Microsoft Corp. named company veteran Rick Thompson to oversee its Zune media player, two days after the company released a new version in an effort to compete more effectively against Apple Inc.'s iPod.
Mr. Thompson was appointed corporate vice president of Zune, taking over many related business-development duties from J Allard, according to a Microsoft spokesman.
Mr. Allard, a corporate vice president with Microsoft's entertainment-and-devices unit, has been overseeing Zune since the departure of Bryan Lee in February. Mr. Allard will continue to oversee design aspects of Zune. Mr. Lee had been charged with tasks such as attracting music companies to provide content for it -- a challenge, given that the Zune has so far garnered a relatively small number of users. The first Zune, released in November 2006, has struggled to take significant market share from the iPod and has drawn mixed reviews.
Mr. Thompson will run a revamped product line. Microsoft last week unveiled a line of Zune devices, featuring sleeker designs and a broader range of options for storage and sharing of songs. He will be charged with Zune business development, including supervising relationships with the music industry and content providers.
Mr. Thompson first joined Microsoft in 1987 as a manager in divisions turning out early hardware products, such as keyboards.
The new Zune devices are expected to be available by mid-November. While they will feature similar pricing to the iPod, Microsoft is attempting to differentiate them by adding features such as an ability to use a wireless connection to synchronize content with Windows-based computers and to share songs with other nearby Zunes.
Microsoft sold 1.2 million Zunes from November to the end of June. Apple sold 9.8 million iPods in its fiscal third quarter, which ended in June. Related posts:Microsoft to pay Novell $100 million more for Linux supportSteve Ballmer Escapes EggingMicrosoft Withdraws Yahoo BidDevelopers Question Live Mesh's OpennessVista SP1 Available Via Windows UpdateMicrosoft extends the life of Windows XP