Comments on: The beginning of the end for the Microsoft Zune http://tech.blorge.com/Structure: /2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/ Technology news Sun, 22 Nov 2009 16:15:02 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 hourly 1 By: Got a Clue http://tech.blorge.com/Structure:/2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/comment-page-1/#comment-167719 Got a Clue Sun, 29 Mar 2009 15:06:54 +0000 http://tech.blorge.com/Structure: /2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/#comment-167719 MS has not done anything since Windows 95 - The talent is long gone and they have an idiot running the company. Anyone with a business can clearly see that MS is stretched too thin and is losing on all counts. MS = GM MS has not done anything since Windows 95 – The talent is long gone and they have an idiot running the company. Anyone with a business can clearly see that MS is stretched too thin and is losing on all counts. MS = GM

]]> By: Gees http://tech.blorge.com/Structure:/2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/comment-page-1/#comment-143646 Gees Thu, 30 Oct 2008 17:35:20 +0000 http://tech.blorge.com/Structure: /2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/#comment-143646 Hey Lino, did you ever stop to think that your condescending defense of a consumer product, of all things, is clear evidence that you are a conformist? Ironic that a "Liberal" would so vehemently defend a consumer product. You have been marketed to just like the other 150 million. Except in your solipsistic, narcissitic rant you, of course, can be the only one to hold true product awareness and total enlightenment. Anyone who sees this issue in political terms as left and right is lost. Go bang your drum hippee. Hey Lino, did you ever stop to think that your condescending defense of a consumer product, of all things, is clear evidence that you are a conformist? Ironic that a “Liberal” would so vehemently defend a consumer product. You have been marketed to just like the other 150 million. Except in your solipsistic, narcissitic rant you, of course, can be the only one to hold true product awareness and total enlightenment. Anyone who sees this issue in political terms as left and right is lost. Go bang your drum hippee.

]]> By: D9 http://tech.blorge.com/Structure:/2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/comment-page-1/#comment-94840 D9 Mon, 26 May 2008 18:02:46 +0000 http://tech.blorge.com/Structure: /2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/#comment-94840 Boy, there are some ludicrous posts on this topic, including those who spell it "I-POD"...WTF?! Microsoft's lack of innovation, lazy development and "corporate before customer" mentality gives them the idea they can move into any new hot technology, copy the market leader then slap on a Microsoft logo and people will buy it simply because it's their product. Fat chance these days, Monkey Boy (lookout for that incoming egg!!) Say what you think about the iPod, but a 100+ million people aren't going to buy a shoddy product...but a couple of million might. And I, like many, could care less if the Zune stays, goes, sh1ts or dies. It's just than insignificant! / Boy, there are some ludicrous posts on this topic, including those who spell it “I-POD”…WTF?!

Microsoft’s lack of innovation, lazy development and “corporate before customer” mentality gives them the idea they can move into any new hot technology, copy the market leader then slap on a Microsoft logo and people will buy it simply because it’s their product. Fat chance these days, Monkey Boy (lookout for that incoming egg!!)

Say what you think about the iPod, but a 100+ million people aren’t going to buy a shoddy product…but a couple of million might.

And I, like many, could care less if the Zune stays, goes, sh1ts or dies. It’s just than insignificant!

/

]]> By: Lino Positano http://tech.blorge.com/Structure:/2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/comment-page-1/#comment-94774 Lino Positano Mon, 26 May 2008 15:48:07 +0000 http://tech.blorge.com/Structure: /2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/#comment-94774 Microsoft thought that it made a consumer player by making its look and feel sort of like an iPod, but it locked it down so hard that only a Rightwing corporate It person concerned about LAN security could love it so, really, the Zune was for LAN corporates. MS never realized this. MS should have simply marked it to Rightwing corporates in whose space it would have found a loyal following. I am sure that corporate secretaries could have been forced to use it, for example, to record the meetings minutes. No wonder it had little traction in the consumer space where the Liberal view prevails and few Liberals like to be locked down. Microsoft thought that it made a consumer player by making its look and feel sort of like an iPod, but it locked it down so hard that only a Rightwing corporate It person concerned about LAN security could love it so, really, the Zune was for LAN corporates. MS never realized this. MS should have simply marked it to Rightwing corporates in whose space it would have found a loyal following. I am sure that corporate secretaries could have been forced to use it, for example, to record the meetings minutes.

No wonder it had little traction in the consumer space where the Liberal view prevails and few Liberals like to be locked down.

]]> By: F. You http://tech.blorge.com/Structure:/2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/comment-page-1/#comment-94479 F. You Mon, 26 May 2008 05:27:43 +0000 http://tech.blorge.com/Structure: /2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/#comment-94479 Microsoft is finding out that it's loyal Apple hating, MacSux T-shirt wearing fans really are 2 digit losers that won't pay for anything. If Microsoft really wants Zunes to move, they should make it possible for Microsoft Geekdom to pirate or steal them. Then they'd have a real iPod competitor. Microsoft is finding out that it’s loyal Apple hating, MacSux T-shirt wearing fans really are 2 digit losers that won’t pay for anything. If Microsoft really wants Zunes to move, they should make it possible for Microsoft Geekdom to pirate or steal them. Then they’d have a real iPod competitor.

]]> By: Partners in Grime http://tech.blorge.com/Structure:/2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/comment-page-1/#comment-94475 Partners in Grime Mon, 26 May 2008 04:51:25 +0000 http://tech.blorge.com/Structure: /2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/#comment-94475 Zune to be gone. Zune to be gone.

]]> By: Ralph http://tech.blorge.com/Structure:/2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/comment-page-1/#comment-94396 Ralph Mon, 26 May 2008 02:32:46 +0000 http://tech.blorge.com/Structure: /2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/#comment-94396 I-Pods are over rated and thats the worst I could say about them (I own one). Zune I won't touch with a 10 foot pole...I'll tell you why. What started out as a great idea with the mesh like technology where one Zune can transfer to another Zune with wireless. MSFT at the behest of the entertainment industry made a 3 play limit and or 3 day limit on whatever was transfered from one Zune to another Zune...even if it was a song you made yourself or a even just a couple of audio clips from your baby's first words. Worse of all, MSFT decided not to include its "Plays for sure" DRM management on the Zune despite the fact that "Plays for sure" was at the time starting to become the defacto DRM standard for mid priced and higher end players (other than the I-Pod). Instead MSFT decided to come up with yet another new DRM scheme that is incompatible with the existing "Plays for sure" players and this DRM scheme is tied to Zune and MSFT's music download service and is not compatible with anything else except Zune. (Yes this is the same company that fostered a operating system called Vista on a unwilling public and a unwilling Corporate IT World....but thats another story....) So here is MSFT, seeing how well I-POD did with its proprietary DRM system and lock-in. So MSFT decides to get in on the act and come up with yet another new scheme but incompatible with their original "plays for sure" , incompatible with Apple (not MSFT's fault on that one), and said to be also incompatible with subscription music services like Napster and Rhapsody. All this comes on the heels of the death of DRM in legal music downloads sales with Amazon, Napster and Walmart all selling MP3s. Adding further insult to the injury, MSFT not only doesn't use "Plays for sure" for Zune. But will no longer support "Plays for sure" DRM keys from its MSN Music store. To further add insult to the injury, one can now buy a 2 GB "generic" MP3 player (Curtis) for about $29.00 or even less on sale just to play some tunes without busting their wallet in the process. So why does I-POD sell well and Zune doesn't? I provided some of the answers above. But the I-POD was very well marketed and came at the right time and at the right moment and the momentum continues. To be fair, both the I-POD, Zune and "generic" MP3 players all plays MP3's. But there are much more I-POD after market products than for Zune and at the right price. Apple is enjoying a huge renewed interest in its computers at the expense of Microsoft and Vista. Are we back to the old argument of Apple vs. Microsoft? Yes, not just in computers, but also music players as well. I-Pods are over rated and thats the worst I could say about them (I own one). Zune I won’t touch with a 10 foot pole…I’ll tell you why.

What started out as a great idea with the mesh like technology where one Zune can transfer to another Zune with wireless. MSFT at the behest of the entertainment industry made a 3 play limit and or 3 day limit on whatever was transfered from one Zune to another Zune…even if it was a song you made yourself or a even just a couple of audio clips from your baby’s first words.

Worse of all, MSFT decided not to include its “Plays for sure” DRM management on the Zune despite the fact that “Plays for sure” was at the time starting to become the defacto DRM standard for mid priced and higher end players (other than the I-Pod).

Instead MSFT decided to come up with yet another new DRM scheme that is incompatible with the existing “Plays for sure” players and this DRM scheme is tied to Zune and MSFT’s music download service and is not compatible with anything else except Zune.

(Yes this is the same company that fostered a operating system called Vista on a unwilling public and a unwilling Corporate IT World….but thats another story….)

So here is MSFT, seeing how well I-POD did with its proprietary DRM system and lock-in. So MSFT decides to get in on the act and come up with yet another new scheme but incompatible with their original “plays for sure” , incompatible with Apple (not MSFT’s fault on that one), and said to be also incompatible with subscription music services like Napster and Rhapsody.

All this comes on the heels of the death of DRM in legal music downloads sales with Amazon, Napster and Walmart all selling MP3s.

Adding further insult to the injury, MSFT not only doesn’t use “Plays for sure” for Zune. But will no longer support “Plays for sure” DRM keys from its MSN Music store.

To further add insult to the injury, one can now buy a 2 GB “generic” MP3 player (Curtis) for about $29.00 or even less on sale just to play some tunes without busting their wallet in the process.

So why does I-POD sell well and Zune doesn’t? I provided some of the answers above. But the I-POD was very well marketed and came at the right time and at the right moment and the momentum continues.

To be fair, both the I-POD, Zune and “generic” MP3 players all plays MP3’s. But there are much more I-POD after market products than for Zune and at the right price. Apple is enjoying a huge renewed interest in its computers at the expense of Microsoft and Vista.

Are we back to the old argument of Apple vs. Microsoft? Yes, not just in computers, but also music players as well.

]]> By: Ken http://tech.blorge.com/Structure:/2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/comment-page-1/#comment-94394 Ken Mon, 26 May 2008 02:27:39 +0000 http://tech.blorge.com/Structure: /2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/#comment-94394 I should make the tried and true historical Apple zealot response about "Market share doesn't matter. Rolls Royce has a minuscule percentage of the market. You can keep your mass market Yugo." That felt good. I should make the tried and true historical Apple zealot response about “Market share doesn’t matter. Rolls Royce has a minuscule percentage of the market. You can keep your mass market Yugo.” That felt good.

]]> By: xilonic http://tech.blorge.com/Structure:/2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/comment-page-1/#comment-94392 xilonic Mon, 26 May 2008 02:10:07 +0000 http://tech.blorge.com/Structure: /2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/#comment-94392 Remember Dell DJ? It was a fine device, wasn't it? Luckily Dell quickly realized there was little point in dumping resources into production of a product which cannot keep up with the competition. Microsoft has more money to waste and shareholders do not seem to mind. So they will put together a team of engineers, dump another billion into R&D and manufacturing and announce a "brand new, all redesigned" Zune. And I will be reading it on my iPhone and wonder "Why would anyone want a device that only plays music and video? Seems rather limited..." Remember Dell DJ? It was a fine device, wasn’t it? Luckily Dell quickly realized there was little point in dumping resources into production of a product which cannot keep up with the competition. Microsoft has more money to waste and shareholders do not seem to mind. So they will put together a team of engineers, dump another billion into R&D and manufacturing and announce a “brand new, all redesigned” Zune. And I will be reading it on my iPhone and wonder “Why would anyone want a device that only plays music and video? Seems rather limited…”

]]> By: Malk Marcy http://tech.blorge.com/Structure:/2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/comment-page-1/#comment-94315 Malk Marcy Sun, 25 May 2008 22:37:05 +0000 http://tech.blorge.com/Structure: /2008/05/25/the-beginning-to-the-end-for-the-microsoft-zune/#comment-94315 Oh yes, jbelkin, btw, I'm a (proud) iPod owner if you like! However, ...I keep good shape holding on being OBJECTIVE ;) Oh yes, jbelkin, btw, I’m a (proud) iPod owner if you like! However, …I keep good shape holding on being OBJECTIVE ;)

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