Microsoft's iPod rival Zune MP3 player is suffering from a marked decline in sales and market share.
According to Microsoft's latest 10-Q financial report, "Zune platform revenue decreased $100 million or 54 percent reflecting a decrease in device sales."
The Wall Street Journal estimates that these figures imply Zune revenue dropped from $185 million during Christmas 2007 to just $85 million in the 2008 Christmas quarter.
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This compares badly with the 22,727,000 iPods Apple shipped during its latest quarter - a three percent unit growth over the year-ago quarter. Apple's iPod generated $3.37 billion in revenue over the Christmas quarter, but this was a 16 percent decline in iPod revenue - suggesting a consumer shift to less expensive iPods and cannibalization of iPod sales by the iPhone.
The Wall Street Journal predicts that "at its much faster rate of decline, the Zune player looks like it's headed from low to no market share".
Comments
MacWorld Reader said: As a footnote MicrosoftTag looks like a great piece of software that is in beta But it is a US only Beta kind of cause it still works in the UK and we can download it here and the contact email address they give doesnt work so no queries can be got through We should be embracing it but what if it ends up in the bin because MS just cant organize themselves Again Apple can manage a whole portfolio of hardware and software and still respond to their customers MS one of the richest companies with the largest OS user base struggles to get software out once every 3-5 years and make a few keyboards and mice How do they retain enough good faith to keep people buying their stuff
MacWorld Reader said: Problem is MS dont have the same conviction as Apple The Zune was a repackaged Toshiba or something like that and launched as a revolution They dip their toe into things release vaporware and if theres no money they stop bothering with it How come Apple launch their products internationally and yet MS have launched only in the US The confidence seems to be seriously lacking MS - must try harder Apple - well done