Zune hits a million - and pink is popular

 

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By Barry Collins

Posted on 29 May 2007 at 11:15

Microsoft claims to have sold a million of its much-maligned Zune music player, but admits sales aren't exactly sparkling.

In a low-key interview with a US newspaper, the president of Microsoft's entertainment and devices division, Robbie Bach, claims 'we've sold a little over a million Zunes', which he says gives it around a 10% share in hard disk music players in the US.

However, Bach admits the company has a long way to go before it begins to make serious inroads into the iPod's dominance. 'It's a good start. It's not an overwhelming start. I'm not going to pretend it's some gigantic move,' he admits.

The device met with a barrage of criticism after its launch late last year, not least for its design. However, a new batch of colours launched recently appear to have perked up sales. The new pink case is reportedly the second biggest seller after back, according to unofficial figures. 'We just came out with a special edition pink Zune and a watermelon-colored Zune, which are the personal favorites with my kids,' says Bach.

In a chicken-and-egg scenario, Bach admits that the Zune's chief selling points - such as the built-in Wi-Fi - will only come to the fore when the product achieves widespread adoption. 'People are sharing [music over Wi-Fi]. When your installed base is a million, the benefits of sharing, frankly, aren't as wide as we hope to see in the future. One of the challenges for us is continuing to build on the install base,' he says.