View this article at: http://www.macnn.com/articles/05/10/11/made.for.ipod.licensing/ Tuesday, Oct 11, 2005 7:45am Apple's iPod licensing fee may backfire Apple's Made for iPod licensing program may drive away some big-name manufacturers from producing iPod accessories. As noted earlier this year, Apple has notified companies that it will collect a 10 percent royalty fee for products that access the iPod port and may drive manufacturers such as Bose and Altec away from the iPod accessory market, as many believe the fee is much higher than comparable license fees, which are about 1-2 percent, according to Smarthouse: "The move will significantly impact iPod accessory manufacturers with some considering dropping accessories from their portfolio.... Dominique Water the head of Bose's Asia Pacific operations said "All Apple partners were told of the decision some weeks ago. This is a massive licence fee which will not sit comfortable with many partners. Bose is not happy as the proposed fee is excessive by any standards." The report also notes that Bose is calling for a single standard to connect accessories to any (Windows-based) MP3 portable player.