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Zune vs. iPodLooks like Apple's iPod has a new challenger. What do you guys think of the Microsoft Zune? Are you guys planning on getting the Zune? Or just more iPod's? Chieh Cheng News reports indicate the zune is a loser! And I would have to agree. But then again, I have never bought an ipod (though now i have one but it was a gift from ameritrade). CCC Microsoft is making an effort to remove itself from Zune. Not because it sucks (which it does at the moment) but because Balmer and company doesn't want people to know it's from Microsoft. And for good reasons. You've got the inherent anti-Microsoft population. The other reason is that with Zune removed from Microsoft, it has the potential to stand on its own with Zune-branded products. Already, Zune phones are already in development...imagining putting a brown piece of crap next to your ear. With that said, it's not a good start to a product when the corporate parent is so detested by much of the people you're trying to sell to. However, given that the Zune music player sucks, it would be good to be mindful that most of the stuff from Microsoft always sucks until the 2nd or 3rd generation product. With that said, even then, Zune may still suck but gain marketshare by means other than coming out with a comparable or superior product. For instance, it's attempting to sour Apple's future negotiation with music providers by giving Universal a cut of every Zune sold. Right now, for every Zune sold, $1 goes to Universal. Approximately half of that dollar will go to the artists. Which means Less than 50 cents but more than a quarter. Look for Apple to do something like cut a deal directly with all artists directly. Why give Universal the fifty-plus cents per iPod when you can just give the whole dollar to the REAL content providers? Bono would definitely go there. Go back 6-7 years. Sixty million fans buying Backstreet Boys- or Nsync-branded iPods? How about American Idol iPods? Corporate iPods? You bet. This is the Internet after all. It's about cutting out the middleman. Cutting the fat. Getting rid of an inefficient market. This shameful tactic from Microsoft is very shameful. It's a start of something and where the path goes is very scary for consumers. Your radio, stereo system, TV, DVD player, and more. Anyone who provides content can claim a piece of the revenue for electronics sold. It's simply stupid. Look for Apple to not go down that path. Your TV can display my content, give me $5 for each one you sell. I want you to pay me $3 for every blue-ray player you sell. How moronic is that? A tax on all electonics that can pick up radio to be shared by all broadcasters? Could happen if Microsoft's royalty strategy suceeds. It's not likely to work. But desperation calls for deperate measure. Microsoft can buy a music label to keep those tunes from appearing on iTunes and/or demand royalty from Apple for each iPod sold. Probably not going to happen but we're not as sneaky as Gates/Balmer. Microsoft is looking at this from two sides. One, it wants a foothold in the music area. Also, Zune will likely be a brand beyond just music players. They want people to look at Zune like people look at Sony and, more prominently these days, Samsung. They want it in the living room, in your car, your bedroom, the gym. Zune branded stereo, mobile units (I specially didn't want to say "phones"), TV, media centers. What it doesn't realize is that Apple is looking to do the same. It's a multi-year effort. Even Microsoft acknowledges that. Very exciting times ahead. Personally, I'm a Mac fan, not necessarily an iPod fan. But iPod, for the foreseeable future, rocks. Zune looks like what it looks like...a brown piece of shi... Paul I'm sticking to my Sandisk for half the price of an Ipod and more that double the battery life. I have no need for video or picture content so all flash based storage will suffice. Sp Chess So, is the BMW, Benz, and the Audi.... But the truth is that billions are spent are stylistic research for a very good reason. Style and feel of a product is very much a function as is the ability to play MP3 or video. That's the truth. It's the natural evolution of a higher standard of living. If the Macbook didn't have a $400 premium simply because of the look and it weight l lb more, Dell and the rest of the Windows-based industry business loss will be only limited by the ability of Apple to keep up with demand. A Macbook that costs $500, runs OS X and Windows? Or a Dell? Very easy choice there. Go one step further. the iPod is just cool. You can't put enough money into researching "cool". Paul ipod's better, but zune can do what made palm so awesome... you can "beam" songs to another zune player. not sure about how they deal with the licensing. but that's a neat feature. Charlie you can only play the beamed song only 3 times before you have to buy it. And that includes songs that you have in your own collection. Thus, the only licensing involved is YOU have to go buy the song if you want to keep playing it. Paul
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