The New York Post reports that Wal-Mart is warning Hollywood studios against partnering with Apple's iTunes Store for movie distribution.
According to studio executives, "Wal-Mart has overtly threatened to retaliate if [studios] go into business with Apple."
While Apple has only signed one movie studio (Disney) to the iTunes store, the early success has caught the attention of other studios. One executive is quoted as saying "We all want to be in the Apple business".
The threat of Wal-Mart repurcussions, however, may temper iTunes partnerships as Wal-Mart controls a large portion of the retail market for DVDs.
The situation between [Wal-Mart] and Hollywood has gotten so heated and so high-level that Jobs recently phoned Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott to ask him to moderate his stance, according to a source.
Update: This Reuters story claims that Wal-Mart has said it is not trying to dissuade movie studios from working with Apple's iTunes service.
"The Post story appears to be a rehashing of the misinformation that's been printed previously," a Wal-Mart spokeswoman said in a statement.
Wednesday July 15, 2026 11:48 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
Apple's annual Back to School promotion is now live in select countries in Asia, including China, India, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.
The offer provides college students and educational staff with a free item with the purchase of an eligible Mac or iPad model. The exact offer varies by country, with options including a pack of four AirTags, AirPods 4,...
Wednesday July 15, 2026 3:20 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Carrier-financed iPhones purchased from Apple will soon be locked to the carrier, ending a workaround customers used to purchase an unlocked iPhone on a payment plan.
Until the rule change, buying an iPhone from Apple and opting for financing through Verizon or T-Mobile meant you would get an iPhone not locked to either carrier's network. That's no longer the case, and now iPhones financed...
Apple's stores will be rolling out Back to School marketing materials this week, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. This suggests that the offer will begin in the U.S. in the next few days.
Last year, college students and educational staff could receive a free accessory like AirPods 4 or an Apple Pencil Pro with the purchase of a qualifying Mac or iPad model. The Back to School offer is in...
Apple's first foldable iPhone, with a book-style design featuring a ~5.5-inch outer display and a ~7.8-inch inner display with a minimal crease down the middle.
