Reason 165,241 why the iPod will beat the Zune

The ability to negotiate exclusive contracts with people that don't like them. It appears that the iTunes music store will the be exclusive online retailer of The Beatles. Most people are probably thinking "it's about time" with no clue to the hugeness of this. Apple Computer (owner of iTunes) and Apple Music (the Beatles production company) have been at each other's throats for much of the past twenty years. Numerous law suits have been filed between the two as well as numerous settlements only to be followed by numerous law suits. The moral of the story up till now is that Apple doesn't like Apple. Aside from the legal mumbo-jumbo, the Beatles haven't let anybody sell digitized versions of their songs (some of which are even hard to find on CD). If iTunes pulls this off then it will show a major change of course both on a legal as well as principle front for the Beatles and Apple Music. Which leads us back to why the iPod will beat Zune. The iTunes folks have negotiated multiple contracts with big-time acts - many of whom were not exactly happy with the whole online music thing - in order to get exclusive rights. The ability to get these acts on iTunes and not any other online music store will keep people coming back to iTunes and thus back to the iPod. The Beatles are one of those cultural icons that is bigger than any bullying MS or anybody else might throw at them and have so far deflected all offers. The ability to negotiate with such an icon is business savvy that you're not likely to be seen in MS or the Zune folks.