A Zunerama member by the name of AIZEE, has discovered that songs that he purchased using Zune Pass on the Zune Marketplace were able to be transfer onto his daughters Creative Zen music player. There isn’t really any benefit from this feature since I doubt many of you have both a Zune and a PlaysForSure device. But the reverse of this may be useful for those who switched to Zune from a PlaysForSure device.
My biggest question regarding this is whether the reverse can be done. Also since these are Zune Pass songs there are more questions that arise. Such as will the songs expire and will they stay synchronized with your Zune Pass subscription.
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One of the biggest issues regarding digital music right now is DRM. Recently, we have seen that the industry is strongly reacting to Steve Jobs open letter concerning DRM. EMI Group is thinking about making all their digital tracks DRM-free. But what would the loss of DRM mean for Zune. We will discuss the pros and cons of DRM on Zune.
The biggest hassles of DRM on Zune is caused due to Zune’s unique sharing feature. Currently the sharing feature is a pain for users because of the 3play/3day rule that has been implemented. We also have seen some other issues with the sharing feature, such as not being able to share certain songs. If DRM were to be removed, then we would no longer see restrictions on the music we share. But, the record industry (RIAA) may feel that this is similar to practices like P2P services and get Microsoft to block the sharing feature all together. So the end of DRM could either be positive or negative for the sharing feature depending on how RIAA feels about it. But looking at the past, chances are high that RIAA will ask Microsoft to lock up the sharing feature.
Another issue is in regards to the Zune Marketplace. We may have to say goodbye to Zune Pass because unlimited downloads is strictly available due to DRM restrictions. If DRM is eliminated chances are that ZunePass will be a thing of the past along with other music subscription services from other providers. Ultimately this will be a loss of a great feature of the Zune Marketplace and make it exactly like the iTunes Store. However, it is expected that songs will be slightly cheaper if the DRM was removed. So this can either be good or bad for user depending on what they use it for.
The only real positive result is that you will be able to buy your music from any provider and play it on the Zune. But from a general standing point, it appears that DRM may actually be a good thing for the Zune.
Microsoft Corp. has hired Omniture Inc. to analyse ways to improve Zune’s online music store. Omniture Inc. is a provider of online business software and their other customers are Nike, PayPal and Sears.
“Omniture helps us understand what our customers care about, continually allowing us to improve the online experience and provide the best possible content and services,” said a Microsoft spokesman.
It’s good to see that Microsoft remains commited in improving the service of Zune Marketplace. I personnally think that Zune Marketplace has more features than iTunes, but lacks content such as movies and TV shows. I’ve also noticed that Zune Marketplace takes up quite abit of resources, which usually causes ‘lag’ in older machines. Has anyone had an issue like that or anything else that should be improve with the marketplace?
Read the Press Release
If I were to compare the iTunes Store and the Zune Marketplace right now, the clear winner would be the iTunes store. I say this simply due to content such as Movies, Tv Shows and a large library of songs. But some of that may change very soon. It is likely that some time in 2007, Microsoft will release TV shows on to the Zune Marketplace. And movies may follow. There is speculation that Microsoft will possibly release these downloads as early as February.
TV shows on iTunes grabs alot of downloads and it is safe to say that some iPod buyers bought it simply because iTunes offers TV shows. The typical person doesnt have time to watch all their favourite TV shows, yet theyspend countless hours doing nothing on the bus, during the lunch break and many other odd times. So people would much rather connect their iPod to sync their TV shows the night before so can watch that new episode of ‘Heroes’ and dont mind paying that 2 dollars.
Microsoft could take the same direction as Apple is doinig with iTunes right now and charge people for each download. Or they could integrate it with the new xbo 360 IPTV system so that consumers could get their shows on their Zune without paying a fixed price. It could also enable user to transfer HD movies to their Zunes, but I doubt the picture quality would be good.
Either way Microsoft will be releasing shows on to the Zune in the near future because to be frank the success of Zune is impacted greatly by the content avaiable at the marketplace. Microsoft already has CBS, ABC, NBC and The CW aboard for Xbox 360, so it shouldnt be too much of a pain to get them on Zune. Hopefully Fox begins selling their shows, so that next year when the service is action we can be watching some ‘24′.
A couple years ago people would have be scepticle about watching TV on a 3.5′ screen but it seems to have great success so far.
A recent update on the official Microsoft Zune web site - www.zune.net has added a surprising but expected page called “Pass it On“. On the page is talk of Podcasts support and a large rectangle feature of NPR Podcasts. Podcasts have been a long awaited feature for the Zune by many users as its been a great way for users to stay on top of the subjects that matter to them while on the move. Podcasts have also been a much talked about feature to soon be included in a future software update by Microsoft
Podcasts are well integrated into the iPod iTunes store and is a major feature to many iPod users, hopefully this will be a feature soon to come to the Zune Marketplace
In a Houston Chronicle interview with Bryan Lee, corporate vice present for Microsoft’s entertainment business he said something that really caught my attention. Bryan Lee states in the Chronicle interview that it would be logical for the Zune platform to see an annual or twice-annual refresh of its software and hardware. He also said that there will be addition models to compliment the current line up, with the addition of flash based Zunes.
On the software side, it will probably be the release of a new version as we have seen with iTunes and probably a redesign of the store itself. This will probably become a common thing with the Zune Marketplace with upgrade happening yearly. The store itself could add TV shows, Movies and Games in the future. The software side is a much simpilar task for Microsoft compared to hardware.
On the hardware side, it is no surprise that the Zune will get a redesign soon. The 1st generation Zune was Microsoft’s entry into the market. It will keep getting improved over time, but it is possible for a complete redesign of the Zune from ground up or will it just be a simple advancement like 1Gen iPods to 2Gen iPods. It could possibly even make a move by releasing a touchscreen Zune for $249. People are really intrigued by the touch screen technology and there still isnt a standalone widescreen iPod (excludes iPhone, because it is integrated and therefore more expensive). So it is key for Microsoft to make some upgrades to reach their goal of becoming the #2 portable media player after iPod.
Also when Microsoft does make its launch into the flash based Zunes, it will have tough competition from the nano and a ton of PlaysForSure devices. So Microsoft will really need to pull off an awesome, yet cheap product to gain some ground in this field. It will also be the stepping stone for the broad range of products under the Zune name.
For the first time the Beatles records will be able to be purchased digitally on the Zune MarketPlace. Is this a way for the band to stick it to Apple? Who knows, but who really cares, its just good news all around for Beatles fans.
