David Ciccone found a fancy pink Zune on eBay. Fair enough — some underfed member of the Zune design team needs a little extra money so he/she decided to sell their Microsoft Billmas present. But get this: it’s now selling for $920 on the ‘Bay.
Clearly the invisible hand of the market is at work here. Brown, black and white are so passe at this point that only pink will do. So someone — some mad-eyed bidder on eBay — must have the pink. Scarcity breeds deep and inexplicable desire.
Zune team member sells precious pink Zune! [MobilityToday]
Maybe Microsoft should’ve sold the pink Zunes from the get-go, with them going for as much as they are.
…or people love to buy limited edition products regardless of what the product is. I’m banking on the latter. :D
I’m about ready to get a can of pink spray paint and a few Zunes and put them up on ebay. This reminds me of a Modded Xbox360 with a window and paint job that sold for $10,000 soon after launch day. Now, this Zune really is pink, but people like the “unique factor” and would be willing to pay a premium for a pink Zune. :-)
I dunno. I’m always surprised with how popular pink gadgets are. Look at the SLVR L7 and the RAZR. Anything will sell if it’s in pink. I don’t think Anthony is the only guy with the spray paint idea. Let’s see how many more “limited edition” pink Zunes wind up on eBay.
Pink is fashionable and would be a huge hit with the teen girls, who happen to make up a significant proportion of online and offline purchasers.
On a related note, in order for Microsoft to capture a greater proportion of MP3 market, they need to get celebrity endorsements. As much as the techie portion of the web would complain about Paris Hilton and her diamond studded Pink Zune while forgetting to wear her underwear, the rest of the world would eat it right up.
Secondly, they should continue their trade in your ipod offers, especially at large universities. Finally, they should increase free content (maybe even have ad sponsored content on the zune). I am surprised that apple hasn’t utilized their color screens to display advertisements (in exchange for free music)
Amit: There were/are trade-in offers? Really? Do you know if they have to be *working* iPods? :D
OMG…What people will buy on eBay!!!
I would never pay more than retail for a Zune. They don’t appeal to me in the way that the luscious iPod nano does.
Not a good sign when one of the zune designers sells his own machine :P
I think Isaiah and Anthony are right on with this one: it’s supply and demand. Basic economics at work here. People will pay more for something that is in extremely short supply.
Why does OPEC limit oil output? So we pay more for gasoline!
Although you would think Microsoft would come out with “limited edition” colors. Pink is obviously in high demand, but there are probably other colors/designs they could make as well.
Although I’m definitely sticking with my Nano.
Pink is the new black, people! Pink Nintendo DSs, pink Zunes, pink bikini bottoms — get the picture? Welcome to the social.
That thing is one ugly color
Wow, you’ve got a product that isn’t selling, isn’t getting good hype – what better than to stage an eBay run-up!
Look, my product is SO cool that it’s going for $1000 on EBAY!!!
C’mon…. Is this anything more than a publicity stunt?
Isaiah,
They did the Apple trade in thing for reporters at the Zune launch and it was a apparently a disaster. However, I think that was done for the wrong crowd. They should give discounts to college students to trade in and then sell the students music and shows for cheap. Also imagine if Microsoft partnered with universities to help electronically transcribe their lectures to video and only make them compatible on the Zune. They could be streaming on the web but they could only be placed on the Zune for portability. That would make huge shifts in the market and would also be good for overall education. Some schools might even make the lectures public so anybody can learn. It wouldn’t hurt the university because students are still going there for the degree and not to just learn.
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Looks like Petobismol Pink and sounds like a gimic by Microsoft to bring some attention to zune.
I’m afraid this is not the case. The gift version of Zune team members could be orange or pink (they selected what color they wanted).
There are also 100 pink Zunes disguised as other colors. You buy a brown one but when you open the box you find a pink one inside. These are numbered to distinguish them from the “gift” pink Zunes
Check from more:
Pink Zunes on eBay are not the Zune team gifts
– Zune-Online.com Share your Zune Experience!