Bill Thompson: ‘Why I Was Wrong About Steve Jobs’

Bill Thompson:

In February Jobs wrote that Apple would stop using DRM “in an instant” if they could, and I was dismissive. “I don’t believe him”, I wrote at the time, going on to argue that “if Apple switched off Fairplay then they would probably sell a lot more songs, on which they make very little money, and a lot fewer iPods, on which they make a lot”. …

Well, he has proved me wrong by opening up the iTunes store to non-DRM music, and showed that I had seriously underestimated his business acumen.

When you’re wrong, just admit it. It’s easy, and it adds to, not detracts from, your credibility.

★ Tuesday, 3 April 2007