Devoted to branding and building and protecting brands

Tim Bajarin, president of Creative Strategies, hit it on right on the earbud yesterday when he said "I don't think Apple wants to emulate Sony".  Bajarin was one of the annointed industry observers handpicked to witness the unveiling of the iPod boombox and assorted goodies in Cupertino this week.  The Sony reference was not casual.  Apple grand ayatollah Steve Jobs, ever mindful of what can happen to a brand slapped indiscriminately onto everything and anything from TVs to amusement parks (see "Sony" reference above), may be popularly perceived as mercurial and impulsive--but not when it comes to the equity of the Apple brand, where he moves with cautiousness that's somewhere between the British Royal Family and the Vatican.  To Jobs, who revered Sony's Akio Morita, reputation isn't the most important thing. It's everything.