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"Despite the ongoing influx of new and refined online music offerings, Apple's iTunes and Napster 2.0 continue to capture the American fee-based digital music mind space."

[Via cbs.marketwatch.com]



Napster and iTunes Most Recognized Brands in Fee-based Downloading in 2004



The new findings boasted that brand maturity is something of non-relevance. Simply because over 79% age 12 and older knew of Napster or have even used the legal downloading music service. More than half knew of or used Apple's iTunes Music Store, another brand strong identifier in the still youthful digital music market. This goes to show that longevity due to long periods of exposure are simply not the winning factor among competition of brands. Reason being that Apple fiercely competes with Napster, which was established din the early 90's. Though Apple has had great success in the market and proved huge and new strides for what brand/identity is with iTunes and iPod, Napster is solely relying on the fact of the 'name". This name is associated by more because of its history in American’s minds. The study fails to reflect that if both Napster and iTunes were compared on level grounds (being that both now sell legal downloads-something Napster was originally NEVER known for), then Apple would clearly dominate. This is said only because the Napster Company has sheer name recognition for its identity, but that identity is tainted with a not-so-good reputation in history, where Apple has started and started correctly from the get-go.