Although Mac OS X, the digital hub strategy, the breakthrough hardware and the retail stores all played a role in Apple’s renaissance, they were not the essential key that made it all come together. As you probably know, that key was a little shiny white device the size of a pack of cigarettes called the iPod. Activat3rs Online Game Store brings exciting offers for gamers to purchase steam wallet code or in-game currencies.Trusted in pakistani pc gamers community groups.Buy your game keys /. The second in a series of eBooks based on the lore of the TERA universe has been published. Called 'Killer', the story features an unlikely pair of characters: Moorg, a kulkari scorned by his. Since 1995, 85 commercial video games based on Lego, the construction system produced by The Lego Group, have been released.Following the second game, Lego Island, developed and published by Mindscape, The Lego Group published games on its own with its Lego Media division, which was renamed Lego Software in 2001, and Lego Interactive in 2002. The division also co-published with. Following the footsteps of the successful titles MU Online and MU Origin, MU Legend offers an authentic alternative to the dungeon crawler gaming experience. A game with its own unique signature, MU Legend blends the dark fantasy world of an MMO with the richness of hack 'n' slash gaming.
Playing games is even better with a friend or loved one. If you’re in a rut for something new to play on the PC then check out some of the best PC games that are perfect for couples.
#20 Haven
Platform: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, XSX, Switch
Release Date: PC, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S December 3, 2020
Switch, PS4 Q1 2021
Genre: Role-playing
Haven is an indie title that follows two lovers as they flee their homes to find a new place to live. Players will go through this narrative-driven RPG seeking a home in a galaxy while fighting off enemies and building up a relationship. The gameplay is a mix of selecting different dialogue choices while combat is more turn-based RPG. It’s worth pointing out that the developers made the game first as a solo experience, but there is an option for a secondary player to join in at any time. However, when in cooperative gameplay, the secondary player only can select their dialogue options and combat. This means the rest of the gameplay and exploration is up to the main player.
#19 Keep Talking And Nobody Explodes
Platform: PC, Android, OS X, PS4, Linux, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One
Release Date: Gear VR 16 July 2015
PC 8 October 2015
OS X 14 December 2015
Oculus Rift 26 March 2016
PS VR 13 October 2016
Google Daydream 10 November 2016
Linux 19 December 2017
Oculus Go 1 May 2018
Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One 16 August 2018
Oculus Quest 21 May 2019
iOS, Android (non-VR) 1 August 2019
Genre: Puzzle
Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes is a great puzzle party game that can be enjoyed with two or more players. In this game, one player has been trapped with a bomb with a series of puzzles surrounding the bomb. To defuse the bomb, the player has to explain what they are looking at with the rest of the party focused on finding solutions. Meanwhile, you’re working against the clock as you attempt to defuse the bomb successfully. To make things even more entertaining, if you have a compatible VR headset then one player trapped with a high power explosive can feel a bit more immerse as they frantically explain the puzzles in hopes your team can find a solution before time runs out.
#18 Grabity
Platform: PC
Release Date: 31 May 2018
Genre: Action Games, Indie
Grabity is an arena brawler where players take the role of a robot that controls a unique gun. Through this gun, players can pick up random objects to use as either a projectile or a shield. From there, it’s an intense battle to see who comes out on top. Fortunately, the gameplay is pretty easy to get into with the developers using a twin-stick approach.
Meanwhile, the gameplay will allow up to four players in a local or online match. It’s simple but addicting and if you’re not sure if this title is worth the purchase, you can try a free demo right from Steam.
#17 Lego The Lord of the Rings
Platform: iOS, Android, PC, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS, OS X, PS 3, PS Vita, Wii, Xbox 360
Release Date: PS Vita, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS October 30, 2012
PC, SP3, Xbox 360, Wii November 13, 2012
OS X 22 February 2013
iOS, Android 7 November 2013
Genre: Action-adventure
There are so many great Lego games out there that are perfect for players to enjoy as it just depends on the franchises you’re interested in. It’s tough to pick just one so for example, there’s Lego The Lord of the Rings. In this game, players can work together as part of The Fellowship during their quest to destroy the One Ring.
Being a Lego-based game, the narrative is toned down for a wide audience. Meanwhile, the gameplay mixes in button mashing to defeat enemies along with solving puzzles that are scattered across the campaign. Additionally, this game condenses the entire trilogy storyline. Again, this is just an example of a Lego-based video game title you could pick up, but overall the gameplay mainly remains the same throughout all the various titles. You’ll ultimately get a spoofed version of the storyline and simplistic game mechanics.
#16 Don’t Starve Together
Platform: PC, Android, iOS, Linux, PC, OS X, PS3, PS4, PS Vita, Wii U, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch
Release Date: April 23, 2013
Linux, PC, OS X April 23, 2013
PS4 January 7, 2014
PS Vita September 2, 2014
Wii U May 28, 2015
PS3 June 23, 2015
iOS July 9, 2015
Xbox One August 26, 2015
Android October 20, 2016
Nintendo Switch April 12, 2018
Genre: Survival
Within Don’t Starve players are dropped into a dark dreary world with little instructions on what to do. Meanwhile, players control a scientist named Wilson as he must make his way through the night with monsters and supernatural enemies hot on his tail. Throughout the game, players will have to search and scavenge the world during the day to gather supplies for firewood and food to survive nightfall. This survival game received a standalone expansion called Don’t Starve Together not long after the game was released.
It’s overall the same gameplay but now players have multiplayer support. Just as before, players will get dropped into a world where they have to gather resources to survive, but now you’ll have the added benefit of working with a friend privately or take a chance at getting paired with a random player online.
#15 Rayman Legends
Platform: PC, Nintendo Switch, PS3, PS4, PS Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Release Date: PS3, PC, Wii U, Xbox 360, PS Vita 3 September 2013
PS4, Xbox One 18 February 2014
Nintendo Switch 12 September 2017
Genre: Platform
Rayman was quite the iconic platformer back in the day but the franchise hasn’t received a new mainline installment in years. With that said, the latest release happens to be a great cooperative game if you’re into platforming. Within Rayman Legends, Rayman finds a mystical painting that can transport him into a new mythical world.
This title will allow up to four cooperative players to jump in and control the party of this narrative adventure through the different mythical worlds. Again, it’s the latest mainline installment available for the Rayman franchise and the developers even went back to bring in some levels of the previous title release, Rayman Origin’s so you’re getting a bit more bang for the buck with this game. It’s worth pointing out that this game doesn’t feature any online multiplayer so it’s local cooperative gameplay or bust.
#14 The Witness
Platform: PS4, PC, Xbox One, Nvidia Shield, macOS, iOS
Release Date: January 26, 2016
PC, PS4 January 26, 2016
Xbox One September 13, 2016
Nvidia Shield January 16, 2017
macOS March 8, 2017
iOS September 20, 2017
Genre: Puzzle
Who doesn’t love a good puzzle? The Witness is nothing but a puzzle game, players are dropped on an island filled with puzzles that only get more complex making you think about how to complete them. There’s nothing to this island but puzzles and it can be quite a soothing and visually appealing experience. You’re left exploring the island, finding what areas of the island unlocks through completing puzzles and progressing forward.
Because the puzzles can become quite complex, you might find this game to be a bit less baffling with the help of another player. Unfortunately, this is a single-player video game experience but even then the game is all about looking at the puzzles and visually trying to comprehend how to complete them. It’s a perfect title to hand the controller back and forth.
#13 Monaco: What’s Yours Is Mine
Platform: PC, Xbox 360, Mac OS X, Linux, Nintendo Switch
Release Date: PC April 24, 2013
Xbox 360 May 10, 2013
Mac OS X July 3, 2013
Linux October 25, 2013
Nintendo Switch October 21, 2019
Genre: Stealth, action
Monaco: What’s Yours Is Mine came out in 2013 but it’s still a solid cooperative game to pick up today. This indie title puts players into heist based missions to acquire loot, avoid attention, and escaping with the goods. The gameplay is set up in a top-down perspective as you get a basic visual of a map that lights up with color and life from where your character is located.
Each mission is also set up differently which will prompt players to change up their strategies. For instance, the game features a variety of playable characters such as a locksmith that can unlock safes faster. As a result, the game encourages players to swap between characters when a mission may call for a particular set of skills. Likewise, since this game features up to four-player support, if planned out these heists can be completed without a hitch or they can become a chaotic mess.
#12 Darksiders Genesis
Platform: Stadia, PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One
Release Date: Stadia, PC 5 December 2019
Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One 14 February 2020
Genre: Hack and slash, role-playing
If you enjoyed the original Darksiders games then you might want to dive into Darksiders: Genesis as it throws players into a prequel. In this game, players take on the role of Strife, the last horseman who is given the task of hunting down Lucifer. As a result, you’ll go through all kinds of demonic forces in an epic hack and slash action-packed installment. As well this is the first time for the franchise to receive a cooperative multiplayer mode.
Players can go through the game together both online or locally in split-screen. You can still enjoy this game if you haven’t played a Darksiders title before and it might even lead you to the past mainline installments to see how the narrative continues.
#11 Pummel Party
Platform: PC
Release Date: 20 Sep, 2018
Genre: Action Games, Casual, Indie
Pummel Party is an excellent game to play if you were a fan of the old Mario Party titles. However, this is a more adult version of Mario Party with players going through board games and participating in a slew of mini-games. Up to eight players are allowed to join a game both online or locally. Players will make their way through the hazardous terrains of the board game in hopes of winning the match while at the end of players turns you’ll get tossed into a mini-game. Of course, if you don’t have enough players to fill a lobby then you can allow bots to join in and allow the insane mayhem to commence.
#10 Spelunky 2
Platform: PC, PS4, Switch
Release Date: PS4 September 15, 2020
PC September 29, 2020
Nintendo Switch Mid-2021
Genre: Platform, roguelike
In Spelunky 2 players control a spelunker that is in search of treasure within a series of different caves. While underground, players will also be susceptible to enemies, traps, and, of course, the damsels in need of rescuing. Spelunky can be entertaining and unique as levels are randomly generated with four distinct areas that increase in difficulty. The second installment only adds to the fun of the first game with more treasure to loot, dangerous caverns to explore, and people in need of rescue. Best of all the sequel added the ability for cooperative gameplay with secondary player options available both locally and online.
#9 We Were Here
Platform: PC, Xbox One
Release Date: PC February 3, 2017
Xbox One June 5, 2020
Genre: Adventure, Puzzle
We Were Here is a puzzle game that requires two players and an online connection. The game throws players into an abandoned castle where you get separated. However, because you both have access to walkie-talkies, players can stay in communication and work out how to complete puzzles and escape the castle together. Similar to other titles on this list, you have to play through the game with a secondary player as the game requires communication to explain where you’re located and the puzzles that need to be solved. This is also not a very long game either as it can be completed in about three hours.
#8 Tick Tock: A Tale For Two
Platform: PC, Nintendo Switch, Android, macOS, Macintosh operating systems
Release Date: 28 February 2019
Genre: Adventure, Casual, Indie, Video game, Puzzle video game
Tick Tock: A Tale For Two adapts a Scandinavian fairy tale into a puzzle video game made for two players. In the narrative, players are trapped in an unusual world, and to escape, you’ll need to solve several cryptic clues. However, the entire puzzle is not shown on any one particular screen. Instead, this game is played with two devices as you talk with each other through voice chat.
From there, players must figure out how to solve the puzzles by explaining what is shown on their screens. The puzzles can get frustrating so talking through the problem is crucial, but if you’re after a longer game then you might find this to be a bust. It’s a short title that won’t take more than two hours to complete.
#7 Outward
Platform: PC, PS4, Xbox One, Stadia
Zandvox mac os. Release Date: 26 March 2019
Genre: Role-playing
Outward is a survival RPG that can be played with a friend both locally and online. In this game, players are set to survival the world of Aurai but to do so, you’ll need to be prepared for the worse. It’s all about exploration and questing in this game with the large open-world map and you’ll get used to your surroundings. With a map that doesn’t offer any guidance, players will have to figure out not only where to head but where they are currently located. As mentioned, survival is a big key to this game as well, the world is harsh and you’ll need to monitor your vitals such as ensuring your character is not thirsty or has the necessary gear equipped to stay warm or cool.
Outside of that, the combat is broken up between melee style weapon and spellcasting, which you’ll have to use against an assortment of monstrous enemies that roam the world. This is a fairly new title as well with the game coming out in 2019 and so far, two DLC expansions help add even more content into the world of Outward.
#6 Castle Crashers
Platform: PC, Xbox 360, PS3, macOS, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PS4
Release Date: Xbox 360 August 27, 2008
PS3 August 31, 2010
PC, macOS September 26, 2012
Xbox One September 9, 2015
Nintendo Switch,PS4 September 17, 2019
Genre: Beat ’em up, role-playing, action
Castle Crashers is a pretty iconic indie title from development team The Behemoth. The studio has gone on to create other video games, but you’ve likely played Castle Crashers before or at least have heard about this game. It’s a hack and slash title where players take on the role of being a knight that must defend the kingdom from all sorts of enemies.
Visually, the game is set up to be a 2D side-scroller where players face a series of boss battles. Up to four players can join into the battle in what will take most players about seven hours to complete. If you haven’t tried this game yet then you’re missing out on a gem.
#5 Overcooked 2
Platform: Nintendo Switch, PS4, PC, Mac, Linux, Xbox One, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Amazon Luna
Release Date: August 7, 2018
Genre: Simulation
The Overcooked franchise offers a fun party game. In Overcooked 2, players take the role of cooks in a wacky over-the-top kitchen layout. However, you’ll find that your roles are changing in the game due to the kitchen constantly shifting around. With passages being blocked off, players will have to swap roles and complete them correctly while also being on time.
It’s a constant struggle to move around and the levels will throw players into some wacky situations such as cooking in a makeshift kitchen between two rafts floating down a river. It’s chaotic, intense, and all-around a hilariously fun time.
#4 Stardew valley
Platform: PC, macOS, Linux, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PS Vita, iOS, Android
Release Date: February 26, 2016
PC February 26, 2016
macOS, Linux July 29, 2016
PS4 December 13, 2016
Xbox One December 14, 2016
Nintendo Switch October 5, 2017
PS Vita May 22, 2018
iOS October 24, 2018
Android March 14, 2019
Genre: Simulation, role-playing
Stardew Valley is a farming style simulation title where players take on the role of a character who inherits their grandfather’s dilapidated farm. This game was inspired by the classic era of Harvest Moon video games. Within the game, players will have to tend to their crops along with their livestock. Additionally, the game will give players the ability to craft goods, mine, and attend social activities.
Best of all, Stardew Valley eventually received an update that allowed multiplayer support so now up to four players can join into the same world. Players can even decide if they want to combine wallets or allow players to spend funds separately. While all the players will share the same farmland, they will have their skills, energy bar and can interact with NPCs.
#3 Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime
Platform: Linux, PC, OS X, PS4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One
Release Date: PC, Linux, OS X, Xbox One September 9, 2015
PS4 February 9, 2016
Nintendo Switch October 3, 2017
Genre: Action, platform
Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime is an indie title that might be a bit obscure. In this game, players are in control of a ship and must fight off enemy ships. If you have a few friends, this is a perfect game to play as Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime offers up to four-player multiplayer. Players will find that to control a ship they must travel to various departments of their spacecraft making it a constant battle to defeat the enemy and keeping your ship safe. There’s even some replay value because the level layouts are randomized so gameplay should feel a bit different each time you go through the game.
#2 Portal 2
Platform: PC, Mac OS X, Linux PS3, Xbox 360
Release Date: April 19, 2011
PC, Mac OS X, PS3, Xbox 360 (retail) April 19, 2011
PC, Mac OS X (digital) April 19, 2011
Linux (beta) February 26, 2014
Genre: Puzzle-platform
The Portal franchise from Valve only has two mainline installments and if you’re planning on going through the game cooperatively then you’ll need to pick up Portal 2. This game came out in 2011 and it’s a lot like The Witness, a game we mentioned earlier. Overall, Portal is a puzzle game but it’s a puzzle game that focuses on a device that can create wormholes.
Portal 2 offers players a new collection of levels to complete. With the use of a Portal Gun, players can create wormholes that connect. It’s a bit difficult to explain in writing but once you see some footage you’ll immediately understand the gameplay premise. These levels will have players thinking outside of the box and it can be quite challenging. However, it certainly feels rewarding once you manage to solve the puzzle and can progress to the next level.
#1 A Way Out
Platform: PC, PS4, Xbox One
Release Date: March 23, 2018
Genre: Action-adventure
A Way Out is a bit unique in this list as you need a secondary player just to go through this game. It’s often described as Shawshank Redemption the video game because you’re playing two characters that are locked up in prison to escape and finish some business on the outside. The game is set up in a third-person perspective while the screen is split-screen, showing exactly what the other player is doing.
The development team made A Way Out feel like a cinematic experience. Likewise, because of the split-screen, the game puts a focus on helping each other out. For instance, one player may need to create a distraction that allows the secondary character to slip by without being noticed. Cooperative gameplay is a primary focus throughout the game. Fortunately, it’s not a long game either so you can get through it in about six hours with most of the focus being on the story and less on the actual gameplay mechanics making it easy for less seasoned gamers to enjoy.
The Digital Hub strategy
'Youknow, I've got a plan that could rescue Apple. I can't say any more than thatit's the perfect product and the perfect strategy for Apple. But nobody therewill listen to me.'
--Fortune
Apple’s so-called Digital Hubstrategy also emerged in 2000, although it
was only disclosed a year laterat Macworld San Francisco 2001 (see it in the
The Scnd Genesis: Legends Rmx Mac Os Download
Movie Theater).
The Digital Hub strategy was atake on the future of personal computing
that went against a common beliefthat had developed toward the end of
the 1990s. Many analysts were soenthusiastic about the success of the
Internet that they were convincedthe personal computer was soon to
disappear. It would evolve into amere terminal whose only purpose would
be to access all kinds of contenton the Web. The consensus was that the
current state of the PC was a dull,boring box, and that any innovation had
stopped in the industry.
Steve Jobs and Apple thought differently. They were among the very few
that professed quite theopposite: the PC had a very exciting future. As they
put it, it had evolved throughoutthe years from the age of productivity, in
the 1980s, where people used itfor spreadsheets and databases; to the age
of networking, in the 1990s,where it connected to the Internet; and it was
now, in the early 2000s, enteringits third age: that of the digital lifestyle.
Consumers were increasinglystarting to use all kinds of digital devices:
digital cameras, camcorders,music players, PDAs.. But these devices didn’t
all about Steve Jobs.com
.make sense without a computer.The personal computer was going to
become the center or digital hubof this new digital lifestyle, making all its
pieces — music, photos, movies,contacts, data — come together.
It’s worth stopping and lookingback at this for a minute. See, it’s such
decisions that have made SteveJobs worthy of his reputation of hi-tech
visionary. He certainly isn’talways right: he never believed in Pixar’s success
in making animated movies, forexample, until the very last months before
Toy Story was released. Hethought NeXT would become a new standard in
personal computing, and Pixar’sRenderMan would allow mere mortals to
draw 3D objects just as easily asthey laid out and printed newsletters. He
also released computers thatflopped badly, from the NeXT Cube to the G4
Cube, released in July 2000 anddiscontinued just one year later. But he
really did see the future atseveral points in his career: first, of course, with
the personal computer, which ledhim to start Apple. Then with graphical
user interfaces, and later withdesktop publishing, on the original
Macintosh. We can now say withoutdoubt that the digital hub strategy was
another one of those greatvisions, one that has turned Apple from a niche
computer company to thecomputer/music/consumer electronics
powerhouse it is today.
Looking back at this success,Steve summed it all up in this particularly
telling phrase:
The great thing is that Apple'sDNA hasn't changed. The place where Apple
has been standing for the lasttwo decades is exactly where computer
technology and the consumerelectronics markets are converging. So it's
not like we're having to crossthe river to go somewhere else; the other side
of the river is coming to us.
Steve Jobs in How Big Can AppleGet?, Fortune, February 2005
Indeed, if you look back at whathad always inspired Steve Jobs, it was
simplicity, ease of use, usingcomputers to do creative work, and making
your life easier. He alwayslooked up to Sony, to which he was thankful for
creating the consumer electronicsbusiness.. in a way, he always dreamed
of what Apple is doing today, andprepared the company for it, even
unconsciously.
It started with iMovie, a digitalmovie editing application that Apple
introduced in 1999. As opposed tothe digital hub strategy, one can think of
iMovie as one of Steve’serroneous visions. He thought that “desktop
movies”, i.e. the ability toshoot movies with digital camcorders and edit
them on your computer, was goingto be the next big thing in personal
computing, yet another “nextdesktop publishing revolution.” It was one of
his main points when heintroduced the iMac DVs in late 1999.
But quickly enough, he realizedhe was wrong. Users didn’t embrace
desktop movies as fast as hehoped, and certainly PC users didn’t switch to
the Mac to use iMovie. However,they did go online to download music
all about Steve Jobs.com
.over Napster, as digital piracyreally started to emerge by the turn of the
century.
It was the starting point of thedigital hub strategy. Apple’s software
developers began work on a coupleof new digital lifestyle applications,
namely iDVD, to burn your movieson DVDs, and especially iTunes, the Archery champion bowman mac os.
digital music jukebox. iTunes wasactually written in less than five months,
which exemplifies the panic ofSteve when he realized Apple was late
catching up with the digitalmusic revolution. The company actually didn’t
start from scratch, as theybrought in an outside developer who was
working on a similar piece ofsoftware to save some time.
However, Cupertino didn’t alwaysplan to develop all its digital lifestyle
applications in-house. After all,they had enough work on their hands with
bringing their new operatingsystem to market. That’s why they went to
one of their main softwarepartners, Adobe, maker of Photoshop, and asked
them to develop a consumerversion of their photo editing software for the
Mac. To their surprise, Adoberefused, as the company didn’t believe in the
digital hub strategy and wasalready having a hard time porting their
existing apps to the new OS Xplatform. That’s why Apple started releasing
The Second Genesis: Legends Rmx Mac Os Version
the so-called iApps one after theother.
The iApps were a digital suite ofapplications that eventually evolved into
iLife, which Apple branded as“Microsoft Office forthe rest of your life.” They
all had the same purpose ofmaking our emerging digital lives easier. In
addition to iMovie, iDVD andiTunes, iPhoto was released in 2002, followed
by iCal later that year,GarageBand (for recording and editing music) in
2004, and iWeb (for makingwebsites) in 2006. The reason Apple was able to
develop such breakthroughsoftware so rapidly was mainly Mac OS X, with
its object-oriented environmentinherited from NeXTSTEP.
Although the iApps were reallythe foundation for Apple’s future lead in the
consumer electronics business,that’s not what they were envisioned for.
They were intended as killerapps, i.e. apps that would compel consumers
to buy a Mac just so that theycould use them. More precisely, they were
supposed to entice Windows usersto switch to the Mac, as there was no
similar complete digital-lifesolution on their platform.
“5 down, 95 to go”
The digital hub strategy itselfwas just one part of Steve’s greater plan to
finally gain market share in thePC market. Since he had returned to Apple,
the Cupertino company was stuckat around 5% of the overall PC market,
even though most industryanalysts acknowledged the superiority of its
operating system, and theinnovations in its hardware.
One other plan was an aggressiveTV campaign called “Switchers”. Its ads
showed several former PC userswho had switched to the Mac and were
describing how it had made theirlife so much easier. The purpose of the
campaign was to encourage peoplewho were thinking of switching but
were a little afraid to do so, byshowing them someone who had made the
change and was happy with it.
Yet the riskiest strategic moveApple did to seduce Windows users was to
get into the retailing business.
It was far from an obviouschoice. Once again, there was a consensus in the
industry that brick-and-mortarcomputer retailing had had its day. The new
model was Dell, which onlyshipped computers directly to customers after
they were purchased on itswebsite. The one company that had their own
computer boutiques, Gateway, wasactually closing them because they
were huge money sinks.
But Steve’s vision was different. He understood that Windows users
wouldn’t even consider Appleunless they would actually see how Macs
worked and could help them runtheir digital lives effortlessly.He
envisioned “lifestyle stores”that would showcase Apple’s products working
with digital devices, that peoplecould pick up and test drive on the spot.
The stores would be in veryexpensive locations, in popular malls or in the
center of shopping districts.
To help get into retailing, Stevehad former Gap executive Mickey Drexler
join the Apple board as early as1999, then hired Ron Johnson away from
Target in late 2000. After monthsof experimentation, Apple inaugurated
their first Retail Store in May2001, in the midst of the industry’s postInternet bubble crisis. Almost everyexpert agreed they would turn out an
expensive mistake..
Steve Jobs behind the Genius Barat New York’s SoHo Apple Retail Store in 2002.
Notice the huge black and whitephotographs, so typical of him.The iPod revolution
1,000 songs in your pocket
Although Mac OS X, the digitalhub strategy, the breakthrough hardware
and the retail stores all playeda role in Apple’s renaissance, they were not
the essential key that made itall come together. As you probably know,
that key was a little shiny whitedevice the size of a pack of cigarettes called
the iPod.
The iPod was of course anintegral part of Apple’s vision of the digital
lifestyle. When they looked atthe big picture, they realized that, unlike the
digital camera and camcordermarkets, the digital music player market did
not yet offer compelling products to work with your Mac.That’s how the
idea of making such a devicein-house arose, in early 2001, after iTunes was
introduced and the companystarted focusing on the digital music
revolution.
Just like iTunes, Steve Jobswanted to get a product out to market quickly,
to catch up with the rest of theindustry. That’s why he turned to an outside
engineer, PortalPlayer founderTony Fadell, who had notoriously tried to sell
his prototype of a little MP3player to several consumer electronics
company. Fadell joined Apple inFebruary 2001, and the iPod shipped only
nine months later, in lateOctober 2001, just in time for the holiday season.
The original iPod distinguisheditself from its competition for several
reasons. Apart from its gorgeouslook, its click wheel and user interface
made browsing through one’s musiccollection very easy and fast; it had a
hard drive which could store upto 5GB, or “a thousand songs in your pocket”,
which was Apple’s tag-line forthe new product; it connected to your Mac
via FireWire, which was 30 timesfaster than your typical USB MP3 player;
and it synced with iTunesseamlessly: you just had to plug it in, and the
software took care of the rest.
There was simply no other MP3player that matched any one of those
breakthrough features. iPodquickly became a very, very hot product for
music lovers.. and digitalpirates. It was quickly acknowledged as “the
Walkman of the digital age”, aseven Windows users either hacked it or
moved to the Mac just so thatthey could use it.
Apple was confused about how toreact to this unexpected success. They
could decide to continue limitingiPod to Macs, so that it would entice PC
users to switch; or they couldmake it Windows-compatible, which would
broaden their target and showusers unfamiliar with Apple how good their
products could get. At MacworldNew York in July 2002, Steve announced
they had opted for the secondsolution.
The iTunes Music Store
Once Apple had step foot in themusic business with iPod, they started
looking at content. At the time,most people either ripped their CDs on
their Macs or downloaded musicillegally on peer-to-peer networks.
Recognizing they were in a uniqueposition to do so, Apple decided to try
and come up with a legal solutionby building an online music store. They
had enough experience to do sothanks to their own popular online store
on apple.com, as well as theirQuickTime movie trailers, which had taught
them how to handle massivedownloads on their servers.
Moreover, they were able tonegotiate with the music companies because
they were still a niche player.The majors were trying hard to fight Napster,
but they were reluctant to launchonline stores, afraid that it would destroy
their current business model. ButiTunes could only run on Macs, which
were still a fraction of the PCmarket — so they viewed Apple’s proposal as
an opportunity to try a new modelwith limited risks.
Steve Jobs used his negotiationskills to have the labels agree on a unique
price: $0.99 for each track, and$9.99 for whole albums. Although Apple
would not get much from theiTunes Store, they expected it to drive iPod
sales, as purchased music couldonly be played on their player.
So, on April 28 2003, Steveunveiled the iTunes Music Store at a special
Music event. The results quicklyexceeded the company’s best hopes. Five
million songs were sold in justeight weeks, and another eight million in the
following fifteen weeks, bringingiTunes’ share of legal music downloads to
70% — yet it was still onlyMac-compatible!