Zune Won't Kill the IPod
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Microsoft's new MP3 player has a lot going against it, even without the iPod around. It's not cool, the DRM will be a pain and wireless sharing is just another way for people to lie to strangers. Commentary by Leander Kahney.
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Microsoft Corp. will likely lose money on its new music player, Zune, against Apple Computer Inc.'s "industry-leading iPod profitability," an American Technology Research analyst said Friday.
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A new technique allows Zune owners to share files of any type wirelessly with other users. But Microsoft could soon close this loophole with a mandatory firmware upgrade. In Listening Post.
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Want to corrupt your iPod? Use it with Microsoft's new operating system. Apple concedes that its music software still isn't compatible with all versions of Vista. By the Associated Press.
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Microsoft Corp. said yesterday it expects to sell 1 million of its new Zune music players through the first half of 2007. That figure pales in comparison to Apple Computer Inc.'s market-leading iPod, but Microsoft contends it would be a good start.
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(InfoWorld) - Microsoft has beaten itsÂ goal of shipping over a million Zune digital music players by June, according to a newspaper report. Robbie Bach, the president of Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices Division, said it has already passed the million mark during an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle published Monday. The Zune has a 10 percent market share in the hard-disk-based music player category, he added. "It's a good start. It's not an overwhelming start. I'm not going to pretend it's some gigantic move," he was quoted by the newspaper as saying. The million unit figure bests Apple. It took the iPod 14 months to reach 600,000 shipments, but it was much earlier in the game than the Zune, when the market for digital music players wasn't so hot. Apple has likely sold around 25 million iPods over the same time it has taken the Zune to reach its goal, according to financial analysts. Microsoft has a lot more work to do with the Zune. Despite a better-than-expected start, it's far behind the iPod both in terms of number of users and popularity. Apple sold 10.55 million iPods during the three months ending March 31 and announced it had sold its 100 millionth on April 9 of this year. The company has also generated enthusiasm for the device through more than 4,000 accessories made for the iPod, including stereo hookups in more than 70 percent of 2007-model U.S. cars and a deal with Nike to use iPods with certain running shoes that collect workout information. The company also has its new iPhone coming out soon, a product Bach indicated Microsoft will not compete against directly with a Zune phone, according to the Chronicle report. Microsoft will continue to work with handset makers to provide software used in different styles of mobile phones, because mobiles are deeply personal devices, he said. "In the phone space, we're very comfortable with the model we've chosen....We work with handset manufacturers and operators to produce that web of offerings while still producing the same consistent software so people can get done what they need to get done regardless of which phone they choose," he reportedly said. The San Francisco Chronicle article can be found on the WebÂ here.
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Microsoft Corp. MSFT.O said on   Thursday the ability to share music through wireless   connectivity is a key element for its new "Zune" portable media   player to win over consumers from Apple's market-leading iPod.
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Microsoft Corp. has vowed to put considerable money and effort behind its bid to dethrone Apple Computer Inc.'s market-leading iPod, but it won't be using price as a weapon.
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Are the devices in this picture interesting enough to make you buy a Zune instead of an iPod?
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Microsoft has decided to drop the price of the Zune in an effort to spur sales, while indicating it hadn't completely ruled out a Zune phone. Effective Wednesday, the price of Microsoft's competitor to the iPod is now $199 USD.
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(InfoWorld) - Microsoft Corp. has predicted it will sell 1 million Zune devices in its first six months, a figure that would be more than Zune's chief rival iPod sold in its first 14 months but a relatively slow start for the much-hyped MP3 device. SinceÂ its retail debut on Nov. 15, customer interest in Zune has been lackluster, analysts report, and the company's projections for sales of the device are conservative. By contrast, Apple Computer Inc. will likely sell about 25 million iPods over the same period according to financial analysts, though the company only sold 600,000 iPods in the first 14 months of availability. Mike McGuire, a Gartner Inc. research vice president, said he was surprised Microsoft is expecting to sell so few Zunes in the first six months, given that the market for iPod and MP3 devices is thriving. On the other hand, "it's a decent objective," he said. "I was expecting a more aggressive goal," McGuire said. "But even though it's conservative it's going to be tough [to make that goal]." McGuire cited the fact that Microsoft is only offering one version of the device and the rapid nature of the media-player market, which is moving forward with new, cutting-edge devices all the time, as challenges for the vendor. Microsoft's achievements with Zune will depend on how successfully it builds a community around the product with its Zune Marketplace software and online store, as well as how quickly it can upgrade the initial Zune device with new features and models, McGuire said. Zune is in a distinctly different position than iPod was at its launch. IPods could only be used with Apple's Macintosh computers, which have a significantly smaller market share of the desktop computer market than Windows machines, the platform for Zune. In October 2001, when iPod was released, Apple PC market share was about 2.4 percent. And iPod was an unproved device, one of the first of its kind in a market that Apple ostensibly created, whereas Zune has the benefit of entering a thriving market. Of course, iTunes software for iPods now runs on millions of Windows PCs in addition to Macs. To date, Apple has sold more than 67 million iPods, and should sell about 82 million by the end of the year. The company has several versions of the iPod -- the video iPod, the iPod nano and the iPod shuffle -- in various sizes and colors. There are also an extensive array of accessories available for iPods. Microsoft's 30G-byte Zune costs US$249.99, the same price as the video iPod, but it's different from the iPod in two key ways. Zune includes an FM tuner and wireless capability that allows users to share songs between devices.
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REVIEW Ed Oswald sits down to play with Microsoft's Zune, and finds along the way the same problems that have plagued the Redmond company all along in the digital music business. But do these issues hold back the Zune or does Apple finally have some real competition?
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SAN FRANCISCO - Microsoft Corp. cut the suggested retail price of its Zune music and video player by 20 percent yesterday, the same day Apple Inc. released new versions of its iPod media player.
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A slow sales start for Microsoft's new Zune music player means it is unlikely to be a threat to the popular iPod this holiday season, according to analysts.
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Microsoft's new Zune media player has some features that will distinguish it from Apple's market-leading iPod, analysts said. But whether it's cool enough to rule is an open question.
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Microsoft's Zune will have to work very hard to unseat the dominance of Apple's iPod and iTunes say industry experts.
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(InfoWorld) - In what can be seen as either a joke or a real attempt to get employees to give up Apple iPods in favor of the Zune MP3 player, the team at Microsoft that builds Zune has set up a bin at its headquarters so employees can drop in iPods they don't want to use anymore. A photo of the "iPod Amnesty Bin" , which has on it an image of a bitten green apple and the words "Bite me," has been posted on Flickr. From the looks of the photo, not many people have been willing to give up their iPods, though a few of the earlier versions of Apple Inc.'s popular media players were lying at the bottom of the bin. A user who calls himself "fimoculous" and identified himself in an e-mail as MSNBC.com employee Rex Sorgatz , posted the photo, and said he thought the bin was someone's idea of a joke, nothing more. MSNBC.com is a joint media venture between Microsoft and MSNBC. "My guess is someone at Zune thought it would be funny, that's all," he said. Sorgatz said he is an iPod user, but could be convinced to switch if he found a superior product. Matt Rosoff, an analyst with Directions on Microsoft, also suspects the bin's placement is meant to be funny, as it would likely be in the Zune team's best interest to use the latest iPod devices for competitive purposes. Indeed, none of the iPods in the bin in the photo were current versions. "Most of the people [working on] Zune would want to have an iPod to keep track of the competition," he said. "On that team, they're all into digital music, so all of them probably have a bunch of players." The photo got numerous comments from Flickr users, who in general thought it was amusing, though some were less impressed than others by the joke. "Only someone stupid enough to buy a Zune would be equally stupid enough to not sell their discarded iPod on eBay," commented Ariel Waldman , (ariel_waldman on Flickr), a digital insights analyst at interactive marketing agency VML Inc. "That's funny," wrote another who goes by "Dr_Watso" on Flickr. " I was always amazed that people ... jumped on the iPod bandwagon, even though there are so many much better devices that cost a whole lot less." The Zune team is based at Microsoft's Bear Creek offices in Redmond, Washington, near the main campus. An Apple spokesman declined to comment. A spokesman for the Microsoft public relations agency that represents Zune said she could not reach anyone on the team for comment, but she suspects the bin is meant to be a joke or a "morale booster" for employees at Zune headquarters. Microsoft launched the Zune last November, but the device has done little to sap enthusiasm for the iPod, which remains a top seller in the hard-drive media-player market, according to marketing-research firm NPD. Still, Microsoft is ramping up its marketing efforts around Zune in the hopes it can drum up interest in the device. The company released a pink Zune earlier this month that is outselling Zunes in white and brown, according to the company, and also launched a new print advertising campaign to promote the pink Zune called "Sync Pink." Microsoft also introduced a new TV commercial that highlights the features of Zune that differentiate it from the iPod, such as wireless sharing and the FM radio tuner. Microsoft is leveraging the popularity of its Xbox game console to promote Zune as well. In light of the highly anticipated release of the "Halo 3" Xbox game later this year, Microsoft unveiled a limited edition, "Halo"-themed Zune that comes preloaded with "Halo" videos, soundtracks and trailers. The device will be offered exclusively at GameStop retail stores and on its online store beginning June 15. There already have been preorders for the device, Microsoft said.