In the face of a 54 percent revenue drop last quarter, there’s been a lot of speculation going around (myself included) as to what’s going to happen with the Microsoft Zune. Microsoft has now come out and said that it has no plans to deep six the hardware or the software and that there will indeed be a new Zune lineup later this year.
Adam Sohn, director of marketing for the Zune, said the following in an interview with the Seattle Post-Intelligencer:
“Every time anything comes up, there is a set of people who pull a Chicken Little and say, ‘The Sky is Falling. Zune is dead.’ The fact is we are on track to deliver the next generation of Zune innovation in software and hardware. The planning is fast and furious. We will deliver progress this calendar year.”
Robbie Bach of Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices Division also told the Seattle PI at CES recently that the slower revenue was expected this past holiday season.
“Truthfully that category, Apple and us, didn’t grow like it did last year. But Zune did fine. Right about our expectations and we feel pretty good about the direction that’s going.”
So there you have it. The sky is definitely not falling on the Zune and Microsoft will continue to develop both the hardware and the software.
Microsoft explains why Zune sales dropped 54 percent [Seattle PI via Neowin.net]
Thanks for sending this in, Christian.
That’s good to hear, thanks for throwing this up. I for one like Microsoft staying in this space. Its good to have competition, and the Zune is a good product. I don’t own one, but when the time comes for a new MP3 player (if my 5th gen iPod 30 GB ever dies), I will certainly consider a Zune.
And Sohn is right, there really is a “Chicken Little” mentality out there for everything Microsoft. I’m starting to almost feel bad for them – recognizing M$ was run for a long time by a bunch of thugs, today there are actually good people there working hard to develop and deliver quality products. The Zune and XBox divisions are prime examples.
Zune shouldn’t die. If every company that isn’t apple stopped making MP3 players then no one else would be in business. Microsoft spent a lot of money doing marketing, especially for Common’s album so I’m not surprised that they lost money.
Zune is a software platform, which you’d think Microsoft would try to get other companies to jump on board with. Either way, the idea of adding Zune to Windows Mobile doesn’t sound bad either.
Meh – this is only b/c it’s Microsoft. No one is writing stories about Creative or Samsung’s MP3 player future.
Yes. It’s time to shut down the store. In recent history, Microsoft has made several attempts to re-invent itself as both a hardware company and a software company. And, regardless of what Microsoft apoligists write — seemingly everywhere on the Internet — not only has Microsoft has not only thrived in this regard, they’ve produced abysmal failures that only deteriorate their plunging reputation further.
There is nothing attractive about the Zune software subscription, particularly since the music is DRM protected, something that Apple recently, and finally, persuaded the record companies to drop in their iTunes Store.
Windows Vista: A bomb from the beginning despite Microsoft bloggers who continue to strain to have us believe it is the best thing since sliced bread. It isn’t. Even Microsoft’s CEO admitted that it was a failure. Their Seinfeld ads, to the tune of at least 10 million dollars, carried the stench of desperation.
Xbox: Yeah. Most users love it. But there aren’t enough of them to make it profitable and, being long in the tooth, the light at the end of the tunnel burned out long ago.
Zune: This is the hardest part. Zune owners seem to love what they have. That having been said, there are very few people who own a Zune, and far fewer who want one. Get rid of it.
Microsoft needs to get back to its roots. It needs to start making an attractive, functional operating system. It needs to not have to fend off competition from people like Apple and Linux.
This is all a hard pill to swallow for Microsoft, but sometimes you have to eat your vegetables.
You’re an idiot.
So your argument is that companies who are successful at one thing shouldn’t try and branch out into other things? That’s brilliant, why didn’t anybody else ever think of that. Don’t invest money in other products. It was stupid for Apple to make the iPod. Their computer line was doing so well they should have focused all their money there, stuck to what they knew.
Buddy, if people who own a Zune “seem to love them”, maybe you should think about coming down from your throne high atop Olympus and stop making decisions for a multi-billion dollar company and its users. I personally don’t understand either how the 360 survived its challenges, but it did and has a thriving and enthusiastic install base. Microsoft managed to build a winner…but I guess is SkateNY says so they might as well shut it down.
LOL at bona’s comment! :D
i still have my 2gb mp3 player from like 4 years ago. i was going to buy an itouch but then my sister got a zune. she got one of the “ugly” zunes though: the first generation, brown color. I however, liked it despite the appearance. the software is really cool. i did some research on the newer generations and im almost in love with the zune. it is a very customizable device (i find that very important) the screen is gorgeous and having a radio is very important. the only drwback is that the zune is still a bit on the thick side for me, and still doesnt have a touhscreen.
I am really glad I read this article. I guess I can wait a bit longer and see what new zune MS comes out with. It would be ideal for me if it had a bigger screen, slimmer, it still kept the touch pad around there, still great quality sound, and to keep all the features it has. :D
Good – I like my Zune, but I’m more interested in what they’ve got down the line…
Revenue for the Zune might be down because of the recession, or it could be because people are afraid it will freeze up again next New Year’s Eve