Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 14

Marketing - Essay Example Market forecasts for the digital media industry over the past four years are said to be inaccurate and reflected a longer span of time before a major market segment is established. This scenario, however, was altered when Apple iTunes Music Store and Ipod Video was introduced by Apple. The success of these products had been phenomenal and is poised to change the landscape of the entertainment world. It was Apple who introduced and pushed for the concepts of video on demand (VOD), along with novel ideas such as pod casting, which is becoming a major factor in video marketing. Sales of the Ipod Video had been surprisingly brisk since Christmas and Apple is likely to raise its sales to 30% for the first quarter of 2006 alone. Steve Jobs, Apple CEO, announced in an Apple press release that they have sold one million videos in less than 20 days of Ipod Video’s release. (Apple) Meanwhile, the traffic on Apple iTunes online store was reported to have jumped 50% in the latter part of last year. (Siglin) A week after its launch, Apple iTunes Music Store boasted to have reached a 2 million-dollar mark, with the store selling music for $0.99 a song. The staggering demand for the Apple portable media has not gone unnoticed by the video industry. Last October, Ipod Video’s launch was sent off by a historical deal between Apple and ABC with the sale of the latter’s television series â€Å"Lost† episodes through Apple iTunes Music Store. Apple is currently in strategic partnership with Walt Disney Co., ABC’s parent company, which involves similar sale of popular ABC shows like â€Å"Desperate Housewives,† â€Å"Night Stalker,† and â€Å"That’s So Raven.† Siglin quoted the NBC Universal chairman, Bob Wright, being interviewed by the Los Angeles Times: â€Å"Apple’s success certainly reinforces the view that there is a demand out there†¦ It’s for real, and it’s going to be with us for a long