New Zune Moves to Cloud

See the full press release for more details (and this press release for more details on Zune HD, which was released today)

Starting this fall, the Zune service will expand to the nearly 20 million users of Xbox 360 LIVE. That means Xbox 360 users soon will be able to buy or rent movies for the console using the Zune service, later downloading the files onto their Zune device or Windows PC for no extra fee. The new collection for Xbox 360 users will include an extensive library of music videos available for download to the Zune.

Alles says it makes sense to expand Zune beyond a piece of hardware into a service when you think about the number of devices people use every day. “If you think of the customer at the center, as opposed to a specific device, you start to realize all these things are important, and you want some of your experiences to flow across your devices,” Alles says. “In the entertainment space, Zune video will be the tip of the spear for Microsoft’s ‘three screens and a cloud’ strategy.” He says to expect Microsoft to continue expanding Zune into other Microsoft platforms.

New Zune Moves to Cloud: Zune HD goes on sale starting today, and with it comes Zune 4.0, which uses cloud computing to let customers seamlessly move back and forth from watching video and listening to music on their Zune HD, their PC or their TV.