Beating the iPod Crunch
With the holiday shopping season at hand, two truths are swiftly emerging about Apple's iPod digital-music player. First, the product is going to be a gigantic hit. Second, there are going to be shortages.
The only question is how big the shortfall will be. Some retailers contacted by BusinessWeek Online say they're getting far fewer iPods than they requested -- in two cases, fewer than half of their weekly orders. Also, retailing giant Circuit City (CC) expects demand to outstrip supply through the end of the year, though a spokesman wouldn't say to what degree. And Apple Computer's (AAPL) announcement that it would invest $1.2 billion to lock up supply of flash-memory chips from suppliers -- including a new, three-year joint venture between Intel (INTC) and Micron Technology -- has some analysts worried about its ability to make enough iPods to satisfy runaway demand in the near term before additional capacity comes online. Indeed, Toshiba (TOSBF) Chief Executive Atsutoshi Nishida says that "unfortunately, we're not able to satisfy 100% of Apple's requirements" for flash chips.
The only question is how big the shortfall will be. Some retailers contacted by BusinessWeek Online say they're getting far fewer iPods than they requested -- in two cases, fewer than half of their weekly orders. Also, retailing giant Circuit City (CC) expects demand to outstrip supply through the end of the year, though a spokesman wouldn't say to what degree. And Apple Computer's (AAPL) announcement that it would invest $1.2 billion to lock up supply of flash-memory chips from suppliers -- including a new, three-year joint venture between Intel (INTC) and Micron Technology -- has some analysts worried about its ability to make enough iPods to satisfy runaway demand in the near term before additional capacity comes online. Indeed, Toshiba (TOSBF) Chief Executive Atsutoshi Nishida says that "unfortunately, we're not able to satisfy 100% of Apple's requirements" for flash chips.
<< Home