Microsoft "Deeply Committed" To The Zune, Company Says

Contrary to reports from last week, Microsoft says the company is "deeply committed" to the Zune. Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer had hinted that the company might be preparing to "throw in the towel" on their digital music player and instead focus on software, however Adam Sohn, head of the Zune marketing division, said, "We're not getting out of the hardware business at all."

There's no question that the Zune has encountered problems as it struggles to cut into the iPod's dominance. While the Zune marketing department would obviously want to sound optimistic about the future of their product and downplay the discontinuation talk, they have at least outlined some possible ways to expand the Zune's visibility, including delivering the Zune music service to the company's XBox 360 consoles.

Expansion would also mean developing software for non-Windows-based phones, and possible apps for competitors like Apple and Google. "We would be thinking about nailing experiences in our own platforms concurrently with, if not before we're thinking about going beyond that," said Sohn.

In other news, if you think nothing says "I love you" on Valentine's Day like a Zune, the Zune Originals store is offering free laser engraving and a Valentine's Collection of designs between January 15th to February 14th. Plus, the 120GB Zune will be offered in the color red to celebrate the Hallmark holiday.

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• Microsoft Adds More Wi-Fi Options, Bigger Hard Drives For Zune
• At a Glance: Microsoft's New Zune Players

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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