While AT&T is surely going to continue to benefit from being the sole iPhone carrier in the United States, they also stand-out as being expensive. To help cover iPhone subsidies, AT&T is raising the data plan $10 a month. As BusinessWeek mentions, this could be an area that other carriers could seize on. By offering more features for less money, other carriers have an incentive that while not as flashy as the iPhone, might be more financially practical for lots of customers.

Still, as I said in last night's talkcast, I think the $200 price point is going to vastly reduce the barrier to entry for lots and lots of users. The data plan price increase is going to be more a determent for existing iPhone users, not new users to the fold. Just as the iPod really hit its stride when it became available for under $400, the $200 pricepoint on the iPhone is going to be extremely tempting for anyone approaching the end of a cellular contract. The other phone manufacturers SHOULD be concerned; the war for mobile domination will not be won or lost based on the iPhone 3G, but Apple is a very, very deft opponent.

Looks like Steve Jobs has found allies in the form of Yahoo! Music and Monster Cable executives in the quest to banish DRM. An executive from competitor Yahoo! Music, Dave Goldberg chimes in with: ``I've long advocated removing DRM on music because there is already a lot of music available without DRM, and it just makes things complicated for the user." Claiming Microsoft's brand of DRM ``doesn't work half the time", the exec claimed Yahoo! made several attempts to offer music with or without DRM, and the removal of DRM has improved sales.

Additionally, Monster Cable backed up Jobs with a statement from head Noel Lee: ``Monster Cable shares Mr. Jobs' vision of breaking constraints for legal music downloads.... DRM is a complex and political issue, but digital music compatibility is even more complicated to consumers and limiting to the industry.... We are proud to support an open format and leaders like Steve Jobs who are making the efforts to get us there." The Monster Music branch offers a music format known as SuperDisc, which contains high definition surround tracks and DRM-free files. So... what now? Will other companies continue to stand up, or will Apple and the others buckle under the continued pressure from major labels to keep the DRM system intact?

Yesterday's keynote announcements that showed off everything but a Mac and Mac OS X understandably struck some fear in those who worry about the future of Apple's computers. Don't get me wrong: while I question how easy it is to dial numbers on a virtual iPhone keypad (fellow former owners of Samsung's i330 and Cingular's 8125 know what I'm talking about), I still think the iPhone and Apple TV are going to be fantastic and popular products. I know - groundbreaking analysis.

Still, the surprising deletion of 'Computer' from what is now 'Apple Inc.'s' name, as Mat Lu pointed out, speaks volumes to the possibility that the Mac could be taking a back seat to what is Apple's obvious new focus on the broader consumer electronics industry. We saw nothing of iLife or *any* of Apple's software yesterday. Even the upcoming Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard was a no-show, despite the fact that both sides of the OS fence are eagerly anticipating and endlessly conjecturing in light of Microsoft's release of their first new OS in nearly half a decade.

Now I don't use the term 'back seat' lightly, since Macs still being in the car for the ride is a good thing. That said, this lack of Mac and software announcements (heck, even the AirPort Extreme was a quiet release) from Apple at their key yearly product extravaganza can only say one of two things in my mind. First, and the worst: Apple could be on track to eventually stop the car and kick the Mac out to the curb in a few years because the consumer electronics industry is simply too juicy of a prospect. While there are plenty Mac enthusiasts who fear this as a worst case scenario, I think yesterday's Mac-less events betray some positive developments for our computers of choice that can instill a sense of security over the Mac's future.

Mac hardware is now on-par with the rest of the industry, while their design still more or less leads the pack. Apple is using the same Intel chips as everyone else, and the rest of the hardware under the hood is from the better half of the QA fence (generally speaking, of course) that everyone can pick from. On parallel, Mac OS X has evolved into a stable and mature operating system which is still trumping Microsoft's just-released Vista, even in its current 10.4 Tiger iteration. To me, this sounds like Macs and their OS aren't going anywhere, but they might not exactly be a top priority for the company right now - and that's not a bad thing. Instead of earth-shattering Mac OS X innovations with every press release, I believe we can look forward to at least a few years of logical, steady evolution in Apple computers, perhaps until it is time for Mac OS XI. With a solid software and computer hardware foundation to build on, Apple is clearly going to explore other industries that can benefit from the company's design sense and unshakable quest for ease of use. Even though they might not be sitting in shotgun, Macs are unmistakably coming along for the ride.

eMusic, a seemingly small-time digital music service that sells DRM-free MP3s of independent artists, has quietly overtaken other big name rivals such as RealNetworks, Yahoo! and even Napster for the #2 spot in digital music sales. The company attributes its success largely in part to the iPod's widespread popularity and the fact that MP3s play just fine on it, but also says "the consumer confusion over interoperable formats gives us a great advantage". In other words: the tower of babel that is the digital download industry has opened the door for a service that speaks everyone's language to snag the second largest piece of the pie. While not everyone is happy with 2nd place, eMusic seems to be enjoying their 11% of the industry, right after the iTMS at 67%, but way ahead of Real Rhapsody with 4%, Napster - 4% and MSN Music - 3% (data according to NPD Group).

[via iLounge]

So much for those "Apple isn't interested in the science/business/pro sector" theories. Behold, Mac at Work, a new promotional site from Apple with information, case studies, online seminars and real world event listings for just about every interest and sector besides consumers. Just look at the first section, Science, with a brief case example of UC Irvine's "HIPerWall", a 200-megapixel (yes, 200) display built from fifty 30-inch Apple Cinema Displays driven by twenty-five PowerMac G5s (I wonder if their interns sneak in at night to load up World of Warcraft). Other notable case studies include an OB-GYN whose office is 100% Mac OS X, a business learning to use podcasts and even a section just for the IT Pros (though I'm not sure if that section is entirely new).

It's nice to see Apple pimping their products to people who are in the market for more than just an iPod. Here's hoping they deliver the Intel-based pro goods (Mac Pros, Xserves) in August to really get the ball rolling on this push into the professional world of computing.

[thanks Kevin!]