Microsoft V.P. Bryan Lee (hey, that rhymes) answered a bunch of questions about the upcoming Zune portable media player during his speech to CitiGroup's Global Technology Conference today.The Seattle Post -Intelligencer has some of the highlights on the newspaper's Microsoft Blog.
In a nutshell, Lee says although the Zune will be made by Toshiba, it will be significantly different from current generation Toshiba portable media players. Of course, the fact that tech bloggers were able to figure out the Zune was made by Toshiba just based on the form factor, before Microsoft made the announcement doesn't bode well for that claim.
Anyway, Lee also says that they realize the market is dominated by Apple, and then Microsoft will have a hard time building the kind of brand recognition the iPod already has. But he says the market for portable media devices is currently measured in the 10s of millions, which he predicts will expand to 100s of millions, rivaling cell phones in popularity.
And my favorite quote: "It's very much about taking the world we see today, adding a software layer, creating an environment of connection, and creating a layer of intelligence that allows for much richer consumer experiences. So Zune is just another example of that."
Because we all know adding a layer of Microsoft software can only make the user experience simpler and more stable, right?
