Why did Apple need I Phone?

If you were wondering why did Apple enter the Phone market when it was the king of the music players. Here are the two articles that may explain why?

Apple is the leader in Music Player with almost 70% market share

Apple Sells 100 Millionth I Pod

But the cell phone manufacturers will not leave them alone and would have chipped into their customer base.

In 2006 (1 year), Cell phone makers sold more MP3 Phones than total I Pods ever sold (in six years).


So, the only solution was Apple take them on in their own backyard. I believe Apple will be successful in the multimedia cell phone segment, but may not be as successful in Smartphone segment.