Microsoft’s Zune scam
p2pnet.net News:- Bill and the Boyz hope their Zune Toons muzik player will do for them what iPod has done for Apple.
But wait. Hang on: that’s not right. Microsoft doesn’t need an iPod to turn it into corporate monopolist superstar.
Anyway, Zune is out there and Microsoft recently concluded a deal with Vivendi Universal under which the latter will get a piece of the action for each new Zune digital music player sold.
After all, said Universal, it was only fair for it to, “receive payment on devices that may be repositories for stolen music“.
So here’s a 5 Step Plan To Fill Your Zune With Legal Music, says James R. Stoup on Apple Matters:
1. Create a free Zune account
2. Register a valid credit card
3. Buy ‘points’ from MS
4. Scratch your head as you try to figure out why you need to buy ‘points’ to buy songs. Why can’t you just use standard American currency? Doesn’t Microsoft accept the Dollar anymore?
5. Say ’screw it’ and go buy an iPod.
In other words, he goes on, Microsoft just invented a currency, “and they require you to invest in this currency before they can sell you any music”.
The denominations work out as:
$5 = 400 points
$15 = 1200 points
$25 = 2000 points
$50 = 4000 points
“But wait, it gets BETTER!” – says Stoup. “There isn’t a 1 to 1 correspondence between the value of a ‘point’ and the value of a penny.”
What?
Well, “if $5 = 400 points, then $1 = 80 points. Therefore 100 cents = 80 points, meaning 1 cent = .8 points, or 1 point = 1.25 cents”. So, Stoups continues, “If Microsoft prices a song at 79 ‘Zune Points’ is it cheaper than a 99 cent song from Apple?”
Figure it out: “79 points * (1.25 cents/1 point) = 98.75 cents (or approximately 99 cents). So the answer is the MS song is the same price as Apple’s.
That means, “to find the actual price of anything on the Zune store you have to multiply it in your head by a ZP (Zune Point) factor of 1.25, and since the general populace isn’t to keen on doing math in their head I can only conclude that this will cause no small bit of confusion.”
But wait again, continues Stoup on Apple Matters. It gets even better. Five bucks is is the lowest denomination you can buy, so, “if you want to buy one song from the Zune Marketplace you have pay Microsoft $5 up front and let them keep your remaining 321 points (or $4.01, this is beginning to get confusing). Now, the expectation is that you will be back purchasing more songs (and more points) and so you won’t care about your balance.
“But, what you are in fact doing is giving an interest free loan to Microsoft (because they, of all companies, need the money).
“Of course, you could just spend all of your points each time you buy music, but would require you to purchase songs in multiples of 31,600 points (that being the LCM of 79 & 400). That works out to 400 songs for $395. A better plan would be to buy 5 songs for 395 points (or $4.94) and just save your 5 remaining points for some future purchase.
“In effect, Microsoft has created a store that only accepts gift cards as the valid method of payments. And if you don’t think thats insane then you obviously already have pre-ordered your Zune.”
Also See:
repositories for stolen music – Microsoft, Zuni and Vivendi, November 9, 2006
Apple Matters – Zune Marketplace’s Absurd Pricing Scheme, November 13, 2006
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November 13th, 2006 at 5:23 pm
For the most part I will be renting music for my Zune when i get one. Why can’t Apple give the option of renting? Yahoo, Rhaspdy, Napster all give the option of buying or renting. Some want rent, some want buy some want both. I think the more options there are for the consumer the better.
sageadvisors@gmail.com
November 13th, 2006 at 6:16 pm
It seems Microsoft have missed an opportunity to do what even the most die-hard label boss must know in his heart has to be done: reduce prices. They could have set the baseline at $5=400 points as now, but then ramped up the conversion rate so that say $50 would buy you 8000 points – ie your music would cost half as much if you make a big outlay. You buy customer loyalty, you rake in the $, and you find out how much a DRMed WMA file is really worth.
In fact, it’s such a good idea I’m tempted to open a shop myself…
November 13th, 2006 at 6:34 pm
I think the main reason people don’t rent (smart people that is), is because once you stop paying, you lose everything.
Renting music (or anything for that matter) is the worst way to do business from a consumer standpoint because at the end of it all, you have nothing to show for the money you just dumped into Napster, Zune, or whomever.
From a business perspective, renting is a cash cow because it’s guaranteed income on a consistent basis. What company wouldn’t want that?
November 13th, 2006 at 7:10 pm
I will be getting none, neither an ipod, nor a zune. It’s really amazing how, once you’ve been exposed to the idea of community, working together, such as the one found in OSS, it’s just not possible that you be taken for a ride again. Corporations semi satisfy the need of consumers, yes, we give you this, but with a catch, they give nothing without thinking of their interests first. Well, I’m out. I’m not helping these assholes build their wealth at my expense.
November 13th, 2006 at 7:52 pm
There’s nothing with Zune I want. Just like M$’s latest OS, the mp3 player is crammed to the gill with DRM. If you got some that doesn’t have DRM in it, Zune will provide it to you free of charge. Who wants to reload their mp3s every 3 plays? Whatever nut decided to include this as a standard feature, killed any hopes of the wireless taking off. The player is far too limited when viewed with this included as a standard consumer rip-off feature.
Nor will I have anything to do with rental plans. Some of my music goes back to the late 60s and early 70s. I wonder just how much money I would have had to fork out to keep those tunes under a rental plan? Renting music just doesn’t appeal to me, neither does restrictions that say I can not use my purchased items as I see fit within my lifestyle.
The sue’em all and the lack of good music offers prevent my purchase of any music under the present day system. DRM no matter how it is billed is not in the customers interests, it is only in the sellers interests to recreate the need to rebuy what you already own.
Bill and the Boyz missed the boat with the DRM autoinclusion; in the process they made sure I won’t be one of their customers. I much agree with anothers post here about FLOSS making sure you examine what it is you are buying.
I’ll pass forever on this one as it is configured.
November 13th, 2006 at 8:32 pm
Apart from the bizarre alternate currency scheme, how is this different from AllOfMp3 or Skype where you buy credit and then use it against product?
Although the product is of course, expensive, low quality, DRM infected rubbish.
November 13th, 2006 at 8:34 pm
rent means IT ISNT YOURS you are just merely paying for the privilege to use it.
if you buy it your not renting. so don’t say “smart people that is” because if i need to rent a car for three days because mines in the shop dont tell me im dumb i should just go out and buy a car and sell it in three days.
yes i agree that renting music isn’t for everyone. but rent what you don’t want to buy and buy what you want to keep.. just hope it isnt DRM infested which will turn out to be renting in the long run anyways.
November 13th, 2006 at 9:01 pm
i see it as paying for access to pretty much all the songs i enjoy on demand. there are few songs i want to own. life is short. i would rathwer have instant access for a low regular fee than buy a few songs and miss out on hearing tons of music i can’t afford to own. i don’t smoke, gamble or do illegal drugs. i don’t by $100 designer jeans. 415 a month disposeable on music i can handle.
November 13th, 2006 at 9:02 pm
I mean for $15 a month i can handle “losing” my music if i stop paying.
November 13th, 2006 at 9:05 pm
You’re comparing two different levels of investments, about items that represent different necessities. In big cities, you just can’t live without a car, Seattle is a big city without a fuckin’ Subway, I need a car. I want a digital music player, do I need one, hell no! If my car breaks, will I get a rental to go to work, of course. Would I get fired because I wasn’t listening to my tunes when I arrived to work? Nope! Would I get in trouble if I din’t show up for work? Highly likely.
November 13th, 2006 at 9:22 pm
a car isnt a necessity. half the population of NYC doesn’t need a car to get from point A (home) to point B (work).
whether its apples or oranges makes no difference the point is renting works for some and not others.
November 13th, 2006 at 9:24 pm
and also. go bitch at blockbuster for stealing all your money because you had to give their movies back.
and if you dont give their RENTED movies back. they charge you because there is clearly a difference in renting in buying.
i dont buy any movies.. unless buying costs the same or less than renting. but i rent tons of movies.
November 13th, 2006 at 9:52 pm
I don’t feel like paying $1 per song for most of music which I may enjoy for awhile then forget about.Renting doesn’t mean you can’t buy what you want. I don’t feel comfortable with P2P anymore except for imesh which is 100% legal and label supported.
why doesn’t apple give full song previews? if i want to buy something i want more than a 30 second clip to make my decision.
i don’t want to buy a whole cd for $15 because i can’t keep up with new releases. I would like to listen a whole CD as a new release but i don’t nessecarily want to spend $100 a month to keep up with and buy all the new music.
the key is options. have both options.
November 13th, 2006 at 11:48 pm
Blockbuster! I stopped renting movies, as soon as I figured I could get the same movies for free from my local library, which is just down a couple of blocks from my place, I figure Brad and Angelina are already set for life, so they don’t need my money. NY has a subway, Seattle doesn’t. A car is a must here.
November 14th, 2006 at 4:39 am
so yes brad and angelina created.. produced. marketed the movie entirely themselves…. therefore since they dont need money its ok.
what a crock of shit
go back to downloading porn and playing tetris
November 14th, 2006 at 7:29 am
Watch that artery on your forehead, it’s going to explode. OK, so brad and agelina aren’t the only ones involved in producing a movie, I’ll be darned, I didn’t know that (sarcasm). Of course they’re not the only ones, but those that are not excessively wealthy already got their dough, and won’t be getting royalties from movie tickets or DVD sales, no matter how much the movie collects. All of the other professionals got paid, either by the hour, or they got a salary. That’s why I don’t feel guilty, because they’re set for life, and I am not.
November 14th, 2006 at 8:45 am
“That’s why I don’t feel guilty, because they’re set for life, and I am not.”
cause you spend all your time whacking off to animated video game boobs and downloading movies.
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