WSJ.com - Microsoft Taps Xbox Leader For Music Fix: "In digital music's battle of the bands, Microsoft Corp. and its orchestra of partners is being outplayed by Steve Jobs's one-man band.
Microsoft hopes a new conductor will help it fight back. Chief Executive Steve Ballmer has quietly tapped a rising star, 43-year-old Senior Vice President Robbie Bach, to revamp Microsoft's digital-music strategy and compete better with Apple Computer Inc., people familiar with the matter say. Mr. Bach, who heads Microsoft's Xbox videogame unit, will take on the additional role in music and may oversee strategy for some other consumer markets, these people say.
Mr. Bach is expected to be given the authority to push for a range of changes, such as setting up a team focused solely on digital music, reorganizing product groups, or acquiring companies, the people familiar with the matter say. Mr. Bach's new role will add to his current responsibilities as co-chairman of an executive committee that steers consumer strategy. One immediate mission for him will be to make Microsoft's new Xbox a hub for handling digital music. A Microsoft spokesman says it is too early to discuss Mr. Bach's new role."
For now, I'm still very pleased with Yahoo! Music Unlimited, despite the fact that its beta Windows client crashes occasionally. Note that the service's main page now says "Over 1 million songs to go. $4.99/month. This price WON'T LAST." Hmmm...
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