Microsoft will not be setting off a price war with Apple to market its new Zune portable music player. Yesterday it announced a $249.99 price point for the player, making it competitive to Apple's
iPod. The company also announced a launch date of Nov. 14 in the U.S., in time for the holiday gift-buying rush. Zune will allow users to share music through a wireless connection, and will offer a
Zune Pass subscription option at $14.99 per month for unlimited listening. Songs can also be purchased individually from Microsoft's online music store for about 99 cents, the same price Apple
charges. Microsoft will use the same payment system as its Xbox Live online video game service.
