Apple’s iTunes, software, services revenue now more than double iPod’s

Changes to the presentation of Apple’s revenue report have revealed that the company is now earning more than twice as much from its iTunes, software and services than it is from its iPod sales.

Apple announced its best ever financial results during its earnings call last week, during which Apple’s chief financial officer Peter Oppenheimer explained that “all revenue from iTunes, standalone Apple and third-party software and services is presented as a single line item and revenue from all Apple and third-party accessory sales is presented as a [separate] single line item.”

Previously, Apple reported its revenue from software and accessories among categories such as “other music related products related products and services” and “related products and services” within iPhone and iPad revenues, reports Apple Insider.

Referring to the new classifications, Oppenheimer said: “We believe this presentation provides a logical grouping of revenue sources and also provides greater transparency into our results.”

Looking at Apple’s reclassified statements of its quarterly earnings reveals that iTunes software and services, including iTunes Store media sales, App Store downloads, iBooks, iCloud, licensing programs such as the “Made for iPod” and AppleCare, brought in $9.37 billion in revenue for Apple overall in fiscal 2011, plus $4.47 billion from accessory sales. The same year saw iPod sales bring in $7.45 billion.

In 2012’s fiscal year, which ended in September, Apple made a whopping $12.89 billion from iTunes, software and services, in comparison to the iPod’s $5.62 billion in revenue from the same period. Accessories earned the company $5.15 billion in revenue in 2012.

Overall, in the most recent quarter (fiscal Q1 of 2013), Apple reported iTunes, software and services revenues of $3.69 billion and accessory sales of $1.83 billion, equating to $5.5 billion combined. That’s more than double the revenue collected from the 12.7 million iPod sales during the quarter.

Apple Insider highlights that Apple’s iTunes, software and services plus the accessory revenues for the last quarter were about the same as Microsoft’s Windows or Business divisions, and more than a billion dollars more than Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices divisions, which include products like the Xbox, Windows Phone and related products.

In October last year, we reported that Apple could be planning to reduce its investment in the iPod touch now that the iPad mini has launched, with one analyst predicting that the device has now “entered the final stage of its product life cycle.”