Ring of logic to phone iPod

The Chicago Tribune reports that "Apple watchers and wireless-industry observers think a lot of people would be intrigued" and "expect the iPod maker to launch its own phone and wireless service, calling it a logical extension for Apple and its famous brand."

John Jackson at Yankee Group said, "Nobody has come up with the definitive music experience on a handset yet. It's a very open opportunity. It has powerful potential." He added that the Apple phone rumor mill "has been spinning furiously. On the bulletin board of some (contract manufacturer) in Korea or Taiwan sits a prototype of an (Apple) phone. If (Apple) doesn't do it this year, there's little sense of doing it. Nobody is sitting still."

Regarding the ill-fater ROKR and other Motorola iTunes handsets, Ross Rubin at NPD Group pointed out that they have been "clearly designed not to interfere with the iPod."

Charles Golvin at Forrester Research beleives "the music phone market as an extension of the iPod's market--and a potentially big one. The question facing Apple: How best to crack that market, particularly in North America."

In order to bypass the network operators who control handsets sales in the U.S., many believe Apple will follow the MVNO route. Golvin noted "Apple is like ESPN in that it has a very strong brand. If an MVNO succeeds, brands get pumped up even more." He said, "But your brand is on the line if things go wrong. You're not just selling a device, you're selling a service package. It's a more complex sale."

Mark Stahlman at Caris & Co., believed a phone venture would be a "distraction" for Apple. He said, "It's so different from what they've done to date. Apple has done extremely well when it has had no competition."