President Bush Listens to iPod
Almost every manufacturer would love to have this kind of publicity where the President uses your product, an iPod in this case.
But Apple the manufacturers of iPods are not happy…
Ken Belson of New York Times explains.
Youd think any marketer would love a little product placement with the consumer in chief. But the iPod - and Apple products generally - have reached near-cult status partly because they cultivate an image as the electronic toys of the anti-establishment set.
If someone as mainstream as President Bush has caught on to something allegedly so hip, what can Apple do to keep iPod chic and cutting edge?
Many successful gadget makers have wrestled with this issue and few have conquered it. Nokias handsets, treasured for their sleekness just a few years ago, are now ridiculed as clunky blocks. Palm organizers, once signature accouterments in Silicon Valley and on Wall Street, barely register a yawn when they are pulled out at dinner parties.
