“Microsoft Corp. will cease introducing new versions of the Zune music and video-player amid tepid demand, helping the company shift its focus to mobile phones, according to a person familiar with the decision,” Dina Bass reports for Bloomberg.
“The company will concentrate on putting Zune software onto mobile phones such as those running Microsoft’s Windows operating system, said the person, who declined to be identified because the decision hasn’t been announced,” Bass reports. “Zune software lets customers buy songs and movies, as well as pay a monthly fee to stream unlimited music.”
Bass reports, “Microsoft will continue to sell existing versions of the Zune, the person familiar with the matter said.”
MacDailyNews Take: Puleeze. To whom are Microsoft going to sell dead-end pretend iPods with no future development? The eleven existing Zune owners (a mix of IT doofuses and Ballmers)? Just grow a pair for once and issue the press release: Zune players are dead.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: By SteveJack: Told ya so. 😉
Next on the chopping block: Microsoft Retail Stores.
Related articles:
Opinion: More blood on Apple iPod’s Click Wheel: Microsoft pulls plug on Zune – July 25, 2006
More blood on Apple iPod’s Click Wheel: Germany’s Maxfield files for bankruptcy – February 20, 2008
More blood on Apple iPod’s Click Wheel: Microsoft pulls plug on Portable Media Center – May 09, 2007
More blood on Apple iPod’s Click Wheel: Dell’s ‘DJ Ditty’ flash-based MP3 player is dead – August 22, 2006
More blood on Apple iPod’s Click Wheel: Dell dumps ‘DJ’ hard-drive MP3 player line – February 04, 2006
More blood on Apple iPod’s Click Wheel: iRiver gives up on digital media player market – May 23, 2006
More blood on Apple iPod’s Click Wheel: Sony’s Walkman Bean is cooked – February 13, 2006
More blood on Apple iPod’s Click Wheel: iRiver pulling out of Europe? – February 01, 2006
More blood on Apple iPod’s Click Wheel: Thomson gives up on MP3 player, CE markets – December 12, 2005
More blood on Apple iPod’s Click Wheel: BenQ withdraws from MP3 player markets – November 28, 2005
More blood on Apple iPod’s Click Wheel: Olympus halts production of portable digital music players – November 09, 2005
More blood on Apple iPod’s Click Wheel: Rio is dead – August 26, 2005
Apple’s iPod has blood on its Click Wheel: Virgin Electronics is dead – March 08, 2005
ZT® was clearly not alerting to the facts of the article. Here is what he should have added to his Take:
(1) The Zune is not being discontinued. It is just not being updated to a new version. The real reason is that there is no reason to update perfection. The “person familiar with the decision” clearly misunderstood. He should not have said “tepid” response. He had clearly meant “rabid” response.
(2) The success of the Zune is clear not only in having no need for a new version, but in the success of its software. No other software can guarantee the success of Windows mobile phones as can the power of Zune software. In the forward thinking of Microsoft’s visionary leader, the Zune may fold into the future of Windows’ mobile phones.
(3) The article is clearly misleading and the “person familiar with the decision” is likely a MAC lemming plant.
Take notes, ZT®! You missed all that! 🙂
As an aside, a new 15″ MBP with SSD and 8GB RAM just arrived a few days ago. It is the fastest portable computing beast I have ever seen. That, added to the added display, is absolutely untouchable. It will be tough waiting until this summer to get a second one! I am hopeful the SSD will not be slowing down over the next few years. The MBP replaced a 2003 PowerBook G4 – which has been used almost daily for all that time running more than one business, and other things. It is still working fine.
DRZ: “The WOW stops now”
Hah!! 😉
Hey very useful information, and thanks for sharing this..
http://bookmarksprintingsite.com/
I saw a Zune once.. I think it was in a display case at Walmart. Yes that’s it… Walmart.
~ ~ ~ In my crystal ball I see a photo in the Seattle Times of a dumpster at the back of the Microsoft campus discovered to be filled with Zunes ~ ~ ~
And now please, a moment of silence as we memorialize our dearly departed Zung Tang ®, may he rest in peace and be reincarnated into a new life of satirical commentary…
. . .
Amen.
Rest in peace sweet caricature. 😥
MDN: The eleven existing Zune owners (a mix of IT doofuses and Ballmers)?
There are 12 owners, my brother purchased one!
IT doofeses? WTF is up your ass MDN? Jeez that is tiring.
Zune.
The tech world’s most effective punchline.
It’s been on life support long enough. Bout time the plug was pulled.
“This isn’t an iPod killer. This isn’t even going to give the iPod a bad case of the sniffles.”
— tech industry analyst Michael Gartenberg, talking about the Zune, September 2006
For what it is worth, Microsoft is denying that Zune it dead:
Zune Is Not Dead
Long live Zune Tang!
Thank you @boghog! From the article:
“This year’s Zune hardware is Windows Phone 7…”
HAHAHAHAHAHA!
“… but that doesn’t mean we won’t see new devices down the line.”
HURRAY! The JOKE lives on! Zune Tang® lives on! The laughter! The hilarity! The atrocity that is Zune is here to stay!
The snarky smile is back upon my face once again.
There is no doubt about it; the iPod is a killer of so-called iPod Killers.
Long live, Xoom Tang!
Goodby Squircle. Sweet dreams, Squirt. Adios Social.
Zune now joins the Pontiac Aztek as a discontinued butt-ugly thing of the past.
The original Zune was horrendous but the HD version is a rather good improvement
Zune now joins the edsel as synonymous with massive embarrassing failure
Not a Microsoft fan boy nor do dismiss the dominance of the iPOD but I like the touch screen OS of the Zune and love it’s video play back and support along with HD radio it had everything I wanted in a player and not too much (don’t care about apps). I was never a fan of the small screens of the “normal” iPOD or the bulky over priced iTouch. So i will be one of the few hanging onto my zune till the end (or i get an GOOD windows 7 phone to replace)