Gadgetell | Tech News, Reviews, and Interesting Things

If you can get over the iPod, you’ll find something pretty darn compelling.

I believe Microsoft is attempting some game-changing things here with the subscription.  For the price of one CD (or 1.5 cds on iTunes) you get your fill of music downloads buffet style.  But you also get the opportunity to pass around music socially to other subscribers.  The key to this is new music.  A Zune study says finding new music is the key to this whole picture.  By sending around your finds, everyone benefits. 

The social aspect of this has a big potential upside if done correctly.  Users can send their Zune Cards around with their musical finds and add the track or album to their collection from the card with just one click.  Great concept.

The spring update also added some features that frankly should have been there from the get go: better searching options, gapless playback options, automatic playlists and searches by genre.

The flipside of this is iTunes should be able to copy this scheme if it really takes off.  I am hoping it does.

Press Release [Microsoft]  Via [Zune Luv]