According to market research firm IDC, wide adoption of the iPod is attracting Windows users to switch to the Mac platform, at least in Australia.
This halo effect, Mr. Sager explains, is partly responsible for a more than 49% jump in Australian Mac sales, according to IDC analyst Michael Sager. However, there are other factors at work in this jump, including Appleis increased retail exposure. The Mac is now found in many more retail stores, including the David Jones and Domayne chains. Also, Apple improved supply to satisfy pent-up demand for the iMac G5, which had been in short supply.
The so called iPod "halo effect" is a theory advanced by Apple and assorted Apple observers. People who have never used a Mac, but are dissatisfied with Windows, have become aware that an alternative platform exists through their experience with the iPods. Pleased with the iPod, the theory says, some fraction of these users will decide to purchase a Macintosh computer.
Such issues, however, were responsible for only a small amount of the increase in Mac sales, Mr. Sager said.