Joswiak Talks iPod, iPhone


Apple boss of iPod and iPhone marketing, Greg Joswiak, has been interviewed in Fortune. Joswiak talks about his previous role as Apple's laptop marketing guru, as well as how he's approached iPhone and iPod marketing.

Joswiak was the force behind the 14.1" iBook, originally only planned as a 12.1" model. Jobs, Joswiak reveals, opposed the 14.1" model, but Joswiak persisted and it was a healthy commercial success.

He ascribes Apple's current laptop success to decisions taken in the early 2000s, when Apple decided to invest in laptops, in OS X and in engineering resources. Although Mac notebooks were only 20% of the product mix, there was no reason why they couldn't be 50% or more of Mac sales.

Joswiak also touts the importance of the forthcoming iPhone SDK, arguing that "it's going to be an unbelievable platform for developers." Unofficially, Joswiak appears to admire what the hackers have attempted to do with iPod Touch and iPhone and points to their creativity. In effect, it's clear Joswiak endorses the release of the SDK strongly.

He also notes that although Apple has done exceptionally well in the US, UK, Australia and Japan with the iPod, growth hasn't been as spectacular in other major markets, such as France and Germany. iPod has increased its market share from single digits to around 28%, but there's still a lot of room for growth. In China, iPod is running at 8%, although Joswiak noted the PRC is difficult, due to a 'fragmented market."

On the positive side, he also says that iPod Touch isn't cannibalizing the iPhone - so it's clear people want the 'phone' part, and not just the touchscreen and other capabilities of Touch.