07/20/2007, 12:40pm, EDT
Friday, July 20thZune exceeds 1M sales target
Sales of the Zune have more than surpassed the one million target the company set for the end of June, according to Microsoft's latest quarterly financial results. Over 1.2 million units of the jukebox have sold between the device's November 14th, 2006 launch and the end of the recent quarter on June 30th. The result represents over 170,000 units per month and should see the Zune reach the 2 million mark by the device's one-year anniversary if the sales rate remains unchanged.
Sales are still relatively small in scale compared to overall market leaders in the US such as Apple and SanDisk, the former of which now ships several million of its iPod devices per quarter. However, Microsoft has successfully managed to grow its marketshare over the past several months and recently claimed as much as 11 percent of players with hard disks in the US during May.
The achievement may represent a significant benchmark for the Zune, which itself has largely remained unaltered from its original form outside of a limited-edition tie-in with Halo and special colors such as pink and red. Microsoft is expected to step up its efforts in the later part of 2007 with an 80GB model as well as a newly designed, flash-based version.
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Microsoft considers a zune sold when a store buys it BTW. So im not sure how many are you there. I would guess that some have been bought as gag gifts though. Hey johnny, I know you wanted an ipod... but they dont come in brown! here you go.
But then you just return it the next day after you give him an ipod (or anything other than a brown zune)
Also, people try to say it shares all the features of the iPod. Well, you cannot use it to watch photos on your TV, Videos on your TV, as an alarm clock, as a hard drive, with your tennis shoes, and the list goes on.
If you are anti-Apple, buy a MP3 player made by Creative, at least it knows how to make these things, and is somewhat innovative. People think that because Microsoft allegedly knows software, it also knows hardware.
I keep reading this, and its such a stupid-ass argument. All companies do this. You think Apple doesn't count sales to Amazon.com, for example, except those that actually were 'sold' by them, and not sitting in their warehouse? Does Apple count every iPod and Mac sold on ebay as "another" sale?
When a store wants to sell a product, they BUY it from the manufacturer (or a distributor) and then attempt to re-sell the item. At that point, its a sale to the manufacturer (because, get this, they've SOLD the product, it doesn't matter to who). If the store sells out of their stock, or see that they might, they might go nuts and order more. Thus, more sales. If they don't sell any, they're either stuck with them, or, depending on their contract/deal with the mfr, can ship them back.
They don't just get stock and offer it up on spec, sell it, and then send the sales money to the mfr. (That would make them nothing more than a glorified consignment shop).
And, I'm sure, now, people will argue that MS is pressuring the likes of Best Buy to "buy more" Zunes to push their sales figures. But I'll wait for that (shouldn't take some people long).
The real question has to be this, though: Why in the hell does MacNN keep publishing stories about the Zune? Hell, if no one cares or owns one, why does anyone carry Zune news?
Why not put your money where your mouth is. If you don't believe them so much, you should buy up a bunch of MS stock. Then wait for them to make another similar announcement, then sue them in a class-action stockholders suit for knowingly issuing false claims.
Interesting. So are you saying that the only reason someone doesn't get an iPod is because they're anti-apple? Couldn't it be you get a Creative Zen player because you like the way it looks, or it offers features the iPod doesn't have?
Well, you have to keep in mind - not MacNN is publishing stories about the Zune, ELECTRONISTA is. Completely different thing altogether.
No? :)