Apple Grows “Made for iPod” Licensing with New Headsets
1:46 am, March 18th, 2009, Lonnie Lazar
Apple has confirmed the existence of a proprietary chip in the on-cord controller of the company’s headsets that began shipping with the new iPod Shuffle announced last week, but the chip itself serves no “authentication” function and will not prevent third party headset manufacturers from producing headsets that work with Apple’s music player, according to company spokespersons.
The chip will be required for headsets wishing to bear the “Made for iPod” licensing certification for accessories that work with iPods, however. Apple has thus created a new revenue stream and extended “Made for iPod” certification to headphones/remotes, accessories that were not previously required to be certified as “Made for iPod”.
So while there is no DRM in the chips themselves, third-party headset manufacturers who want their products to be sold in Apple Stores and / or to be regarded as competitive, are likely to feel pressure to pay for the chips and obtain the “Made for iPod” certification.
The proprietary chips will cost manufacturers less than $1, bundled with a $2 microphone, according to one report.
Posted by Lonnie Lazar in Hardware, News, iPod | Comment on this article
I really don’t think this is that big of a deal, considering the cost is negligible and can be passed to consumers.
Apple want to ensure that legitimate headphones actually work properly with the new device, it’s that simple.
Next there will be an uproar because Apple control who makes the hardware in their Macs…
Steve, on March 18th, 2009 at 2:25 am
So the chip does not actually do anything? it is merely a requirement for putting a logo on the packaging. Could apple not do the same without the chip?
bas, on March 18th, 2009 at 5:19 am
I’d be surprised if the chip doesn’t “unlock” certain features necessary to gain the “made for iPod” certification. Simple authentication algorithms would ensure that only licensed products get access to these features. Seems fair for the 3rd parties who want the Apple imprimatur, for Apple for protecting their reputation and receiving a little of the revenue leveraging their work, and for us, knowing we can rely on the quality of certified products. Probably 3/4 of all the iPod car adapters and FM transmitters would have flunked Apple certification, saving us millions of wasted dollars.
Plus, it could give us features we wanted from Apple that they didn’t want to spend money developing (like true normalized track volume?) I’m all for it.
imajoebob, on March 18th, 2009 at 3:02 pm