Microsoft’s Zune Marketplace will sell individual songs for Windows PCs and Zune digital media players “through a system called Microsoft Points. The new Microsoft cash system will work by adding money to an account, as with a prepaid phone card. Points will then be deducted from the account with each purchase. A single song will cost 79 points, ‘the equivalent of 99 cents,’ according to Microsoft spokeswoman Kyrsa Dixon,” Candace Lombardi reported in late September for CNET News.
Lombardi reported, “The point system is already used in the Xbox Live Marketplace, and Microsoft plans to host other online stores where Microsoft points can be redeemed, according to Katy Gentes, product marketing manager for Zune. In the United States, points are available in denominations of $5 for 400 points, $15 for 1,200, $25 for 2,000 and $50 for 4,000. That makes $1 worth about 80 points.”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Several MacDailyNews readers have suggested that we do the math, so here’s the deal:
• 79 Microsoft Points equals 99-cents or one song.
• The smallest amount of Microsoft Points available for purchase is $5.00 or 400 points.
• Each Microsoft Point is worth 1.25-cents.
• So, you give Microsoft your $5 and buy your 5 songs. That’s 395 total points. Microsoft has your 5 points or 6.25-cents “left over.”
• Say you want an album’s worth, or 10 songs? You give Microsoft $10 for 800 points and buy 10 songs for 790 points. Microsoft has your 10 points or 12.5-cents “left over.”
• See where we’re headed? Microsoft is taking money from their pigeons, er… “customers” and placing it in an interest-bearing account to earn themselves more money on their generous customers’ interest-free “loans.”
• Now, if you don’t wish to give Microsoft your money to use for free to generate interest income for Microsoft, you need to figure out exactly how many 79-point songs to buy, so that no points are left over. The magic formula to avoid giving Microsoft a free loan is 79 points x 400 (smallest denomination available for purchase) = 31,600 points or 400 songs at 79 points each. Total cost: US$395. Not very practical, is it?So, the real point is clear: Microsoft’s “points” are designed to confuse consumers and generate interest income from “left over” amounts. Now you know exactly why “1 Microsoft Point” doesn’t equal “1 U.S. Cent.” Boy, if Microsoft can dupe enough people into this Microsoft Points scheme, those “left overs” will really add up.
To buy even a single 99-cent song from the Zune store, you have to purchase blocks of “points” from Microsoft, in increments of at least $5. You can’t just click and have the 99 cents deducted from a credit card, as you can with iTunes. You must first add points to your account, then buy songs with these points. So, even if you are buying only one song, you have to allow Microsoft, one of the world’s richest companies, to hold on to at least $4.01 of your money until you buy another. And the point system is deceptive. Songs are priced at 79 points, which some people might think means 79 cents. But 79 points actually cost 99 cents. – Walt Mossberg, The Wall Street Journal, November 09, 2006
In stark contrast to Microsoft, Apple charges real currency. You buy a song from the U.S. iTunes Store for 99-cents, you pay 99-cents. You can buy one just one song, if you like, and you’ll be charged 99-cents. No left overs. No formulas. No “points” scheme. Just a single, simple, straight-up, honest transaction.
So who cares if you have a couple or even 10 or 12 cents left over…. can everyoone even imagine how many times they’ve wasted a dime or even a dollar……..
you people are stupid, itunes does the same thing, i have 6 cents left over on a card that i recieved.
so what if you have some left over. you can use them another time. microsoft do the points cos otherwise they would have to convert all of the prices for things. instead they use points. it makes things easier.
Forget about figuring out how to not let microsoft get your change. if you spend 790$ in points, there is no way your going to use all of the points that month so microsoft is just going to be using the left over money you dont spend to make even more money.
and even if you do spend all 790$ in points, you just gave 790$ to microsoft. lose lose , but whatever, i think the xbox live service is worth microsoft getting rich of my nickles and dimes.
this is where i turn to limewire.
ok all u retards and mac fans (wich fall into the same group ) when u purchace microsoft points all the left overs u keep for another time so eventually it will even out. u guys are just mad that microsoft will always have apple beat money wise get over it u support a crappy computer and company. microsoft knows how to think economicly thus is why they are the leader and will always be the leader mac sucks ipod sucks i mean come on you cant even put an ipod on another computer with out it erasing itself and they have less features than a zune (excluding iphone and touch) do your selfs a favor and buy a zune and a pc you will be better off
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sry to post again another benifit to microsoft points is u can also purchace games from your xbox 360 and game expansion packs yet another way microsoft is more innovative
@ shadow
ok all ur pc luvers hoo dont no how to spell: mac rulz pc drools! ha! put that in yur pipe n smoke it how doze beige boxez taste now fruitcups smackitupflipitrubitdownOOOHHHNOOOOOOOO!!!
snoogans
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@ bluestreak1984
u cant fight the facts retard ipods have less features for the same price as a zune look into it and for microsoft points its just easier to purchace things especially do to conversion rates so ms dont have to make 100 dashboards for every country they can just say it costs 79 points and there u go no converting currency and ms points can easly be used if u use a zune and a 360 together. u mac fans r just too dumb to see it. btw a mac is basically a pc with a crappier OS .
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Microsoft points can be used by anyone, even those without credit cards. Did you know that you cannot pay for iTunes with cash and that the cheapest non-credit means to pay for iTunes is with an iTunes card, whose smallest denomination is $15?
“Say you want an album’s worth, or 10 songs? You give Microsoft $10 for 800 points and buy 10 songs for 790 points. Microsoft has your 10 points or 12.5-cents “left over.””
Damn, I drop more than 12.5 cents on the ground getting out of my car sometimes and I damn well don’t bother picking it up because I’m not a penny pinching Jew. I’m sure Microsoft’s putting my 12.5 cents to better use than I would anyway.
Why are so many heebs using Macs anyway? They’re expensive as hell.
Why Does It cost 800 points To Change Your Gamertag on XBox Live? Why Not Free? Greedy Bastards!
When you are in not good state and have got no cash to go out from that, you will require to receive the mortgage loans. Just because it will help you emphatically. I take short term loan every single year and feel myself OK just because of that.
Anyone here use Xbox Mircosoft points? I know how to get the codes e-mailed to you; no money or personal info needed. Go here to learn how: 360freemicrosoftpoints(dot)wordpress(dot)com
i just want to know how many songs can i get with 400 Microsoft points