iPhone makes Napster sad
It seems like everyone wants to get a piece of the Apple pie this week -- even old, crazy Napster. According to an article in InformationWeek, Napster has issued a damning statement to investors "warning" them of the "possible" impact the iPhone might have on its business, due to the incompatibility of the online distributor's WMA formatted music and the Apple device. "Our software is not compatible with the iPod," the statement included, thus noting one of the more obvious aspects of the company's dilemma, and went on to proffer that it does not expect the Napster service to be compatible with the iPhone either. Of course, Apple has never been overflowing with hospitality towards non-Cupertino-blessed formats, but it seems like Napster may have shot itself in the foot by attempting to position themselves as direct competition to the juggernaut. The rest of the statement didn't comment on Napster's apparent confusion concerning its own business practices (whether it wants to compete with Apple, or play nice), or question if not selling iPod/iTunes compatible music had contributed to their fiscal year losses of $36.8 million. When reached for comment, a spokesman for the company said emphatically, "we just can't stop doing this to ourselves, whatever it is that we seem to be doing, and we're worried it could affect sales."
