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All posts tagged "ecosystem"


Thursday, February 8, 2007

Zune Ruminations: A Developer's View

Posted by Damion Chaplin in "Zune Talk" @ 12:00 PM

http://blogs.zdnet.com/carroll/?p=1637

"Apple has an ad where they depict a PC upgrading to Vista as a serially-uncool business guy going in for surgery. Fine, so let's update this to make a proper analogy for the Apple upgrade process. Look, Apple has a shiny new operating system that ditches the old architecture (and we all know how often THAT has happened). How does Apple cool guy deal with the upgrade? He shoots himself, counting on reincarnation to bring himself back from the dead as a newborn baby, because surgery simply isn't an option. Imagine what an Apple-inspired game console might look like. It would look great and probably cost a lot, but open platform for developers and hobbyists to drive a software ecosystem forward? Not even close. I bought a Zune because I have experience of a Microsoft ecosystem that makes it easy for me as a software developer to customize. I don't envision a lot of Zune in-device customization, but if some smart person thinks of a reason for them to do that (making a device a music player first with extra functionality second might be a better approach than starting with a general purpose device a la Pocket PC and trying to make it useful as a music player), Microsoft will likely enable it, plus make use of the APIs very easy to do (wizards in Visual Studio, simulators, you name it). More important is the wider ecosystem of products that the Zune is likely to be a part of…which hopefully will include a car stereo with a large screen and an 8-track slot into which I can insert my Zune."

Why did John Carrol buy a Zune? Because he trusts the Microsoft ecosystem more than Apple's. What does that mean? Well, a very common thread in Mac vs. PC arguments is that MS products are configurable, customizable and frankly more power-user-friendly. As a software developer, John knows what it's like to try to program for Apple, so he concludes (correctly?) that more developers will want to develop for the Zune because the iPod ecosystem is so closed it's next to impossible to actually develop for it. Personally, I'm not exactly seeing a shortage in iPod accessories, and I don't think the Microsoft lure is enough to attract any significant portion of developers to the Zune. I am not, however, a developer, so what do I know? Any real developers want to pipe in with their take?


Thursday, January 11, 2007

Yes, John Carroll Bought A Zune

Posted by Damion Chaplin in "Zune Talk" @ 04:00 PM

http://blogs.zdnet.com/carroll/?p=1630

"I have placed myself squarely in a niche market. Compared to the juggernaut that is the iPod, the Zune is barely a drop in the bucket. Microsoft hopes to sell 1 million Zunes by June. Apple sells more iPods than that in a month. You can't walk two blocks in LA without seeing an iPod ad. Zune ads are starting to appear in key places around town, but they could do with a bit of "refinement" (explained tomorrow or thereabouts, plus photos). Why, then, did I buy a Zune? Quite simply: because it is guaranteed to plug into Microsoft's growing ecosystem of home media products."

Well, John may not have had a chance to play with his Zune yet, but he's certainly got a well-thought-out reason for buying a Zune. It was certainly more thought-out than my justification (OK, I really didn't have one). The XBox 'ecosystem' is a fantastic reason, and is probably going to make me buy an XBox. So John bought a Zune to complement his XBox, and I'll shortly be buying an XBox to compliment my Zune (No, that's not the only reason). How did you justify your Zune?


Monday, November 20, 2006

Microsoft Embracing Open Ecosystems

Posted by Darius Wey in "Zune Talk" @ 08:00 AM

http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=146646

"Zune is unlikely "to make any dent at all in Apple’s market share," says Tim Bajarin of Creative Strategies, a consultancy in Silicon Valley. But Microsoft probably has no choice but to try, he adds. During its first 25 years, he says, Microsoft succeeded above all by bringing computer technology to businesses; to succeed in its next 25 years, it must turn its attention to consumer gadgets, for that is where the innovation and growth will be. But the formula with which Microsoft achieved its dominance in the first round appears not to be working in the second. So Zune is based on a very different business model-evidence that Microsoft is changing."

The iPod and Xbox 360 are living proof that closed ecosystems in the entertainment industry do work. This is the path the Zune is taking, though that doesn't necessarily guarantee success in the same order as the aforementioned. In its current form, the Zune ecosystem is decent, but it could be so much more. Where are the movies and the TV shows? Where's the deep integration with other Microsoft products (because at the moment, it's only scraping the surface)? There's so much potential, and Microsoft has to deliver it.


Wednesday, November 8, 2006

BusinessWeek.com: Zune Equipped for Success

Posted by Jason Dunn in "Zune Talk" @ 01:44 PM

http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/nov2006/tc20061107_594565.htm

"No one expects the Zune to quickly overtake the iPod. Apple has sold some 68 million of the devices, generating some $14 billion in sales, in the five years since it was introduced (see BusinessWeek.com, 10/23/06, "The Apple iPod Turns Five"). The Zune is nevertheless expected to have a lot of takers...That could translate into hefty sales of Zune accessories. Wilson expects Microsoft to sell as many as 500,000 Zune players this holiday season. iPod buyers tend to spend 50% of the device's initial purchase price on accessories, says Richard Doherty, director of the consultancy The Envisioneering Group. If the same holds true for Zune, which will sell for $249.99, then accessories for the Microsoft device could generate some $62.5 million in sales early on."

A great article about the Zune and the accessories landscape being built up around it. My hackles used to rise when I heard people referring to the iPod as a "platform", because without the ability to incorporate third part software, "platform" seemed like too strong of a word for it. I think "ecosystem" is a better term, but in looking at the stunning number of hardware accessories for the iPod, platform may indeed be the right term for it. Will the Zune have similar success in this space building up a platform? It's too early to be sure, but it's clear that no digital media player has ever had this many accessories going for it at launch. The array of companies offering products (Belkin, Klipsch, VAF, Speck Products, Vaja, Altec Lansing, to name a few) is something I haven't seen with any player from iRiver, Creative, Sony, or anyone else. When you combine all those companies making accessories, and factor in the massive retail presence that the Zune will have, you end up a strong ecosystem offering for the consumer. Will they invest? We'll see.


Wednesday, November 1, 2006

Zune Pays to Share?

Posted by Darius Wey in "Zune Talk" @ 09:35 PM

http://www.mobilemag.com/content/100/337/C10271/

"Damn it. Quit yanking my chain. Now it turns out that Microsoft just may reward you for sharing tunes with the Zune media player after all, if a recently leaked whitepaper is to be believed. The document outlines "off-line economies for digital media", describing how you can "sell" content to another Zune owner while still sending the profits to the copyright holder. In exchange, maybe you get some brownie points or something. The paper goes on to talk about immediate purchases on-the-go, Bluetooth sharing, anti-piracy practices, and so forth."


Courtesy of Artghost.com

Well, that's the buzz going around, but I'm not convinced. The whitepaper (PDF) talks about an isolated, tamper-resistant economic ecosystem composed of media players, eager sellers and buyers, and a whole lot of care factor. It has merit, but seems difficult to execute with current-generation Zune devices. Maybe it'll have a place in a few years time, when Microsoft has its digital partners sorted, enhanced hardware, and a more widespread market base. After all, it's a Microsoft Research paper centred highly on theoretical material. Such material often takes a few years to come into effect, if at all. Although, now that I think about it, if it really did come into effect, would I really want every Zune user on the street bugging me to buy their tunes? Probably not. I'll go to a store for that.


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