Pretty sure that Jobs believed the iPod would attract people into Mac ecosystem and Windows compatibility was completely out of the question.
"While it seems a given that the iPod was to be made compatible with Windows, Jobs was very resistant to the idea. At one point he said that Windows users would get to use the iPod "over my dead body". After continued convincing, Jobs gave up: "Screw it," he said at one meeting where they showed him the analysis. "I'm sick of listening to you assholes. Go do whatever the hell you want.""[1]
That one phase, go do whatever the hell you want, literally changed the world. Win32 iTunes led the way for the success of the iPod and eventually the development of the iPhone. Think about the alternative path for a moment.
I remember installing a FireWire card in my PC and buying some really shoddy software to copy MP3s onto it. Lots of PC owners were willing to jump through hoops to get the iPod.
"While it seems a given that the iPod was to be made compatible with Windows, Jobs was very resistant to the idea. At one point he said that Windows users would get to use the iPod "over my dead body". After continued convincing, Jobs gave up: "Screw it," he said at one meeting where they showed him the analysis. "I'm sick of listening to you assholes. Go do whatever the hell you want.""[1]
That one phase, go do whatever the hell you want, literally changed the world. Win32 iTunes led the way for the success of the iPod and eventually the development of the iPhone. Think about the alternative path for a moment.
[1] http://www.macrumors.com/2011/10/25/steve-jobs-biography-wha...