Print - Microsoft On Track to Sell 1 Million Zunes

In a newspaper interview over the weekend, Microsoft President Robbie Bach said that the company had sold just over one million Zune devices, beating the company's publicly-stated sales predictions by one month. However, it turns out Bach was misquoted: Microsoft still plans to sell one million Zunes by the end of its fiscal year, which happens on June 30. The company had previously promised to sell one million units by that date.

"We've sold a little over a million Zunes," Bach reportedly told "The San Francisco Chronicle." "In the category we're in, the hard-disk-based category, we've got about 10 percent market share. It's a good start. It's not an overwhelming start. I'm not going to pretend it's some gigantic move." However, it's not clear Bach ever told the publication that. In the podcast-based transcript of this conversation, Bach says, "When we finish our fiscal year in June we'll have sold a little over a million Zunes, so we feel very good about that."

Microsoft has been steadily chronicling its meager successes in the portable digital media player market since the Zune was released in November 2006. After a decent start, the Zune has typically commanded about 9 to 10 percent market share each month, giving it the number two position in the sub-market for MP3 players with hard drives. However, the dominant player, Apple's iPod, accounts for most of the other 90 percent of the market. Indeed, Apple has sold more than 30 million iPods in the last two quarters.

Microsoft, however, has always maintained that its entry into this market would be marked by slow and steady progress because it understands how difficult it is to defeat an entrenched market leader. Going forward, Microsoft will continue to market the Zune's competitive advantages over the iPod--include a nicer and bigger screen, wireless sharing capabilities, and an ever-expanding set of color choices--while introducing new Zune models that will help the product compete better with Apple's entire iPod lineup.

Microsoft also plans updates to the Zune Marketplace, which is analogous to Apple's iTunes Store. Bach called the attach rate of purchased songs to Zunes "pretty typical," and said that the company will expand the Zune Marketplace in the future to include features that help people connect with one another. He also hinted at coming "innovation" for Zune's wireless feature, which is currently limited to Zune-to-Zune content sharing. Zune users have wondered when the feature might be updated to allow for song purchases from the device, without the need for a connected PC.

UPDATE: This article has been updated to reflect the fact that Bach's recorded comments do not correspond to the quote originally provided by the San Francisco Chronicle.

If MS allowed me to transfer my itunes songs over, Id consider looking at the zune when upgrade time comes around. Burning them to CD and re-ripping them is not worth my time.

Sorry Paul, but MS is not ahead of schedule. Read this post at Apple 2.0: http://blogs.business2.com/apple/2007/05/microsofts_zune.html If you actually listen to the interview, Bach says "when we finish our fiscal year in JUNE, we will have sold a little over a million Zunes". Here is the podcast with the actual interview of Bach, clearly the "reporter" couldn't even summarize his own interview correctly: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/detail?blogid=5&entry_id=16912 The quote comes at -26.20 in the embedded player.

@dugbug: I understand why you won't be switching to the Zune. However, that is Apple's fault, not Micorosoft's. Apple will not license FairPlay, and as a result no player that originates outside of Apple is able to play iTunes files. @kabato: The iPod also had a small headstart.

"lotsa? Snark? Come on, it's a Zune. It's Microsoft. Out with it, lotsa." Why would I write something snarky here? Clearly, Microsoft has a major hit on its hands, and they deserve every bit of praise possible for coming up with such an exciting--and clearly very popular--product. Far be it for me to rain on their multicoloured parade!

"Far be it for me to rain on their multicoloured parade!" i would say that Apple's parade has the bigger rainbow.... http://tinyurl.com/ygzueh http://tinyurl.com/344zgl XP

"i would say that Apple's parade has the bigger rainbow...." I wasn't making a comparison...but you're always insisting choice is good, right? I'm sure Microsoft will catch up eventually. After all, the waited five years to get competitive. These things take time. The next generation of Zunes (non-rebranded-Gigabeats) should be far more interesting. For now, though, they seem to be doing quite well. Good for them.

1 Millon zune players huh and they are happy about that? Already the stores are discounting Zune's by 20 dollars and thats still not enough for me to invest in one. Microsoft has made fatal mistakes with the Zune player and just like the Xbox, it will take serious losses before it ever gets it right. It seems I've already started my path down to the darkside because now I have a 30 gb Ipod video. And guess what, its genius! I've been having fun using it and perhaps maybe I might give Apple a second look. But I'm still standing by my point that Vista is still superior to OS-X because sales figures do not lie. When we get OS-X for PC's, then we'll talk. Until then I feel bad for you Zune owners, when Microsoft had the chance to improve upon the Ipod design and sink them at the begining.

"Microsoft had the chance to improve upon the Ipod design and sink them at the begining." I don't really think so. Usually the only way to beat someone right out the gate like that is if there is something obviously wrong with the design that you correct. Ipod is polished and has a solid design, the only 'flaw' I would say is that it doesn't act very happy with large tables. But even then, if the zune reacted more responsively with a 1500 entry file table than the iPod, it would still only be evolutionary.