Zune with a view

Microsoft takes you for a ride

What?: The second wave of Zune players have hit retail and Microsoft is backing the release with a campaign entitled “You Make It You”. The personilsation aspect of the product is emphasised by a new selection of customised engraved Zune players and an art-based selection of viral and online advertising.

T.A.G, the San Francisco’s division of McCann Worldgroup, along with interactive partner Firstborn, has created Zune journey, an interactive online artwork. Utilising the talents of a number of cutting- edge graphic designers, Zune takes you on a kaleidoscopic ,seemingly never-ending, ride to promote aspects of its music player. The psychedelic dreamscape motif also appears in an advert alongside music by The Shins.

So what?: Zune, forever the bridesmaid and never the bride, puts art at the forefront of its latest campaign. The migraine-inducing Zune journey is a late-off-the-mark rip off of the Infinite Oz/Zoom Quilt projects. It’s inspiring as art, yet void of any real association to the product; anything could be tagged to this, why Zune? Ikea’s recent kitchen campaign, which zoomed through various rooms equipped with Ikea product, used the concept far more directly.

“Yes it’s beautiful, but it becomes very unsatisfying very quickly and takes the user no closer to knowing why they should purchase a Zune. The quality of emerging art talent evident here only serves to highlight what is ultimately lacking inside Zune’s fairly standard media player”
Jack Horner, Creative Director, FRUKT

www.zunejourney.net