thomas fitzgerald.net

As Microsoft’s much vaunted mp3 player gets closer to release, the company’s handling of the rollout of what one would think would be an important product for them just gets stranger and stranger.

First there was the whole fiasco with the name being somewhat offensive in at least two languages(1,2). It’s hard to believe that with the several hundred people at Microsoft who must have at least been aware of the projects name, no one spotted this.

Then there’s the roll out itself. Rather than launching the Player to the press with fanfare and ceremony, they’ve slowly trickled out details over the last few months, many of which have changed. I guess someone thought this would build up excitement around the final official launch, but instead people are starting to suffer “Zune fatigue”

It’s the most recent revelations though that proves the oddest. First of all came the news that it wouldn’t be available in Europe till 2008.

What?

What possible reason could there be for delaying the product that long? It can’t possibly be that hard to manufacture. Is this an attempt to punish Europeans because the EU stood up to them over their windows monopoly? Why would you want to delay a huge potential sales base for a whole year and a half? Like I said, strange.

Then there was this revelation today that they were going to pay Universal Music for every Zune sold.

Once again…. What the F*^% ?

The explanation from a Universal Exec

“We felt that any business that’s built on the bedrock of music we should share in”

Okay….

So even if you never put any music from Universal on the thing they’re still getting a bunch of your change. What is it, some sort of bribe?

Bizarre.