iPhone App Directory

Will Ping go beyond music?

Although it is fair to say that Apple's Ping network hasn't had the best of starts I wonder where Apple would actually like to go with Ping.

Will Ping be extended to go beyond just music and enter the other media types that iTunes contains? Will Ping be used for film, TV, podcasts and even apps?

But what would Apple gain from it? Without connecting Ping to the outside world it'll Ping is pretty useless. I think that's the general view at the moment. So will Ping be another experiment from Apple. So far their attempt at a social network has been fairly anti-social.

So does a social network from Apple actually make any sense? As a company they don't really behave in a very social way. They keep their plans very secret and they don't take criticism well. So why create a 'social network' in the first place? My guess it that it is one of two possible plans.
  1. Simple it is an experiment from Apple, like the video camera in the last nano and the lack of physical controls on the last shuffle.
  2. It is part of a larger plan and something I just can't see at the moment.
Personally I go for 1 at the moment, but with Apple, who knows.

11 comments:

Unknown said...

Not feelng it. They have too much of my info for me to be ping'n.

johnnyg0 said...

Didn't Apple already misused Facebook's API and got their permissions revoked by Facebook? I think that in the end, Apple wants a piece of Facebook's pie. It might begin slowly, but it will get bigger.

As Steve Jobs himself said about competition from Google : "We did not enter the search business. They entered the phone business. Make no mistake: they want to kill the iPhone."... and that was only 2 years after Apple crashed into the phone business without asking anyone about it.

Facebook could use the same quote against Apple.

soundog.com said...

Its not a bad idea to have a music oriented social network. But they have so much stuff and features and code in iTunes, now its becoming difficult to sort out what does what. They should split the code out for, say, TV/videos, music, Ping, apps, etc.

MySpace was and still is the place for bands and musicians to share their music, concert schedules, do promo, etc. Apple could take this niche over. BUT they need to have an easy system for musicians (even amateurs) to sell and upload their songs online, with Apple taking only a tiny portion of the money. Also, for uploading and sharing concert videos, photos, promotional stuff, etc. As a smalltime local singer/songwriter I would love to see that happen.

myspace.com/johnbakertunes

Anonymous said...

Dunno what apple ist talking about ping. Ping is a decades old dos/linux/network command. Apple stole the name and pretend they alone have invented the wheel. Like with everything else they came up with in the last 10 years.

johnnyg0 said...

@Anonymous

-Ping was stolen from the famous network command.

-Ipad was stolen from Fujistu.

-Iphone was stolen from Cisco.

-They stole the word Pod from everybody, no one can use Pod in their product names anymore. Even my Presonus Firepod was forced to be renamed FP10 because of Apple.

-Even the name Apple was stolen from Apple Records (the Beatles record company). They really didn't like Apple Computers stealing their names and fought in court many times, winning everytime against Apple Computers.

Steve Jobs even stole this quote from Picasso : "Good Artists Copy, Great Artists Steal".

... in the meantime, the mainstream seems to believe everybody is stealing from Apple...

They really do good advertising.

ashley said...

I did sign up for it, but at the moment I can't see what use it will be at all.

I hope Apple either make it useful or ditch it completely.

Anonymous said...

I wonder what the golf manufacturer PING has to say about all this considering PING is a registered trademark 'n' all that...

Anonymous said...

^^^I've found answer myself:

http://mediamemo.allthingsd.com/20100901/lawsuit-non-news-ping-golf-wont-sue-apple/

“Like PING, Apple carries a reputation for innovation and quality. I have always had great respect for companies that have changed and improved the ways things are done and I continue to model PING along those lines. Apple is a truly great example of this kind of enterprise.” said John Solheim, Chairman and CEO of Karsten Manufacturing Corporation and PING

He forgot some words at the end of that sentence and I can reveal they are (most likely):

" and we would like to thank them from the bottom of our third home's glass infinity pool for the massive bag of cash. Anyone for golf?"

;)

ashley said...

Yeah, and I bet it was a big bag too!

johnnyg0 said...

About the Ping registered trademark to that Golf company.

Even if the trademark holders of Ping would've wanted to sue Apple it wouldn't work because the same name or word can be registered to different companies as long as they do not operate in the same business/field.

This is what had come out of the Apple Computers v. Apple Records trials. Apple Computer was given the rights to use the Apple name because they agreed not to be in the same business as Apple Records, and vice-versa.

Years later, Apple Computers decided to break this agreement and started selling music. Apple Records wasn't happy and they got back in court again, and won again. I don't know if anything happened when Apple Computers decided to drop the "Computers" part of their name.

Now lets guess why the Beatles are not being sold on the Apple store? (I don't have the answer, but one might wonder.. :)

Anonymous said...

@johnnyg0

read the article; PING covered all the bases with respect
to what business the trademark covers; one of them being online services...

PING are gonna sell a *lot* of clubs on the back of this deal...