Microsoft’s introduction of three new Zune media players, combined with an updated version of the Zune digital music service, suggests that the relatively lackluster response to the initial Zune offering has not fazed the computing giant from advancing its digital music agenda.
The key to what Microsoft is calling “Zune round two” is not so much the features of the new devices — such as the touch pad and flash memory — but rather the added social networking elements the company is integrating into the broader service, especially via a development that Microsoft is calling Zune Social.
The service will automatically list songs that Zune users have most recently played, allow members to customize their own list of favorite artists and enable visitors to stream full versions of each song. Additionally, each Zune Social profile (called a Zune Card) can be added, much like a widget, to other social network sites, blogs and Web sites.
