Windows Phone Thoughts: When Worlds Collide: Windows Mobile, Windows Vista, Media Center, Xbox, and Zune

"That was Robbie Bach, President of the Entertainment and Devices Division for Microsoft, talking about Windows Mobile during the Financial Analyst Meeting 2006. The purpose of this talk was to convince Wall Street that Microsoft is doing well in the mobile space and has the vision to achieve greater success. Since the presentation was given from the Entertainment and Devices Division perspective, Robbie talked about the focus on digital lifestyle and the secret sauce that will lead them to success in the entertainment and gaming market. According to Robbie, Microsoft will be bringing together the Media Center, Windows Vista, the Xbox, Windows Mobile and the recently announced Zune, with the help of community oriented services. The strategy involves broadening the scope of Xbox Live experience on not only the desktops but also on the Windows Mobile devices, and then applying the same concepts on Zune."



So, this is where we start to see integration in the flesh. There has been a lot of talk lately about the popularity of the Xbox Live and Xbox Live Marketplace services, and how they would soon be extended to mobile devices and Windows Vista via Microsoft's Live Anywhere initiative. The end result? Gaming, content customisation, message exchange, and more - that's right - across multiple platforms. We also cannot forget Media Center. Its appeal has boomed in the past couple of years, particularly since the availability of the Xbox 360 and its enhanced Extender service. And now, enter Zune. A lot of hints have been dropped suggesting that Zune is not just a standard DAP, and we can expect to learn more this month as Microsoft plans to give the world more details in a public unveiling.