Monday, March 10, 2008

The Apple iPhone puts on a suit

I've been busy dipping my toes into media stuff again. Apple's iPhone announcement generated the bulk of some really cool coverage last week. But the coolness didn't stop there: A postscript to the DVD format war garnered some exposure in the New York Times. Here's a rundown of the fun stuff:

The New York Times, March 10. Another DVD Format, but This One Says It’s Cheaper. Byline Eric A. Taub. Story was also picked up March 9th by the Chicago Tribune under the headline Another contender emerges in DVD-format war, and again by the International Herald Tribune as DVD format battle attracts a new rival: HD VMD. Here's what I said:
The HD VMD camp “is pitching a solution at a market niche that does not exist,” said Carmi Levy, senior vice president for strategic consulting at AR Communications, a Toronto research firm. “And even if it is a niche, you will never sell enough to make it a business.”
Business News Network. Interview with Michael Hainsworth. Aired live March 6. I dare ya to watch it :) Bar none, one of the most fun interviews I've ever done. Also did hits with Gary Doyle of 570News in Kitchener, and John Downs of AM640 in Toronto.

The National Post
, March 7. RIM and Apple drop gloves in fight for each other's markets. Byline David George-Cosh. Also ran online March 6 under the headline Stakes get higher in Apple's battle with RIM., and in a range of other Canwest papers, including the Vancouver Sun and the Montreal Gazette.
"Apple's announcement was revolutionary, while RIM's announcement was evolutionary" said Carmi Levy, senior vice-president of strategic consulting for AR Communications Inc. "The more consumer friendly [RIM] can make the Black-Berry, the better it is for its long-term growth. It's another piece of what is turning into a very large and complex puzzle for them."
The Canadian Press, March 6. RIM may become much more of a social smart phone with consumers. Byline LuAnn LaSalle. Other pickups include CTV and CBC.
Getting the BlackBerry further enmeshed with the latest Internet communication trends is "one of the pieces of the overall puzzle that will make these devices indispensable to the way people communicate online and wirelessly today," said analyst Carmi Levy.

"The better they can integrate the lifestyle functions into the BlackBerry, the more they will be able to appeal to this new market," said Levy, senior vice-president of strategic consulting at Toronto's AR Communications Inc.

"Really what RIM is doing is positioning itself to be flexible and agile so that it can implement those services and partnerships relatively easily when it becomes apparent that they are indeed a hit."
Unstrung, March 6. Apple's Corporate Drive.

InformationWeek
, March 5. How Open Will Apple Go With iPhone SDK Launch? Byline Richard Martin.
"A lot of developers are going to be watching this announcement, to see if the cost of development is low and if Apple is committing to helping them grow their business," said Carmi Levy, senior VP for strategic consulting at AR Communications. "If those messages aren't there, they'll yawn and wait for something else."
More to come. I apparently can't stop talking about technology. (This is too much fun for words!)

2 comments:

Susan Helene Gottfried said...

I need to tell you, Carmi, that your love of what you do has inspired me to create a character who's a media analyst like you are.

Can I come to you for fact-checking and authenticity?

Anonymous said...

Carmi... I totally agree with your RIM comments, but it still comes down to the Canadian consumer being completely gouged for data rates, especially on the BB devices. That's why I went iPhone, with some hacking.

I'm still flabbergasted at the lack of competition, and hope that when the latest company enters this market in (hopefully?) Q4, we'll finally see an end to some of the price-fixing going on.