International Zune with Phone Functionality Hinted in Microsoft Job Listings.q

[ManISinJpr ♦]

Yeeeeaaa !!! now this is what I was waiting for, LOLz. call me MS softie and what not but the thing is ZUne is ready to be PHONE!!! at least this report suggests and reaffirms my conviction .

We're not sure how it happened (ok, we have an idea) but Microsoft went from confident incumbent to the scrappy tech underdog in the last few years. We're not talking marketshare here, but mindshare. Through it all the Xbox 360 has remained a constant fave and Windows 7 has certainly helped the company rekindle consumer enthusiasm as did the release of the Zune HD. Now, if we're reading our tea leaves correctly, then Microsoft's got a whole lot more in store for 2010. Redmond's already hinted pretty strongly that it's hell-bent on bringing the acclaimed Zune media experience to more devices including its Windows Mobile handsets -- something we hope to see unveiled in Barcelona. The problem, is that dedicated Zune hardware is pretty much restricted to the US and Canada at the moment. A quick look at Microsoft's job boards, however, reveals the need for a London-based "Business Development Manager" responsible for driving European content licensing deals for digital music and support engineering and development divisions including Zune, Xbox, and Windows Mobile. Another Zune-related posting reveals a position for a hardware test engineer with "working knowledge of cell-phone 2G and 3G technologies." We're also seeing that the latest Zune software update is country aware judging by Arne Hess' language and localization testing over at the:unwired. Man, if Microsoft can get its act together and horizontally integrate the best of its killer apps and services then the rest of the industry had better watch out.

https://careers.microsoft.com/JobDetails.aspx?jid=11924

http://www.anythingbutipod.com/forum/showthread.php?p=436209
ZUNE - to Phone or not to Phone ( Microsoft Job listing ) | pocket pc software, windows mobile freeware, wm6.5 news

the::unwired - RUMOR: Zune ready for International Prime Time? Latest Zune Player comes Language Localized!

UNITED KINGDOM, LONDON Business Development Manager - Music Acquisition(259539 -External) Job

[SignOps]

Saw that rumour - but the next logical step and everyone wishes for it. Though it will have its share of MS bashing. Plus, horrors, it might have WM as its OS.

[Cyn1c]

It's not a rumor. The latest zune update's INF file had ZunePhone device's code.