Name	iPod
Caption	The current iPod line; from left to right: iPod Shuffle, iPod Nano, iPod Classic, iPod Touch.
Developer	Apple Inc.
Manufacturer	Foxconn (OEM)
Type	Portable Media Player (PMP)
Service	iTunes Music Store, App Store, iBooks, MobileMe(online services available only on iPod Touch)
Lifespan	October 23, 2001-present (first launched)
Unitssold	Over 260,000,000 worldwide as of April 2010 (see chart below)
Cpu	Samsung ARM

iPod is a portable media player designed and marketed by Apple and launched on . The product line-up currently consists of the hard drive-based iPod Classic, the touchscreen iPod Touch, the compact iPod Nano, and the ultra-compact iPod Shuffle. iPod Classic models store media on an internal hard drive, while all other models use flash memory to enable their smaller size (the discontinued Mini used a Microdrive miniature hard drive). As with many other digital music players, iPods can also serve as external data storage devices. Storage capacity varies by model, ranging from 2 GB for the iPod Shuffle to 160 GB for the iPod Classic. All of the models have been redesigned multiple times since their introduction. The most recent iPod redesigns were introduced on September 1, 2010.

Apple's iTunes software can be used to transfer music to the devices from computers using certain versions of Apple Macintosh and Microsoft Windows operating systems. For users who choose not to use iTunes or whose computers cannot run iTunes, several open source alternatives are available for the iPod. iTunes and its alternatives may also transfer photos, videos, games, contact information, e-mail settings, Web bookmarks, and calendars to iPod models supporting those features.

The iPod branding is also used for the media player applications included with the iPhone and iPad; the iPhone version is essentially a combination of the Music and Videos apps on the iPod Touch. Both devices can therefore function as iPods, but they are generally treated as separate products.

Discontinued models of the line include the iPod Mini and the iPod Photo, the former being replaced by the iPod Nano, and the latter reintegrated into the main line as the iPod Classic.

History and design

The iPod line came from Apple's "digital hub" category, when the company began creating software for the growing market of personal digital devices. Digital cameras, camcorders and organizers had well-established mainstream markets, but the company found existing digital music players "big and clunky or small and useless" with user interfaces that were "unbelievably awful," and design engineer Jonathan Ive.

Apple did not develop the iPod software entirely in-house, instead using PortalPlayer's reference platform based on two ARM cores. The platform had rudimentary software running on a commercial microkernel embedded operating system. PortalPlayer had previously been working on an IBM-branded MP3 player with Bluetooth headphones. He was unable to secure funding to renew the US$ 120,000 worldwide patent, so it lapsed and Kramer never profited from his idea.

The earliest recorded use in commerce of an "ipod" trademark was in 1991 by Chrysalis Corp. of Sturgis, Michigan, styled "iPOD".

Software

The iPod line can play several audio file formats including MP3, AAC/M4A, Protected AAC, AIFF, WAV, Audible audiobook, and Apple Lossless. The iPod Photo introduced the ability to display JPEG, BMP, GIF, TIFF, and PNG image file formats. Fifth and sixth generation iPod Classics, as well as third generation iPod Nanos, can additionally play MPEG-4 (H.264/MPEG-4 AVC) and QuickTime video formats, with restrictions on video dimensions, encoding techniques and data-rates. Originally, iPod software only worked with Mac OS; iPod software for Microsoft Windows was launched with the second generation model. Unlike most other media players, Apple does not support Microsoft's WMA audio format—but a converter for WMA files without Digital Rights Management (DRM) is provided with the Windows version of iTunes. MIDI files also cannot be played, but can be converted to audio files using the "Advanced" menu in iTunes. Alternative open-source audio formats, such as Ogg Vorbis and FLAC, are not supported without installing custom firmware onto an iPod (e.g., Rockbox).

During installation, an iPod is associated with one host computer. Each time an iPod connects to its host computer, iTunes can synchronize entire music libraries or music playlists either automatically or manually. Song ratings can be set on an iPod and synchronized later to the iTunes library, and vice versa. A user can access, play, and add music on a second computer if an iPod is set to manual and not automatic sync, but anything added or edited will be reversed upon connecting and syncing with the main computer and its library. If a user wishes to automatically sync music with another computer, an iPod's library will be entirely wiped and replaced with the other computer's library.

User interface

.]] iPods with color displays use anti-aliased graphics and text, with sliding animations. All iPods (except the 3rd-generation iPod shuffle and iPod Touch) have five buttons and the later generations have the buttons integrated into the click wheel — an innovation that gives an uncluttered, minimalist interface. The buttons perform basic functions such as menu, play, pause, next track, and previous track. Other operations, such as scrolling through menu items and controlling the volume, are performed by using the click wheel in a rotational manner. The 3rd-generation iPod Shuffle does not have any controls on the actual player; instead it has a small control on the earphone cable, with volume-up and -down buttons and a single button for play and pause, next track, etc. The iPod Touch has no click-wheel; instead it uses a 3.5" touch screen along with a home button, sleep/wake button and (on the second and third generations of the iPod touch) volume-up and -down buttons. The user interface for the iPod Touch is almost identical to that of the iPhone. Differences include a lack of a phone application and separate apps for viewing music and video content. Both devices use iOS.

iTunes Store

The iTunes Store (introduced 29 April 2003) is an online media store run by Apple and accessed through iTunes. The store became the market leader soon after its launch and Apple announced the sale of videos through the store on 12 October 2005. Full-length movies became available on 12 September 2006.

At the time the store was introduced, purchased audio files used the AAC format with added encryption, based on the FairPlay DRM system. Up to five authorized computers and an unlimited number of iPods could play the files. Burning the files with iTunes as an audio CD, then re-importing would create music files without the DRM. The DRM could also be removed using third-party software. However, in a deal with Apple, EMI began selling DRM-free, higher-quality songs on the iTunes Stores, in a category called "iTunes Plus." While individual songs were made available at a cost of US$1.29, 30¢ more than the cost of a regular DRM song, entire albums were available for the same price, US$9.99, as DRM encoded albums. On 17 October 2007, Apple lowered the cost of individual iTunes Plus songs to US$0.99 per song, the same as DRM encoded tracks. On January 6, 2009, Apple announced that DRM has been removed from 80% of the music catalog, and that it would be removed from all music by April 2009.

iPods cannot play music files from competing music stores that use rival-DRM technologies like Microsoft's protected WMA or RealNetworks' Helix DRM. Example stores include Napster and MSN Music. RealNetworks claims that Apple is creating problems for itself by using FairPlay to lock users into using the iTunes Store. Steve Jobs has stated that Apple makes little profit from song sales, although Apple uses the store to promote iPod sales. However, iPods can also play music files from online stores that do not use DRM, such as eMusic or Amie Street.

Universal Music Group decided not to renew their contract with the iTunes Music Store on 3 July 2007. Universal will now supply iTunes in an 'at will' capacity.

Apple debuted the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store on 5 September 2007, in its Media Event entitled "The Beat Goes On..." This service allows users to access the Music Store from either an iPhone or an iPod Touch and download songs directly to the device that can be synced to the user's iTunes Library over a WiFi connection, or, in the case of a iPhone, the telephone network.

Games

Video games are playable on various versions of iPods. The original iPod had the game Brick (originally invented by Apple's co-founder Steve Wozniak) included as an easter egg hidden feature; later firmware versions added it as a menu option. Later revisions of the iPod added three more games: Parachute, Solitaire, and Music Quiz.

In September 2006 the iTunes Store began to offer additional games for purchase with the launch of iTunes 7, compatible with the fifth generation iPod with iPod software 1.2 or later. Those games were: Bejeweled, Cubis 2, Mahjong, Mini Golf, Pac-Man, Tetris, Texas Hold 'Em, Vortex, and Zuma. Additional games have since been added. These games work on the 6th and 5th generation iPod classic and the 5th and 4th generation iPod nano.

With third parties like Namco, Square Enix, Electronic Arts, Sega, and Hudson Soft all making games for the iPod, Apple's MP3 player has taken great steps towards entering the video game handheld console market. Even video game magazines like GamePro and EGM have reviewed and rated most of their games as of late.

The games are in the form of .ipg files, which are actually .zip archives in disguise. When unzipped, they reveal executable files along with common audio and image files, leading to the possibility of third party games. Apple has not publicly released a software development kit (SDK) for iPod-specific development. Apps produced with the iPhone SDK are compatible only with the iOS on the iPod Touch and iPhone, which cannot run clickwheel-based games.

File storage and transfer

All iPods except for the iPod Touch can function in "disk mode" as mass storage devices to store data files but this may not be the default behavior, and in the case of the iPod Touch, requires special software. If an iPod is formatted on a Mac OS X computer, it uses the HFS+ file system format, which allows it to serve as a boot disk for a Mac computer. If it is formatted on Windows, the FAT32 format is used. With the release of the Windows-compatible iPod, the default file system used on the iPod line switched from HFS+ to FAT32, although it can be reformatted to either file system (excluding the iPod Shuffle which is strictly FAT32). Generally, if a new iPod (excluding the iPod Shuffle) is initially plugged into a computer running Windows, it will be formatted with FAT32, and if initially plugged into a Mac running Mac OS X it will be formatted with HFS+.

Unlike many other MP3 players, simply copying audio or video files to the drive with a typical file management application will not allow an iPod to properly access them. The user must use software that has been specifically designed to transfer media files to iPods, so that the files are playable and viewable. Usually iTunes is used to transfer media to an iPod, though several alternative third-party applications are available on a number of different platforms.

iTunes 7 and above can transfer purchased media of the iTunes Store from an iPod to a computer, provided that computer containing the DRM protected media is authorized to play it.

Media files are stored on an iPod in a hidden folder, along with a proprietary database file. The hidden content can be accessed on the host operating system by enabling hidden files to be shown. The media files can then be recovered manually by copying the files or folders off the iPod. Many third-party applications also allow easy copying of media files off of an iPod.

Hardware

Connectivity

, all made by Apple. These have FireWire (left) and USB (right three) connectors, which allow iPods to charge without a computer. The units have been miniaturized over time.]] Originally, a FireWire connection to the host computer was used to update songs or recharge the battery. The battery could also be charged with a power adapter that was included with the first four generations. The third generation began including a 30-pin dock connector, allowing for FireWire or USB connectivity. This provided better compatibility with non-Apple machines, as most of them did not have FireWire ports at the time. Eventually Apple began shipping iPods with USB cables instead of FireWire, although the latter was available separately. As of the first-generation iPod Nano and the fifth-generation iPod Classic, Apple discontinued using FireWire for data transfer (while still allowing for use of FireWire to charge the device) in an attempt to reduce cost and form factor. As of the second-generation iPod Touch and the fourth-generation iPod Nano, FireWire charging ability has been removed. The second-, third-, and fifth-generation iPod Shuffle uses a single 3.5 mm jack which acts as both a headphone jack and a data port for the dock.

The dock connector also allowed the iPod to connect to accessories, which often supplement the iPod's music, video, and photo playback. Apple sells a few accessories, such as the now-discontinued iPod Hi-Fi, but most are manufactured by third parties such as Belkin and Griffin. Some peripherals use their own interface, while others use the iPod's own screen. Because the dock connector is a proprietary interface, the implementation of the interface requires paying royalties to Apple.

Accessories

Many accessories have been made for the iPod line. A large number are made by third party companies, although many, such as the late iPod Hi-Fi, are made by Apple. Some accessories add extra features that other music players have, such as sound recorders, FM radio tuners, wired remote controls, and audio/visual cables for TV connections. Other accessories offer unique features like the Nike+iPod pedometer and the iPod Camera Connector. Other notable accessories include external speakers, wireless remote controls, protective case, screen films, and wireless earphones. Among the first accessory manufacturers were Griffin Technology, Belkin, JBL, Bose, Monster Cable, and SendStation.. The current version is shown on the right.]]

BMW released the first iPod automobile interface, allowing drivers of newer BMW vehicles to control an iPod using either the built-in steering wheel controls or the radio head-unit buttons. Apple announced in 2005 that similar systems would be available for other vehicle brands, including Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, Nissan, Toyota, Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, Acura, Audi, Honda, Renault, Infiniti and Volkswagen. Scion offers standard iPod connectivity on all their cars.

Some independent stereo manufacturers including JVC, Pioneer, Kenwood, Alpine, Sony, and Harman Kardon also have iPod-specific integration solutions. Alternative connection methods include adaptor kits (that use the cassette deck or the CD changer port), audio input jacks, and FM transmitters such as the iTrip—although personal FM transmitters are illegal in some countries. Many car manufacturers have added audio input jacks as standard.

Beginning in mid-2007, four major airlines, United, Continental, Delta, and Emirates, reached agreements to install iPod seat connections. The free service will allow passengers to power and charge an iPod, and view video and music libraries on individual seat-back displays. Originally KLM and Air France were reported to be part of the deal with Apple, but they later released statements explaining that they were only contemplating the possibility of incorporating such systems.

Audio performance

The third-generation iPod had a weak bass response, as shown in audio tests. The combination of the undersized DC-blocking capacitors and the typical low-impedance of most consumer headphones form a high-pass filter, which attenuates the low-frequency bass output. Similar capacitors were used in the fourth-generation iPods. The problem is reduced when using high-impedance headphones and is completely masked when driving high-impedance (line level) loads, such as an external headphone amplifier. The first-generation iPod Shuffle uses a dual-transistor output stage, Users report that in the sixth-generation iPod, the maximum volume output level is limited to 100 dB in EU markets. Apple previously had to remove iPods from shelves in France for exceeding this legal limit.

Models

While the suffix "Classic" was not introduced until the sixth generation, it has been applied here retroactively to all generic iPods for clarity.

Patent disputes

In 2005, Apple faced two lawsuits claiming patent infringement by the iPod line and its associated technologies: Advanced Audio Devices claimed the iPod line breached its patent on a "music jukebox", while a Hong Kong-based IP portfolio company called Pat-rights filed a suit claiming that Apple's FairPlay technology breached a patent issued to inventor Ho Keung Tse. The latter case also includes the online music stores of Sony, RealNetworks, Napster, and Musicmatch as defendants.

Apple's application to the United States Patent and Trademark Office for a patent on "rotational user inputs", as used on the iPod interface, received a third "non-final rejection" (NFR) in August 2005. Also in August 2005, Creative Technology, one of Apple's main rivals in the MP3 player market, announced that it held a patent on part of the music selection interface used by the iPod line, which Creative dubbed the "Zen Patent", granted on 9 August 2005. On 15 May 2006, Creative filed another suit against Apple with the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. Creative also asked the United States International Trade Commission to investigate whether Apple was breaching U.S. trade laws by importing iPods into the United States.

On 24 August 2006, Apple and Creative announced a broad settlement to end their legal disputes. Apple will pay Creative US$100 million for a paid-up license, to use Creative's awarded patent in all Apple products. As part of the agreement, Apple will recoup part of its payment, if Creative is successful in licensing the patent. Creative then announced its intention to produce iPod accessories by joining the Made for iPod program.

Sales

Since October 2004, the iPod line has dominated digital music player sales in the United States, with over 90% of the market for hard drive-based players and over 70% of the market for all types of players. During the year from January 2004 to January 2005, the high rate of sales caused its U.S. market share to increase from 31% to 65% and in July 2005, this market share was measured at 74%. In January 2007 the iPod market share reached 72.7% according to Bloomberg Online.

The release of the iPod Mini helped to ensure this success at a time when competing flash-based music players were once dominant. On 8 January 2004, Hewlett-Packard (HP) announced that they would sell HP-branded iPods under a license agreement from Apple. Several new retail channels were used—including Wal-Mart—and these iPods eventually made up 5% of all iPod sales. In July 2005, HP stopped selling iPods due to unfavorable terms and conditions imposed by Apple.

In January 2007, Apple reported record quarterly revenue of US$7.1 billion, of which 48% was made from iPod sales.

On 9 April 2007, it was announced that Apple had sold its one-hundred millionth iPod, making it the biggest selling digital music player of all time. In April 2007, Apple reported second quarter revenue of US$5.2 billion, of which 32% was made from iPod sales. Apple and several industry analysts suggest that iPod users are likely to purchase other Apple products such as Mac computers.

On 5 September 2007, during their "The Beat Goes On" event, Apple announced that the iPod line had surpassed 110 million units sold.

On 22 October 2007, Apple reported quarterly revenue of US$6.22 billion, of which 30.69% came from Apple notebook sales, 19.22% from desktop sales and 26% from iPod sales. Apple's 2007 year revenue increased to US$24.01 billion with US$3.5 billion in profits. Apple ended the fiscal year 2007 with US$15.4 billion in cash and no debt.

On 22 January 2008, Apple reported the best quarter revenue and earnings in Apple's history so far. Apple posted record revenue of US$9.6 billion and record net quarterly profit of US$1.58 billion. 42% of Apple's revenue for the First fiscal quarter of 2008 came from iPod sales, followed by 21% from notebook sales and 16% from desktop sales.

On 21 October 2008, Apple reported that only 14.21% of total revenue for fiscal quarter 4 of year 2008 came from iPods. At the September 9, 2009 keynote presentation at the Apple Event, Phil Schiller announced total cumulative sales of iPods exceeded 220 million.

Industry impact

iPods have won several awards ranging from engineering excellence, to most innovative audio product, to fourth best computer product of 2006. iPods often receive favorable reviews; scoring on looks, clean design, and ease of use. PC World says that iPod line has "altered the landscape for portable audio players". and mobile phones, such as phones from Sony Ericsson and Nokia, which play AAC files rather than WMA.

Besides earning a reputation as a respected entertainment device, the iPod has also been accepted as business devices. Government departments, major institutions and international organisations have turned to the iPod line as a delivery mechanism for business communication and training, such as the Royal and Western Infirmaries in Glasgow, Scotland, where iPods are used to train new staff.

iPods have also gained popularity for use in education. Apple offers more information on educational uses for iPods on their website, including a collection of lesson plans. There has also been academic research done in this area in nursing education and more general K-16 education. Duke University provided iPods to all incoming freshmen in the fall of 2004, and the iPod program continues today with modifications. Entertainment Weekly put it on its end-of-the-decade, "best-of" list, saying, "Yes, children, there really was a time when we roamed the earth without thousands of our favorite jams tucked comfortably into our hip pockets. Weird."

Criticism

Battery problems

The advertised battery life on most models is different from the real-world achievable life. For example, the fifth generation 30 GB iPod is advertised as having up to 14 hours of music playback. An MP3.com report stated that this was virtually unachievable under real-life usage conditions, with a writer for MP3.com getting on average less than 8 hours from an iPod. In 2003, class action lawsuits were brought against Apple complaining that the battery charges lasted for shorter lengths of time than stated and that the battery degraded over time. The lawsuits were settled by offering individuals either US$50 store credit or a free battery replacement.

iPod batteries are not designed to be removed or replaced by the user, although some users have been able to open the case themselves, usually following instructions from third-party vendors of iPod replacement batteries. Compounding the problem, Apple initially would not replace worn-out batteries. The official policy was that the customer should buy a refurbished replacement iPod, at a cost almost equivalent to a brand new one. All lithium-ion batteries lose capacity during their lifetime even when not in use (guidelines are available for prolonging life-span) and this situation led to a market for third-party battery replacement kits.

Apple announced a battery replacement program on 14 November 2003, a week before a high publicity stunt and website by the Neistat Brothers. The initial cost was US$99, and it was lowered to US$59 in 2005. One week later, Apple offered an extended iPod warranty for US$59. For the iPod Nano, soldering tools are needed because the battery is soldered onto the main board. Fifth generation iPods have their battery attached to the backplate with adhesive.

Reliability and durability

iPods have been criticized for their short life-span and fragile hard drives. A 2005 survey conducted on the MacInTouch website found that the iPod line had an average failure rate of 13.7% (although they note that comments from respondents indicate that "the true iPod failure rate may be lower than it appears"). It concluded that some models were more durable than others. In particular, failure rates for iPods employing hard drives was usually above 20% while those with flash memory had a failure rate below 10%, indicating poor hard drive durability. In late 2005, many users complained that the surface of the first generation iPod Nano can become scratched easily, rendering the screen unusable. A class action lawsuit was also filed. Apple initially considered the issue a minor defect, but later began shipping these iPods with protective sleeves.

Allegations of worker exploitation

On 11 June 2006, the British tabloid The Mail on Sunday reported that iPods are mainly manufactured by workers who earn no more than US$50 per month and work 15-hour shifts. Apple investigated the case with independent auditors and found that, while some of the plant's labour practices met Apple's Code of Conduct, others did not: employees worked over 60 hours a week for 35% of the time, and worked more than six consecutive days for 25% of the time.

Foxconn, Apple's manufacturer, initially denied the abuses, but when an auditing team from Apple found that workers had been working longer hours than were allowed under Chinese law, they promised to prevent workers working more hours than the code allowed. Apple hired a workplace standards auditing company, Verité, and joined the Electronic Industry Code of Conduct Implementation Group to oversee the measures. On 31 December 2006, workers at the Foxconn factory in Longhua, Shenzhen formed a union affiliated with the All-China Federation of Trade Unions, the Chinese government-approved union umbrella organization.

In 2010, a number of workers committed suicide at a Foxconn operations in China. Apple, HP, and others stated that they were investigating the situation. Foxconn guards have been videotaped beating employees. Another employee killed himself in 2009 when an Apple prototype went missing, and claimed in messages to friends, that he had been beaten and interrogated.

See also

Comparison of portable media players

Comparison of iPod managers

iPhone

References

External links

Apple iPod—Official website

iPod troubleshooting basics and service FAQ—From the official website

Apple's 21st century Walkman—Brent Schlender, Fortune, October 2001

iPod Nation—Steven Levy, Newsweek, July 2004

The Perfect Thing—Steven Levy, Wired, November 2006

Category:2001 introductions Category:Portable media players Category:Industrial designs Category:IOS software Category:ITunes

Name	Justine Ezarik
Caption	Justine Ezarik at the 2010 Streamy Awards
Birth date	March 20, 1984
Birth place	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
Nationality	American
Years active	2006–present
Known for	Lifecasting, Video blogging
Website	http://www.ijustine.com
Web alias	iJustine
Web host service	Justin.tv, Viddler, YouTube
Meme	300-page iPhone bill August 2007
Signature phrase	"I am the internet" and Internet personality. She was originally based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, but now works from Los Angeles. She is best known as iJustine, a lifecaster who communicated directly with her thousands of viewers on her Justin.tv channel, ijustine.tv. She has made more than 400 videos, including videos on such subjects as Lost and parkour. Her videos have received more than 25 million views, 16 million on YouTube alone. a "new media star," or one of the web's most popular lifecasters.

At first Ezarik was considering producing a video series for the technology audience because they had been the most captive audience for online video series. She stated that she did not intend to broadcast what she considers private moments, noting "That shouldn't be a problem. I am going to try as much as I can to do 24/7."

She covered the July 22, 2007, "The Kill Point" series premiere party live on her lifecast video stream. Ezarik has been cited as being among the website's most popular lifecasters in October 2007 issues of both The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.

300-page iPhone bill

(2008-11-14)]] In August 2007, she created "300-page iPhone bill", a viral video which quickly became an Internet meme. Stories of unexpected billing issues began to circulate in blogs and the technical press after the Apple iPhone's heavily advertised and anticipated release, but this video clip brought the voluminous bills to the attention of the mass media. Ten days after its initial posting, the video had been viewed more than 2 million times on the Internet, and had received international news coverage. The video was later reported to have reached over 8 million total views as of December 2007. The video earned Ezarik a $5,000 payout from the video hosting service Revver. She was interviewed by several media outlets in connection with her iPhone bill video, including USA Today, ABC News, CNN, Fox News Channel, WTAE-TV, and WPXI-TV. In the WPXI interview, the interviewer was surprised to learn that his interview was being shown live on the iJustine webcast. In a live telephone interview on National Public Radio's "All Things Considered" program, the interviewer discussed being able to see Ms. Ezarik's lifecast video stream of the interview on his computer while he was interviewing her.

The original format of the iPhone bills itemized every call, every Internet use, every text message or every sent e-mail. The detail included information about every time users updated the weather or checked the stock market. Many customers had bills that were so lengthy that they arrived in boxes like Ezarik's did. After the publicity surrounding the bills, especially Ezarik's, and their formats, AT&T; announced that bills subsequent to September 28, 2007, would be default to a summary format, with detail provided upon request for a fee. Company spokesmen said they had been planning to make the change to summary format regardless of the publicity. Customers had the option of online billing, summary or detailed with the change.

Viral video career and Internet celebrity status

Ezarik was also featured in the August 28, 2007, weekly installment of Kevin Sites' People of the Web series on Yahoo! News along with Justin Kan, the creator of Justin.TV. Sites called her "the star of this network so far," and said "she has model good looks and easy cyber savvyness that attracts both technophiles and casual users alike." The final cut of the interview video included footage from the live web cast of the interview that showed Ezarik's webcam viewpoint. When Sites asked her to turn off her lifecasting equipment later in the interview, he noted that "at once the conversation seemed more relaxed and natural," and she discussed the difficulty of having people watching and publicly judging her all day.

In an interview published September 21, 2007, she discussed her lifecasting activities with a reporter for TG Daily, telling him that she has tried not to change her personal routine, except that she now vocalizes her thoughts by talking to herself for the benefit of the audience. She also now concerns herself with what the people around her are saying, especially if they try to share private information like phone numbers. In discussing her personal safety concerns, she said, “I've had a lot of people show up places that I am, call hotels and restaurants that I'm at. Everything has to be taken into consideration. I'm also very lucky that nothing bad has happened so far. Makes me think I should quit before it does!�

In early September 2007, she was featured as the lead story on the Yahoo! homepage, which boosted her ratings up to as high as 4000 viewers at any given moment. That fall, she was a featured participant in the first annual BlogWorld & New Media Expo, which bills itself as the World's Largest Social Media Conference.

By April 2008, Ezarik had largely reduced her lifecasting productions to a less frequent basis. She had resumed pursuit of her web designer and video editor career and was living in Carnegie. Her new equipment by Nokia enabled her to lifecast and produce streaming video live without a computer connection. She continued to make weekly appearances on her own iJustine website at www.ijustine.tv. Still a Carnegie resident at the time, Ezarik planned to be vacationing in North Carolina when the iPhone 3G was released in July 2008 and hoped to find an AT&T; wireless store to upgrade while on vacation. That June, Ezarik was named by Intel and its PR firm Ogilvy & Mather to a 10-member social media strategy advisory board.

's social media strategy advisory board (2008-06-24)]] Ezarik posted a video about wanting to order a cheeseburger on YouTube. It got 600,000 views in its first week. When Ezarik first moved to Los Angeles, she was managed by Richard Frias, who also manages YouTube celebrities HappySlip and KevJumba, She believes that her fanbase is predominately between the ages of 11 and 18. In 2008 she made residence in Los Angeles, California. She has a series of advertisements by the name of "Lost in America" appearing on AT&T;'s website.

Ezarik was also hired to appear in three commercials for a national TV ad campaign for Mozy, an award-winning online backup and recovery system. She has also been hired by MTV and Dick Clark Productions to host online preshows for awards broadcasts. By June 2009, she had 590,000 Twitter followers, 94,000 subscribers to the iJustine YouTube channel and 25,000 Facebook fans. The USA Today story goes on to describe how she has scaled down her lifecasting because of its deleterious impact on her life. In December 2009, USA Today reported that Ezarik earns about $75,000 annually from YouTube, and claims she has nearly a million followers on Twitter and 300,000 YouTube subscribers. The same article estimated that she has been viewed on YouTube a total of 64 million times and that her spoof on the Black Eyed Peas' "I Gotta Feeling" drew 4.8 million viewers. The article notes that Ezarik does her work with a $400 Canon Powershot digital camera and a $12 green rug from Ikea to create her green screen. Ezarik was listed as 97th in Maxim's "Hot 100" list for the year 2010. In 2010, General Electric hired her to create five videos as part of there Healthymagination campaign. The videos received over 2 million views. She also did work for Mattel and Intel.

Acting career

On November 4, 2009, she appeared as AJ, a 16 year-old crime victim, in an of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit entitled "Users". She was also shown as a contestant on the 7,000th episode of The Price Is Right the day after where she won prizes worth $37,905, including a first-class trip to Acapulco, Mexico, an Apple Inc. computer, a Rolex watch, Viking cooking appliances, a spa, and a midi recording keyboard. According to her IMDb.com page, she also has some 2009 web series guest appearance credits for The Station and Totally Sketch. She also has a credit for the November 3, 2010, season 6 episode of Criminal Minds entitled "Middle Men".

Filmography

{| border="2" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaa solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 90%;" |- bgcolor="#CCCCCC" align="center" ! colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;" | Television |-style="background:#B0C4DE;" ! Title ! Role ! Year(s) ! Notes |- | ( - "Users") || A.J. Dunne || align="center" | November 4, 2009 || Guest Appearance (1 episode) |- | Criminal Minds (season 6 - "Middle Man") || Meredith Joy || align="center" | November 3, 2010 || Guest Appearance (1 episode) |- | The Bold and the Beautiful (Episode #1.5947) || Reporter #3 || align="center" | November 19, 2010 || Guest Appearance (1 episode) |- |- bgcolor="#CCCCCC" align="center" ! colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;" | Web series |-style="background:#B0C4DE;" ! Title ! Role ! Year(s) ! Notes |- | The Annoying Orange (seasons 1 & 2) || Passion Fruit || align="center" | 2009–Present || Voice |- | Totally Sketch (Episode 2.2 - "Behind the Spoof") || iJustine || align="center" | November 16, 2009 || 1 Episode |- | The Station (Episode 1.2 - "Zombies Take Over") || iJustine || align="center" | August 8, 2009 || 1 Episode |- | The Youtube Assassin (Episode 3) || iJustine || align="center" | May 14, 2010|| Special Appearance (1 Episode) |- | The House That Drips Blood on Alex || Theater girl || align="center" | October 14, 2010|| |- |}

Awards and nominations

See also

JenniCam

Brooke Brodack

Sarah Austin

Sousveillance

Shane Dawson

References

External links

Ezarik's blog

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Justine Ezarik on Dailybooth

Category:1984 births Category:American Internet personalities Category:American people of Slovak descent Category:IPhone Category:Living people Category:People from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Category:Video bloggers