Microsoft shoots down latest Zune phone rumors

After blogger Long Zheng reported Tuesday on a Zune HD software update including code hinting at a new phone based on the media player device, Microsoft is once again denying that such a handset is in the pipeline. "We have no plans to create a Zune phone," a Microsoft spokesperson tells Neowin, adding that while it's possible the Zune media platform could one day become "part of the phone experience," the software giant has made no decisions on how or even if such a development might come to pass.

Neowin speculates that the code in the Zune HD update instead references Windows Mobile 7 devices, suggesting the Zune platform will soon support multiple devices a la Apple's iTunes. In October 2009, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer confirmed Windows Mobile 7 will integrate Zune multimedia player functionality, promising the operating system will feature elements of the Zune platform.

For more on Microsoft's Zune phone denial:
- read this Neowin article

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