14 DAY TRIAL // Zune Marketplace is apparently not enough, in Microsoft's perspective, to be the sole source of content for Zune devices. In this regard, the Redmond company is reported to be cooking a new online service for its digital media player. According to Mary Jo Foley, Zune VideoX stands for Zune Video Experience and will essentially be a Zune-centric content marketplace focused mainly on videos, television shows and music, but by no means being limited to just these three categories. At this point in time, Microsoft failed to either confirm or deny the fact that the new Zune VideoX service is baking in the Redmond ovens.
The news of Zune VideoX comes on the heels of the Zune division getting some fresh blood. Joe Belfiore, formerly a Corporate Vice President, Entertainment and Devices eHome Division, will take on the role of Zune vice president, as reported by SeattlePI, a title synonymous with the responsibilities involving Zune strategy as well as product development.
With eHome, Joe Belfiore was "responsible for development, business management and marketing of Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition and related devices, including Media Center Extender and the Media Center DVR," reads an excerpt of Belfiore's official bio.
Belfiore's strong background in dealing with both user experience and entertainment does make him an ideal candidate to deliver a new standard for the content available for Zune users. However, it seems that Zune VideoX and Zune Marketplace are two completely separate services, and will continue to remain so. In fact, Zune VideoX is swinging more toward Xbox Live, than to the Zune Marketplace.
At the same time, Microsoft is building its vision of connected entertainment across a variety of its products from Windows Mobile to the Windows desktop and to Zune. It is still unclear how Zune VideoX will fit into the Redmond company's Live Mesh strategy.