The Secret History of Rock

Why Is It Called an “iPod,” Anyway?

 

When you think about it, iPod is a bit of a weird name for a portable music device.  Who decided on that? Steve Jobs, had the final say, obviously, but he didn’t come up with that name.  So who did?  And why?

In its development stage, the device was known by a variety of code names, including “Dulcimer.”  With a deadline looming in mid-2001, there was much debate about what to call the thing when it finally hit the stores that fall. 

This is where we meet Vinnie Chieco, a freelance copywriter who had been hired by Apple to help with marketing the device.  When he saw Apple’s sleek, white MP3 player, he was immediately reminded of the the scene in 2001:  A Space Odyssey when doomed astronaut David Bowman, sitting in his EVA craft after going after Frank Poole, asks the HAL 9000 computer to “open the pod bay doors.” 

To Chieco, the computer was like the mothership.  The MP3 player was like its smaller pod craft to the Mac. They stuck a lower-case “I” in front (to go along with the recently introduced iMac, among other reasosns) and they had a name.

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 38006 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross

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