Apple Continues Their Program To Hook Students With Free iPods
from the the-first-one's-free... dept
Hot off the severely overhyped announcement concerning the latest iPod models (er... honestly, they look pretty similar to the old ones) Slashdot has the story that Duke University is giving away "free" iPods to incoming freshman (which won't make the upperclassmen happy, but what can you do?). The "free" is a bit of a misdirection, because most people attending Duke are paying an awful lot of money for the privilege, and I'm sure a slight tuition bump to pay for the iPod will mostly go unnoticed. Of course, this isn't the first time this has been done. Last year we wrote about students at Georgia College & State University receiving iPods donated by Apple. While both cases talked about the educational uses of such devices, it's more likely an attempt by Apple to get people hooked early, so when they make big announcements about iPods that really don't seem all that different than the last ones, these kids have to go out and spend their money on them. It's the same strategy Napster is using in signing up colleges.
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One slight but noticable difference here Mikey between what Napster and Apple are providing. You will note, I hope, that the ipods are having lessons/text loaded on them (not just a music offering) ... while I'm sure most students will dump it first chance they get, it is at least a legitimate use of the device. Would probably be refreshing to have the portable 'first day' paperwork on the ipod to get you around the campus while you learn you're way around. Then a week later dump it and load up on the Top 100 Billboard hits for 2003 and 2002 ... or whatever trips your trigger.
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Yeah, I wasn't suggesting that the iPod offering was as silly as the Napster one, but from a marketing standpoint, the plan is the same... Get 'em hooked young.
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