---
type: Article
title: All iPod owners are thieves
description: Barmy Steve Ballmer from Microsoft has decided to shorten his stay on planet sensible by claiming that all iPod owners are thieves.
resource: https://www.simoncox.com/short-articles/2004-10-05-all-ipod-owners-are-thieves/
tags: [Shorticles, Tech, News]
timestamp: 2004-10-05
---


Barmy Steve Ballmer from Microsoft has decided has decided to shorten his stay on planet sensible and has gone to live with the fairies. In a completely outrageous slur aimed at Apple he commented in London at a press conference: "The most common format of music on an iPod is 'stolen'." 

Not in my iPod Mr 'barmy' Ballmer and I suspect not in most peoples either. This coming from a company that allegedly borrowed a lot of its original source code from other places... is a bit ripe.

Microsoft execs are undoubtedly upset by Apples success with the iPod and hitting out at the people who have iPods, a lot of whom are Microsoft Windows users who will now consider converting their allegiance to Apple, will enrage a very loyal fan base. 

What a prat. 

Source [silicon.com](https://web.archive.org/web/20091126173324/http://management.silicon.com/itpro/0,39024675,39124642,00.htm)

### Update!

The full [Steve Ballmer press session ](https://web.archive.org/web/20091126173324/http://software.silicon.com/os/0,39024651,39124699,00.htm "Barmy Balmer full quotes at Slicon")giving the infamous iPod owners quote a slightly different context - but still calling us all tea leafs...

  
  

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[Read full article](https://www.simoncox.com/short-articles/2004-10-05-all-ipod-owners-are-thieves/)