Microsoft is really intent on invading the portable space that is being dominated by the likes of Nintendo (with its Nintendo DS and other portable gaming devices) and the Apple’s iPod.
Now the software giant has officially mounted a challenge to the iPod’s dominance with the release of its Zune media player. The new device, which will be made available around the holiday season, will feature wireless technology to let people easily share their music with friends and other people and devices. The device will be able to share not only songs but playlists and also pictures with other Zune users who are within range.
The users can then listen to the said songs for up to three times over three days before they are made to decide whether they want to purchase it themselves.
According to J Allard, Microsoft’s VP in charge of the Zune line (and who gamers recognize as one of the braintrusts of Microsoft’s Xbox), the idea of Zune is to legitimize the whole idea of peer to peer sharing in a way that is healthy and that will be accepted by all quarters.
According to Microsoft the Zune’s capability to share song will be made available for a majority of songs that will be made available through the company’s new Zune market place service. But Some music publishers though have expressed their opposition to the idea.
At this point though users still cannot purchase songs directly from the Zune. All they can do is to flag the song and then purchase it when they connect the device to their computers and then access the Zune market place.