Virgin retires hurt from iPod assault

SIR RICHARD Branson's foray into the world of consumer electronics has ended with him pulling the plug on Virgin Electronics, the subsidiary that was supposed to challenge Apple and its iPod dominance.

The subsidiary, which about nine months ago relocated to California's Silicon Valley for access to technical talent, has thrown in the towel after failing to compete in sales over the Christmas period with the iPod Mini.

To coincide with that relocation from New York, Virgin hired industry veteran Greg Woock as chief executive. Woock had previously worked for Handspring and Creative Technology, that latter company ironically succeeding where Virgin failed in giving Apple some competition.

Virgin's 5GB competitor to the iPod Mini was well received by reviewers but it faced lots of competition, not only from Apple and Creative but also the likes of Sony, Rio, Dell and Hewlett-Packard.

Virgin Electronics said it was withdrawing all its products from the market but would honour all warranties. As well as MP3 players, Virgin Electronics sold speakers and special noise-cancelling earphones.

There was no indication as to what its foray into this highly-competitive market has cost Virgin. The company is still supposed to be starting a low-cost airline in the US this year.