It has been a busy week for music, mobile devices and movies, and Microsoft has added to the furore with the launch of its Zune player.
The company intends to launch the gadget and its associated download service in the US in time for the all-important Christmas shopping season.
The launch of Zune pitches Microsoft into direct competition with Apple but few think that, initially, it will have the clout to upset the dominance of iTunes and the iPod.
Michael Gartenberg, analyst at Jupiter Research, said the makers of other MP3 players would likely suffer as a result of the Zune launch.
"It still looks like short term market share will come from other device vendors, not Apple," he said.
"Zune isn't an iPod killer but it does offer some compelling features that Apple currently lacks," he said........
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