14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has formally denied the rumors that it will be deploying a brand new Xbox-branded music service, clarifying reports that it was set to scrap the existing Zune Music one.
Microsoft's entertainment strategy is slowly changing, being converted to the existing Xbox brand, and this has already resulted in the merger of the Games For Windows marketplace with the existing Xbox.com portal.
At the beginning of the week, a brand new rumor appeared, which claimed that the company is set to present an Xbox Music service which would offer Xbox 360 owners access to over 11 million songs, effectively bypassing the existing Zune service.
Microsoft has denied such a thing by releasing a formal statement to CVG, where it clarifies the whole situation and says that the reports pointing to Xbox Music are false.
"Reports that Microsoft is launching a new music service on Xbox this fall are inaccurate," said the Microsoft spokesperson. "A recent demonstration of upcoming Xbox features showcased what we will deliver later this fall on Xbox, including voice search with Bing on Xbox to locate and access entertainment content on the console. This includes Zune music which has a catalog of more than 11 million tracks."
Basically, it's not a rebranding of the existing music service, as Microsoft will continue to use the Zune name, even if it's slowly fading away, but will incorporate it in a more popular way with the Xbox 360 using the Kinect motion and voice sensor, together with the special voice search provided by its Bing engine.
The company is set to deploy even more features for the Xbox 360 that rely on the Kinect, in the form of a New Xbox Experience dashboard upgrade, which is set to be released at the end of the year for the Microsoft console.