The Zune is Dead, Long Live the Zune HD

From PC World: Microsoft has confirmed that it will be washing its hands of the Zune media player, discontinuing it once the touchscreen Zune HD launches.

WinSuperSite's Paul Thurott got word that all models of the original Zune will be phased out. The Zune HD rolls into town on September 15.

For Microsoft, killing the original Zune is a wise decision. Launched in November 2006, the media player failed to make any significant headway against Apple's iPod, hovering at about 10 percent market share. (To be fair, Microsoft set low expectations)

It's all been downhill since then. In 2008, video game retailer Gamestop said it would stop selling the Zune due to low demand. Later, there was a strange partnership where Zune owners would get free wireless at McDonald's, a deal that's completely fallen off the radar, and certainly didn't yield a sales boost. Then there was the infamous year-end Zune brick disaster, which caused all players to temporarily stop working at the end of 2008.

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