Microsoft has officially confirmed the death of its Zune player devices.
The software giant removed references to the Zune HD from its Zune site on Monday and later claimed that the removal was “a mistake.” It appears that the reference removals may have been planned for later but were mistakenly pushed early. A new support article on Microsoft’s Zune support pages makes it very clear:
“We recently announced that, going forward, Windows Phone will be the focus of our mobile music and video strategy, and that we will no longer be producing Zune players. So what does this mean for our current Zune users? Absolutely nothing. Your device will continue to work with Zune services just as it does today. And we will continue to honor the warranties of all devices for both current owners and those who buy our very last devices. Customer service has been, and will remain a top priority for us.”
The confirmation marks the end of Microsoft’s range of Zune devices that failed to prove popular against Apple’s rival iPod offerings. Microsoft killed off its Zune originals devices earlier this year, marking the beginning of the end. The company urged consumers to purchase a Windows Phone 7 device for the Zune experience. “See how Windows Phone isn’t just a phone,it’s also a great Zune music and video player!”, said the final part of Microsoft’s message confirming the axe. A learn more button at the bottom of the page pushed users to Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 site.
Microsoft recently confirmed that it is working to port Zune HD applications to Windows Phone. Former Zune senior business development manager Dave McLauchlan revealed the company’s plans in a recent Zune Insider podcast. Zune has been in the news lately for all the wrong reasons. Microsoft was forced to confirm it is not “killing” any Zune services after it was revealed that the company plans to rebrand Zune into Windows Live shortly.
