Apple Computer has made a strategic alliance with General Motors, Ford and Mazda in order to produce cars with iPod compatible car audio systems. This alliance means that more than 70 percent of the 2007 model vehicles sold in the U.S. is iPod compatible. This will definitely give Apple a significant edge over the competitors.

G.M. and Mazda will offer iPod integration on all new models, Apple said, and Ford will offer it on many of its Ford, Lincoln and Mercury models later this year.

Carmakers say they are responding to a booming trend in which sales of iPods and other MP3 players are predicted to more than double from 58 million units in 2005 to 132 million in 2009.

The iPod holds about a 75 percent share of the portable player market in the United States.

Two years ago, BMW incorporated iPods directly into its car audio systems, allowing users to plug the music player into an adapter that goes into the glove compartment and have access to the iPod’s music library through the car’s standard controls.

Source: New York Times