Wes Moss: The new face of Microsoft's Zune
He's the son of a veterinarian, the oldest of four rambunctious siblings, and has been reading the Wall Street Journal since age 11, according to various online biographies. He grew up outside Philadelphia's Main Line, near both old money and Amish frugality. He got a degree in economics from the University of North Carolina, married his wife Lynne and took a job at Atlanta's second-largest global investment firm. He has written two books, hosts a local talk radio show, writes a column for the New York Daily News online, and runs a website filled with enthusiastic financial planning advice. (We counted a dozen exclamation points on his home page alone.)
But Wes Moss' main claim to fame, until now, was his stint on The Apprentice with Donald Trump. He was fired half-way through the second season for ceding control of a Levi jeans photo shoot to a woman who, in his words, "flew into the studio on her broomstick." In the boardroom Trump canned them both — the show's first double-firing. "I would have at least liked my own cab," Moss quipped on the way home.
Today he is the face of Microsoft's (MSFT) Zune digital music player and star of Redmond's latest Apple (AAPL) attack ad. As with the Laptop Hunter series, Microsoft goes directly for Apple's pecuniary jugular, stacking the cost of filling a 120GB iPod with songs purchased from the iTunes Store ($30,000) against the cost of a monthly Zune Pass subscription ($15).
"People worry about the capacity of their iPod," Moss says on screen. "What about the capacity of their bank account? At a buck a song, they'll run out of money way before they run out of space." (See video below.)
It's a catchy spot, delivered by Moss with plenty of exclamation points. But it's really an argument between two business models — Ã la carte vs. subscription — that the market has so far settled in Apple's favor.
And once again, there are holes in Microsoft's argument large enough to drive an army of Apple blogs. Here's Emil Protalinski's take on it in Ars Technica:
"So where does Microsoft get the $30,000 number? Well, seeing as the 120GB iPod appears in the ad, I'm thinking the company is estimating each song at about 4MB, which really isn't much of an exaggeration. Of course, it's not exactly $15 versus $30,000. The $15 is a monthly fee, so you're likely going to be paying more if you plan on playing music for more than a month. That said, it would take you 166 years and 8 months to shell out $30,000 for the Zune Pass; many of us won't be living that long.
"As of November 2008, the Zune Pass allows its users to keep any 10 songs per month. In other words, if you wanted 30,000 songs for keeps, just like the iTunes Store, you would have to wait 250 years. The cost would be a whopping $45,000, however. In other words, it's only really worth it if you're OK with the fact that you have to keep paying the monthly fee to keep access to the songs that you don't yet own. Otherwise, iTunes (or any other à la carte model) is the way to go."
Worth a visit: Moss' ZunePass MAX'D CALCULATOR. As you adjust the capacity of your iPod from 4GB to 120GB, the image changes, with swooshy sound effects, from tiny shuffle to big black classic. Cool.
See also:
- How Microsoft put Apple users on the defensive
- All about Microsoft’s ‘Lauren’
- Behind Microsoft’s ‘Apple tax’ gambit
- Is the Apple press falling into Microsoft’s trap?
- Apple slams Microsoft with rubber chickens
Below the fold: The Zune Pass ad, via YouTube.
I've had both an iPod and a Zune and I like my Zune far more. I don't download music illegally, I just think it's theft, so for me the subscription service is the way to go.
These blogs are so funny. Where is the Microsoft 2.0 blog to poke holes in all the Apple Ads??
I mean honestly there is SOME truth to this ad and some overexageration, but couln't you say the same thing about 90% of Apples advertising??
Who cares, buy what you want and quit arguing about who's is better.
I sympathize with seniors using a computer (the "next screen")
The computer to me is a glitzy phone. I don't really use the phone
either, just "lets meet when".
Until you consider the computer a learning process function, how
can you talk about optimizing any of the computer functions. And
who cares -that might achieve not expensive enough comfort.
On another note I think in Chinese etiquette looking after seniors
is an important rule. It is worth a fortune improving bets, it's
so appreciated.
Kristina Brooker
Everyone that owns a Zune, "that I know," hates it and wants and IPod. The market place tells companies what they want if they would only listen. The problem with companies is that they have lost the whole point in existence: The Customer! The Zune is DEAD! I love Microsoft and Apple products but why try to make a dead horse walk? Bailout for the Zune? LOL
Too bad most of us use limewire and torrents for our music. It is absolutely "free". Considering that the iPod is compatible with more music formats anyhow, I would choose the iPod. Besides the iPod has way more battery power, more accessories, and better features.
Yes, the iPod is cheaper, and more original than the zune. Sorry microsoft.
As I see it MS has 3 problems
1 The World already owns an iPod
2 The World knows it hasnt cost them $3000 let alone $30,000 to fill their iPod
3 The World knows that MS is lying – Again!
I pay for satellite radio and would never cancel it because I like it that much. This seems to be kind of the same thing just more user control, but more work for the user. Either way if it works for you great, if not whats the harm in it being an option for consumers.
Sorry microsoft isn't cool enough for some, but they do make good software, so good it processes billions on transactions a day worldwide with real money on the line, and they do it well. Users bad habits and loading crap software will always result in trouble for a computer. Especially now that we are seeing malware for OSX on the internet. Social engineering doesn't care what you use so don't forget your AV software.
Music subscription as a business model has already failed. The internet is already littered with the ruins of companies who thought that their particular flavor would catch on. However, no matter what kind of twist is added, at the end of the day, people want to keep the music they pay for. The market has already spoken on this one.
I hated my zune. and when microsoft sent out the first major software update, luckily for them right after the device went out of warranty the new software for the device fried the battery so it wouldn't last for more than ten minutes! That is why I thoroughly hate microsoft, and why I wrote this review on a MacBook with my iPod touch sitting right beside me.
I agree with the earlier poster, Amazon rocks and is the place to buy MP3s. Great regular prices and even better promotions like their daily MP3 deal where you get an entire album for around $3. The secret is tracking it daily so you never miss one. I use the following site to track it (its the first one listed):
Does anyone at Microsoft have any idea what marketing is? It appears not.
The Zune has failed badly in the marketplace. Microsoft can't give them away.
Subscription services same thing.
Everybody and their dog has an iPod and they know that Microsoft is trying to pull a fast one with this ad. Reminds me of the "Mojave" ads where Microsoft basically said people are too stupid to know how good Microsoft's products are. Not real bright to insult the intelligence of your customers.
I really like the tone deafness of saying Wes is a certified financial planner to give him cred. Because people are so trusting of financial planners these days.
Then there are the laptop hunter ads. Oh boy. They use unlikeable people to send the message that if you can't afford a Mac you can settle for Windows and a cheap plasticky laptop.
For the commenters using the tired Apple fanboys argument…really? Is that the best you can come up with? All of the millions of iPod owners bought them because they are Apple fanboys or in Steve Jobs thrall? Most of the people who own iPods have no idea who Steve Jobs. They do know that iPods sound great, keep improving, and adding functionality they like and find relevant, and are easy to use.
I have tons of music, but do not own an music player, but everyone that I know that has a Zune seems to like it alot. My friend had both and never used the ipod, he let his wife use that. These people are not fanboys just typical consumers. The Zunepass is just a feature if you like it good, if not good.
if I wanted subscription music satellite radio would be the way to go .
Just as long as I have room for more Apps from the App store and a few movies plus a little space to use as a portable hard drive. The point is that you probably won't fill it all the way up with music.
I agree… He IS a little freaky and strung-out.
Very hard to relate to him. Who is MS appealing to with their uptight, middle-aged white guy in a suit pushing $15/month music subscriptions?
You need to think of the $15 a month like this: You buy 10 songs (one album) a month and get unlimited "rentals" for $5. You can then choose to purchase more music at normal itunes pricing. You can download albums and listen to them for a few weeks and decide if you want to buy the whole thing.
It might not be your cup of tea and you don't have to drink it, but I don't really understand intensity of loathing in some of the comments. It's a really nice package for some people – myself included
I have no qualms about admitting that i carry an ipod touch for its stylish looks and wonderful functionality. If looks dont matter, as some zune fans say, then perhaps fashion does not either? As for the audio quality, i have to admit that apple headphones suck but the quality from the ipod itself is great. In response to Zune marketplace vs itunes debate, I have not used either to purchase music but having to rent your music does not make sense to me.
Actually, I find that my Zune's audio is better by far than my wife's ipod, but then I hear stuff before the cat does, so…
Anyway, I am one of those folks who doesn't have a huge CD collection that can fill an ipod. Unless it's a 16GB Touch. But then I'd run out of space to get the nice player. And if I want the space (ipod classic) then, well, my Zune just has better sound and a nice screen.And it's nice that the ipod touch can stream internet radio, my Zune can play any available album in the marketplace via wifi with the pass. Can the ipod do that, I wonder. Hey, if it works for you, great. I prefer being able to play what's available in the marketplace over wifi, not just whatever internet radio stations I can find. I prefer having a nicer screen than any ipod classic, and more space than any ipod touch (why would you have such a nice screen for video watching and not enough space for a decent number of vids? Need 64GB min). Oh and if I download an album I didnt like (c'mon, that never happened?) I can just ditch it and go grab more.
Works for me.
How silly. I can "stuff" my iPod touch full of songs for $0 per month: I just use one of the many Internet radio tuners via WiFi to listen to as much music as I want–for free.
That's the nice thing about the iPod touch–it actually has *functional* (i.e. general purpose) WiFi.
Interesting that the actual Zune player is never shown in the ad. Maybe that's because the majority of iPods sold now are in the form of the Touch or the iPhone. M$ has no answer to these products except use our Zune marketplace to rent the music you can put on these cool devices.
The Zune audio quality on my Zune was awful so I purchased a iPod Touch. Fantastic device. Why do you think the iPod outsells it 20 to 1. it's got nothing to do with being "seen" with an iPod… the iPod is just better so get over it.
There are three problems with the subscription model that these ads overlook. One is that most people already own most of the songs they want to listen to. It's not like we are starting from ground zero when comparing the two types of models together. When I bought my first iPod I already enough music on CD's (not to mention records which I later digitized) to fill it up. This is music that I already know that I want to listen to, so why should I pay a subscription to fill my iPod with music I already own (talk about a Zune tax)?
The second problem is that this ad implies that they have all of the music that I want to listen to in their service, but for the most part that is not true. In fact, I would be very surprised if they had even 1/3 of the albums carried by CDBaby in their collection.
The third problem was brought up in a previous comment, specifically many iPods are not filled with just music. In fact as I look at the current allocation on my iPod, I see that I have about 45% audio podcasts (part of the TWIT army), 20% video and video podcasts, 5% audio books, 5% photos, about 4% free space and the remaining 21% or so is music (which means I still have over 30GB of music which I have purchased over the years sitting off-line on a computer)
With all of this content, already customized for me, available to fill my iPod, adding a $15/month subscription service which contains music that either I already own or probably have no interest in does not make much sense to me.
On a side note, I am not really trying to defend the iPod in specific, it just happens to be the type of portable media player that I currently own. The real issue is the problem that subscription models of just music have in light of the fact that most people already own most of what they want to use and that subscription pools do not have everything that everybody wants (which is what the ad implies).
You don't have to get the subscription to download from Marketplace. You can also download individual songs that you keep, just like on iTunes or any other download service, and the songs on Marketplace are cheaper than iTunes. The Zune is a better mp3 player then the iPod, it has more features, sounds better, and comes with better ear buds. In any case, why get an iPod when you can get a Zune, Sony Walkman or Creative Zen with better sound and more features at a better price. iPod was an innovative leader at first and has a bigger market share, but these days you really can get a better mp3 player with more features at a better price.
What ever happened to "Plays For Sure?" are all of those microsoft players obsolete? Does Microsoft have a new standard waiting in the wings to obsolete the current Zune ? I'll keep my money with Apple.
This guy is a little freaky. A little too strung out. A big reason microsoft fails in it's appeal to consumers has a lot to do with who they choose to represent them.
I have a Zune and love it, but when it comes to iTunes or Zune Marketplace, I choose NEITHER. I am not interested in a subscription service for music I don't get to keep, and I won't pay iTune's bloated prices either. They both suck. I only use Zune Marketplace for downloading and subscribing to podcasts. For me, it's Amazon.com all the way. They have the best prices and feature daily deals that can't be beat. Plus, Amazon offers the best customer service I have ever had the pleasure to experience.
On the apple, I can load with songs I already have on CD, songs downloaded from 'other' services. downloaded from itunes on a whim, DVD's TV shows… any number of things, WHAN I WANT TO. With the Zune, I'd have to pay the fee even if I never picked the thing up… that sounds like a good choice….
my daughter 15 loved her Zune. She kept movies, pictures, songs, articles on it…the best thing was that she & her Z friends could share music between their players by using the internal wifi in the unit. I just think the Zune is better bang for the buck.
I have only one question, where Wes Moss buys his suit? Is he rent them in Wall-Mart or he shops in Saks Fifth Avenue? This ad makes no sense.
Subscription services are irrelevant to me. I have about 100gb of music, most of it classical (also folk and some boomer era rock), and 99% of it ripped from CDs I own.
Here's a clue for not just Microsoft but the music business in general: Not everyone wants the latest Pop Hits from the likes of Britney, et.al. Furthermore, I'm in this for the 'long haul', many of my CDs are now 25 years old. What would 25 years of a subscription service cost me?
Both models are irrelevant. The music industry should be paying ME for spending my hard-earned free time on their products and services. I have better options that cost significantly less (free) and/or provide substantially more entertainment at my own personal discretion.
Furthermore, incendiary business and legal practices make the case for boycotting an industry that thrives on protectionism and dubious gangster-like threats to unwed mothers and college students. Why should I pay these guys just so they can harass my kinsmen and women?
Don't get me wrong. I love music, I just refuse to pay outrageous fees to brokers, distributors, and hardware vendors at the expense of musicians.
If you really like your music, support your artist live. Screw the RIAA, screw the ZunePass, and screw the iTunes store.
@Dave,
Three Zunes per account sounds great, but you know, you can stuff UNLIMITED iPods with the song you bought from iTunes.
And, there you have it. An Apple fanboy actually admitting it's about "being seen" with the device.
At some point, one has to believe vapid thoughts like this will lead people to NOT buy Apple products so as to distinguish themselves from such drivel.
I have a Zune 2.0, it works great, it looks great, I paid a lot less for it, and will pay a lot less for it going forward. Period.
Read the fine prints. 14.99 per month.. to listen to the music. you do not own the music. with itunes you own it. next year it will be 15.99 and the next 16.99 and keep going up and up. Once you stop paying.. you lose the music. you so not own it with ZunePass unlike with itunes.
anyone notice that the zune looks just like an overweight ipod classic. they cant even copy apple's new products, they have to copy apple's old product line. nice work microsoft.
IF YOU STOP PAYING THE 14.99 PER MONTH. YOU LOSE ALLLLLLLL OF THE MUSIC. WITH ITUNES YOU OWNNNNNN THE MUISIC.. ITS YOURS.. YOU NEVER LOSE IT. iTUNES IS BETTER IN THE LONG RUN.
Unfortunately, that Zune he's pushing won't work on his Mac.
Yes, Wes Moss is a Mac user.
Look at the source code for his personal webpage. You'll see many instances of "Apple-style-span". From my understanding, this comes from using some of the Mac apps to create a webpage
I just bought a 120GB iPod and my dad just bought a 120GB Zune.
Functionally they are similar – you can load/view video, mp3, etc. etc.
The iPod is a little easier to get used to because one thing Apple does exceedingly well is making their products user friendly.
But it isn't true it costs "$30k" to fill my iPod. Counting the 300+ CDs I own and the 600 or so that friends and family own, I have about 50+G of songs on the thing so far.
I'll buy songs at a buck a pop and be happy with the purchase. It's not like it's THAT expensive. It's not like I spent $250 for the iPod and dropped another $30k to fill it. It's overtime. …Like the Zune. Difference is, I own the songs.
I've got nothing against the Zune. I just don't want to pay for a monthly subscription and not own anything. I'd rather buy songs at my own rate and own them. For that, the iPod and iTunes is much better.
why are we even talking about the Zune? or any other MP3 player for that matter? If this was a fight it would have been called quite a while ago.
No arguing that…
"Sure, Apple fanboys will try to rationalize their $1/song purchases, but their replies don’t hold any water." – RPM
Hmm, doesn't Microsoft also *sell* songs for a buck each? Yeah, that's what I thought. Perhaps the ad should talk about how much it would cost to fill up that Zune if you want to *own* your music? Oh wait, that would totally negate the FUD of this ad.
Microsoft fanboys: keep trying to rationalize your irrelevant music player. I smell something coming from Redmond. Smells like…desperation.
Another huge flaw: who, in their right mind wants to be seen with a ZUNE. No one that I know, not even die-hard PC users. Proven by the marketshare. Trout & Ries had it correct years ago in their legendary "Positioning, the Battle for your Mind" which was basically: those who are first in the market are nearly impossible to overtake, especially by an inferior product. Microsoft simply doesn't not get branding like Apple does and this is all about branding, not cost, not features. I say to Microsoft, cut your losses. Spend the money trying to keep up with OS X.
You're dealing with irrational and uninformed Apple users here, they'll attempt to poke holes in any argument, no matter how sound. The fact is, the Zune is cheaper (via subscription) to fill with songs plain and simple compared to an ipod. You can't argue with the math. Sure, Apple fanboys will try to rationalize their $1/song purchases, but their replies don't hold any water.
OR… you can listen to all that new music for free with something like pandora then only purchase what you like, instead of paying a $5/mo. listening fee.
Huge point not brought out is for the $15, 3 Zunes have access to the account!! So, you can stuff 3 Zunes chock full of any type of music offered for a whopping $5/month!!! There is no comparison.
The argument is flawed as usual from microsoft. He fails to mention that there is much more you can put on an ipod….i.e. tv shows, movies etc.. which take up much more space on the ipod than a song. It also can serve as a hard drive for data storage. Most people I know with ipods have them mostly filled with tv shows or podcasts. It comes down to: do you want to spend $180 a year to listen to music on your mp3 player or do you want to be able to control how much you spend and fill up your ipod with your cd music library and supplement it with new songs. If you want constantly new music…..listen to the radio or invest in sirius or better yet buy an ipod touch and get one of the radio apps or group specific apps.
Apple should just adjust there system to allow for subscriptions if you want it; they are starting to do that with the group passes which have free concert downloads etc… and through ipod touch apps.
I have owned my Zune for over 2 years now. I had an Ipod for less than a year before the hard drive crashed. I took it to the Apple store…good news! I could buy a new Ipod for another 300.00 and they would give me a whole 12% off! Screw Apple! I love my Zune and I'm ready to buy and new 120…EVERYONE who has seen my movies, videos, photos, music and listen to my raido all says the same thing "Ipods SUCK!"