Microsoft Zune Officially Announced
(Update Sept 14th 2006) Microsoft Zune Player Announced.
REDMOND, Wash. — Sept. 14, 2006 — Marking the next big milestone for its Connected Entertainment vision, Microsoft Corp. today unveiled details of the first products to be released under its Zune™ brand. Designed around the principles of sharing, discovery and community, Zune will create new ways for consumers to connect and share entertainment experiences. The Zune experience centers around connection — connection to your library, connection to friends, connection to community and connection to other devices.
“The digital music entertainment revolution is just beginning,†said J Allard, vice president, design and development, at Microsoft, who is leading the charge for building the family of Zune products. “With Zune, we are not simply delivering a portable device, we are introducing a new platform that helps bring artists closer to their audiences and helps people find new music and develop new social connections.â€
The Zune Experience
Available this holiday season in the United States, Zune includes a 30GB digital media player, the Zune Marketplace music service and a foundation for an online community that will enable music fans to discover new music. The Zune device features wireless technology, a built-in FM tuner and a bright, 3-inch screen that allows users to not only show off music, pictures and video, but also to customize the experience with personal pictures or themes to truly make the device their own. Zune comes in three colors: black, brown and white.
Every Zune device creates an opportunity for connection. Wireless Zune-to-Zune sharing lets consumers spontaneously share full-length sample tracks of select songs, homemade recordings, playlists or pictures with friends between Zune devices. Listen to the full track of any song you receive up to three times over three days. If you like a song you hear and want to buy it, you can flag it right on your device and easily purchase it from the Zune Marketplace.
Zune makes it easy to find music you love — whether it’s songs in your existing library or new music from the Zune Marketplace. Easily import your existing music, pictures and videos in many popular formats and browse millions of songs on Zune Marketplace, where you can choose to purchase tracks individually or to buy a Zune Pass subscription to download as many songs as you want for a flat fee.
To get started with great music and videos out of the box, every Zune device is preloaded with content from record labels such as DTS, EMI Music’s Astralwerks Records and Virgin Records, Ninja Tune, Playlouderecordings, Quango Music Group, Sub Pop Records, and V2/Artemis Records.
Zune Accessories
To enhance the Zune experience, three accessory packs help Zune users enjoy their music where they want to, at home or on the road. The packs and the individual accessories, all designed exclusively for Zune, will be available at launch:
• The Zune Car Pack includes everything needed to hit the road with a Zune device, such as the built-in FM tuner with AutoSeek and the Zune Car Charger.
• The Zune Home A/V Pack enhances your experience in the home through five products that integrate Zune with the TV and music speakers: Zune AV Output Cable, Zune Dock, Zune Sync Cable, Zune AC Adapter and the Zune Wireless Remote for Zune Dock.
• Zune Travel Pack is a set of five products designed to keep friends and family entertained on the road: Zune Premium Earphones, Zune Dual Connect Remote, Zune Gear Bag, Zune Sync Cable and the Zune AC Adapter.
Providing consumers with additional options to customize and personalize their Zune experience, Mircosoft zune is also working with leading accessory manufacturers Altec Lansing, Belkin Corp., Digital Lifestyle Outfitters (DLO), Dual Electronics, Griffin Technology, Harman Kardon and JBL, Integrated Mobile Electronics, Jamo International, Klipsch Audio Technologies, Logitech, Monster Cable Products Inc., Speck, Targus Group International Inc. and VAF Research
The Future is Bright
In addition to the features available at launch, built-in wireless technology and powerful software provide a strong foundation to continue to build new shared experiences around music and video. As Zune evolves, the device can be easily updated. The Mircosoft Zune software on your PC will let you know when these updates are available for download.
About Zune
Zune is Microsoft’s music and entertainment platform that provides an end-to-end solution for Connected Entertainment. The Zune experience includes a 30GB digital media player, the Zune Marketplace music service, and a foundation for an online community that will enable music fans to discover new music. Inspired by the vast and varied community of music fans, Zune focuses on helping emerging artists shape the digital canvas. Zune is part of Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices division and supports the company’s software-based services vision to help drive innovation in the digital entertainment space. More information can be found online at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/presskits/zune.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFTâ€) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.
Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft® Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass on Microsoft’s corporate information pages. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication, but may since have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft’s Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts listed at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/contactpr.mspx.
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Billboard.biz has just announced that Microsoft has confirmed the Zune project and the company is 100% ready for the portable music player which will be put under Microsoft's new Entertainment & Devices Division. The division is headed by Robbie Bach, Allard (Corporate Vice President and Chief XNA Architect), and Bryan Lee (Corporate Vice President and CFO, Entertainment and Devices Division). Microsoft GM of marketing, Chris Stephenson said "Today we confirmed a new music and entertainment project called Zune. Under the Zune brand, we will deliver a family of hardware and software products, the first of which will be available this year. We see a great opportunity to bring together technology and community to allow consumers to explore and discover music together." Zune will be the umbrella brand for a family of software and hardware products that will target various digital entertainment services. Billboard also confirms that the new Zune will offer a Wi-Fi and drive-based storage. Microsoft will implement a new PlaysForSure system for the portable player and too bad you can't use it with Napster, Zongo or any audio service. Guess what? The new Zune is going to have a add-on game pad similar to the Sony Ericsson P800 Bluetooth game pad. Will this device turn out to be basing its social networking capabilities on Microsoft's Live Anywhere platform? Gizmodo reported that Microsoft will let you customize your own Zune when you buy it online. If that's true, it will be really great. There are still a lot of hanging questions and rumors. What we wrote and explained was according to inside sources.
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Not Two Tin Cans and a String
A weekly commentary on the mobile industry
By Dan Blacharski
Microsoft to make applesauce out of the iPod?
Those of you who keep up with my regular postings may well accurately guess that I do not possess an iPod, nor would I be likely to buy one. Because I am in the business of writing about technology, I do have a vague idea of what it does, but I still miss vinyl records, so there you go. In the seventies, if I wanted portable music, you may have seen me walking down the street, with my permed hair, platform shoes, polyester shirt and gold chains with a huge eight-track boom box on my shoulders. It weighed about twenty pounds. My shoulder still hurts.
Mac enthusiasts are taking the new device with a grain of salt, believing somehow that Microsoft, who they love to hate, couldn't possibly come up with something better than the iPod. After all, the iPod is a product of a company named after fruit. But Apple fans, like those who were absolutely convinced that McGovern would win by a landslide against Nixon, have a habit of underestimating the opposition.
The device will include a wireless Internet connection, so users can download music directly to the device without having to go through an intermediary computer. This handy feature is lacking on the iPod, which currently enjoys a 77 percent share of the digital music player marketplace. Apple's iTunes music store is the 800 pound gorilla of music downloads, and about 72 percent of all music downloads come from the Apple online store. Of course, music from iTunes plays only on the Apple device, so Microsoft is planning to create their own store to compete with iTunes. Microsoft has already met with major music companies to negotiate content.
Code-named Argo, the device is also said to sport a better quality picture than the iPod. The screen is also said to be bigger than that of the iPod, a factor that would trump Apple in its most recent idea to bring movies and video to the iPod. Other rumors include that users of the Microsoft device will be able to tap into a social network and connect with other users.
The device, which pundits call the "iPod Killer," is sure to take share away from Apple. The company's strategy is similar to their strategy of taking control of the game console business by releasing their own line, the highly successful Xbox, and the iPod Killer development is being led by some of the same people that first came up with the Xbox.
As part of the Argo project, Microsoft also plans to release an entire series of devices, perhaps including a handheld gaming console (like the Gameboy). The music device will be available by Christmas.
Stumble It! | Posted by Paul on July 21, 2006 9:38 PM
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