short-sightedness, its goals will be trumped by its biggest fear.Get ready, NBC, because a flurry of piracy, lost revenue and eventual Steve Jobs genuflection is on your 2008 calendar.Nice move.
I'm not quite sure what any of these companies are thinking.First, Universal Music Group steps away from the third-largest music retailer in the world because it thinks iTunes is suffocating it, then NBC walks away to make more money and stop people from stealing its media.But what both companies don't understand is that they need Apple far more than Apple needs them.Let me paint a scenario for you of what happens as soon as NBC pulls its programming off iTunes.First, the company will tout its new video service, Hulu, as the savior for this generation.After that corporate-speak is completed, it will begin telling the world about the issues with iTunes in an attempt to downplay its importance.First, NBC will use the line, "Well gee, shouldn't we be allowed to make some money too?"And after that doesn't work, the company will resort to the classic, "Well, look at all of these pirates!It's the actors who are getting hurt by this.Think of them!"After this new PR campaign is complete, NBC executives--obviously without any grasp on reality--will sit there and expect their assistants to bring them financial numbers that show exploding growth in programming sales.With cigars firmly in place, the big shots will open up the revenue reports and come to one damning conclusion: revenue from programming has gone down, yet piracy has increased tenfold.Meanwhile, back in Cupertino, Steve Jobs and company are left counting their iTunes revenue with nary a blink at the modicum of lost revenue they experienced from the NBC move.Give it about six months and NBC will be calling back with an olive branch in hand, hoping to get back onto iTunes.Only this time, NBC will have an even worse agreement with Apple.How many times do I have to say it until someone at NBC finally hears me?There is no way you can benefit from leaving iTunes.People who would normally have purchased shows like The Office are now going to their favorite torrent site and downloading each episode to their hearts' content.From there, they'll be adding those illegally downloaded songs directly to their iTunes account and will enjoy them on their Apple TV or iPod.It's about time that NBC, Universal and the rest of these bozos realize that without iTunes, their online presence is nil.Sure, Universal can sell its music to Wal-Mart or the Zune Marketplace and do um, fine, but is it really willing to lose all of the revenue iTunes has provided for it?I guarantee it'll be back.Right now, Universal is a lone duck on an empty pond--it's in for trouble.But more than anything, this NBC move really baffles me.If you want to stop piracy of your programming, why would you take it off legitimate services?Am I missing something here?Is it the company's greed or belief that it can go it alone?Either way, it's a dumb move.Sad as it is, there's no way to fully eliminate piracy.Whether you want to believe it or not, the best way to stop piracy is to give people most of what they want: no DRM, an affordable price and ease of purchase.NBC wants stronger DRM and higher prices and it's making its product less available.Sounds like a recipe for trouble.NBC is in for a rude awakening.Because it currently can not see through its greed and short-sightedness, its goals will be trumped by its biggest fear.Get ready, NBC, because a flurry of piracy, lost revenue and eventual Steve Jobs genuflection is on your 2008 calendar.Nice move.
Best Apple product lineup in years, says Eddy Cue
Best Apple product lineup in years, says Eddy Cue
It's not just Apple CEO Tim Cook who's promising great new products this year. Now Eddy Cue, Apple senior vice president of Internet software and services, is jumping on the bandwagon. The executive, who oversees iTunes, said Wednesday at the Recode Code Conference in Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif., that Apple this year has "the best product pipeline I've seen in 25 years."He noted that "the reason we've been successful is because we're completely focused on the products we're building. We're not focused on building 100 things...We want to do a few great things."Check out CNET's roundup of WWDC predictions.Cue added that former Apple CEO Steve Jobs "would be extremely proud of the products we're building."Apple will host its Worldwide Developers Conference next week in San Francisco. The company won't introduce new hardware, sources tell CNET, but instead will detail new software features and services. Those could include iOS 8, OS X 10.1, a home-automation service, and maybe even mobile payments. The lack of new hardware in June could mean a very busy fall for Apple.Cue, of course, didn't reveal what new products Apple is developing, but he gave some possible hints. For one, Cue said Apple has some interesting plans in store for Beats and its curated music streaming service. See alsoApple iTunes head Cue and Beat's Iovine: Apple's going to put Beats on steroids'New product categories' ahead for Apple, says CEO Tim CookWoz on Beats: Apple's 'getting back to some cool roots'Apple finally confirms it's buying Beats for $3B"We have a lot of customers, and we know what they listen to," he said. "We have a lot of customers who have an easy way to pay. We have a great relationship with artists. ... We think all of those things, when you put them all together, it's [Beats] on steroids. It's going to bring great opportunities for artists and great music for customers."Then there's also Apple TV. Apple has hinted for quite some time that it's working a more complete, over-the-top video streaming service. However, there are no signs such a product is close to ready, which largely has been attributed to difficulties securing content deals at reasonable rates. "TV is a hard problem to solve," Cue said. "One of the problems you have with a TV is you have a disparate system with a bunch of providers. There's no standards. There's a lot of rights issues."But even if Apple does't release the anticipated iTV anytime soon, it will keep working on its current Apple TV box. "Apple TV is going to continue to evolve," Cue said. "It gives a great experience, and we're going to keep improving it."
It's not just Apple CEO Tim Cook who's promising great new products this year. Now Eddy Cue, Apple senior vice president of Internet software and services, is jumping on the bandwagon. The executive, who oversees iTunes, said Wednesday at the Recode Code Conference in Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif., that Apple this year has "the best product pipeline I've seen in 25 years."He noted that "the reason we've been successful is because we're completely focused on the products we're building. We're not focused on building 100 things...We want to do a few great things."Check out CNET's roundup of WWDC predictions.Cue added that former Apple CEO Steve Jobs "would be extremely proud of the products we're building."Apple will host its Worldwide Developers Conference next week in San Francisco. The company won't introduce new hardware, sources tell CNET, but instead will detail new software features and services. Those could include iOS 8, OS X 10.1, a home-automation service, and maybe even mobile payments. The lack of new hardware in June could mean a very busy fall for Apple.Cue, of course, didn't reveal what new products Apple is developing, but he gave some possible hints. For one, Cue said Apple has some interesting plans in store for Beats and its curated music streaming service. See alsoApple iTunes head Cue and Beat's Iovine: Apple's going to put Beats on steroids'New product categories' ahead for Apple, says CEO Tim CookWoz on Beats: Apple's 'getting back to some cool roots'Apple finally confirms it's buying Beats for $3B"We have a lot of customers, and we know what they listen to," he said. "We have a lot of customers who have an easy way to pay. We have a great relationship with artists. ... We think all of those things, when you put them all together, it's [Beats] on steroids. It's going to bring great opportunities for artists and great music for customers."Then there's also Apple TV. Apple has hinted for quite some time that it's working a more complete, over-the-top video streaming service. However, there are no signs such a product is close to ready, which largely has been attributed to difficulties securing content deals at reasonable rates. "TV is a hard problem to solve," Cue said. "One of the problems you have with a TV is you have a disparate system with a bunch of providers. There's no standards. There's a lot of rights issues."But even if Apple does't release the anticipated iTV anytime soon, it will keep working on its current Apple TV box. "Apple TV is going to continue to evolve," Cue said. "It gives a great experience, and we're going to keep improving it."
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