When XBox came out, MS just wanted to be #2. It knew it was up against the PlayStation and set its sights on Nintendo which was fighting on two fronts – against Sony and Sega.

Similarly, the Zune is there just to make sure that MS has something in that arena. MS isn’t trying to take down Apple because it knows that’s a losing fight.

It’s not about the fight to be #1; it’s about the fight to be #2. It’s smaller players that are threatened when the giants venture into new waters. When MS made the Zune, it didn’t threaten Apple – it threatened Creative.

Besides, MS has experience competing with Google. Last time I checked, Microsoft Office was still the industry standard.

Love to hear your views at http://www.ChromeOSchat.com Take care.

“As people use more and more web applications, the operating system becomes less important and it makes no sense to pay for it. The desktop mail client could be replaced by Gmail, the calendaring application could be replaced by Google Calendar, the office suite has lightweight alternatives: Google Docs and Zoho, it makes more sense to use an online feed reader like Google Reader, your scientific calculator is less powerful than Wolfram Alpha and you’ll rarely need a video player when you have YouTube, Hulu and other video sites.”

“Google Drops A Nuclear Bomb On Microsoft. And It’s Made of Chrome.”

http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/07/07/google-drops-a-nuclear-bomb-on-microsoft-and-its-made-of-chrome/