Good luck to the rest of the team as well! It is always hard to loose a teammate...

well. Good luck!

Thanks Cesar, and you will be missed, as for the Zune team:

I hope you do the bet to gain market share, for the Zune to succeed you will have to lower the prices, the device is really nice, but due to the popularity of the iPod you have to get aggressive with the price, and popularize the Zune. Right now you have to fight with prices, a lower price and the great features of the software will make you succeed. So toughen up a little a tell your management that lower the prices NOW!  

Thanks to Cesar for being a proponent of the Zune and making his podcast fun.

Also, good luck to the rest of you folks on the Zune team as you move forward.

I have been a Zune owner since 1stGen, since then upgraded to the 120 and an 8GB on order.  I would have to see the hardware to drop but it would be a real loss if the Zune software and marketplace suffered.

Another way to steel market share from Apple is to have a size bigger than they do or come out with a larger size before Apple does.  

Hey Cesar, thanks for all your help and encouragement. Good luck to ya.

I feel badly about Cesar and am sorry to see him go. But I think that it is time to own up to the fact that the Zune project really hasn't lived up to expectations. A recent story on CNET reports that Zune sales revenue plummeted by 54% from a year ago. Apple iPod? Down 16%, so they got hit by the economy, too. But a decline by 54% can't just be blamed on the economy. Microsoft's current Zune strategy just isn't working.

Cesar, this space won't be the same without you.

WHO CARES ABOUT YOU? WE JUST WANT CESAR BACK!

One thing I hope that Microsoft does is make better ads.  While I like most of hte Zune ads, they never come out and say (or show) how much better the Zune is than the iPod Classic... all the extra features, the better UI, the ZunePass, Badges, playcounts, the entire Social... there's so much that most people are just unaware of.

"i  hope you do the bet to gain market share, for the Zune to succeed you will have to lower the prices, the device is really nice, but due to the popularity of the iPod you have to get aggressive with the price, and popularize the Zune. Right now you have to fight with prices, a lower price and the great features of the software will make you succeed. So toughen up a little a tell your management that lower the prices NOW!  "

I would disagree, I think the main priority now MUST be to expand into multiple markets, sure lower the price but that needn't be the only action.

The Zune is somewhat unique in it's Zune Pass meaning if they release it in other countries, like with the Xbox they can make a loss on hardware and gain back on subscriptions (perhaps offering a discounted player if you buy a year's Zune Pass too).

I feel that North America is the steepest part of the hill to climb, so I don't get why MS tries so hard when there are places in Europe that don't have the same attachment to iPods- the AnythingButIpod crowd is much stronger in the UK than the US (mainly because we seem to understand that MP3 != IPod).

So yeah:

Step one: Release worldwide

Step two: Get more subscriptions and live off that

Step three: Release new hardware subsidised by the Zune Pass.

I hope the recession doesn't hold up the Zune's worldwide release, that would be a tragedy.

I say that MS should commemorate this sad occasion with FREE ZUNES for everyone.  

Gonna miss you as a part of the Zune team Cesar. :(

Goodbye Cesar, your still the man. Who's taking over ZuneInsider?

Cesar, we will miss you!

Bad move M$, you just got rid of your best public face.

Well it is too bad Cesar left. But are you taking his place permanently on the blog and podcast or are you just going to be a temporary replacement? Just wondering, I'm not saying your better or worse than Cesar (how would I know that).

I really hope something can be done to save the Zune brand. its a really good device. It would be a shame to see it go.People are so iPod brainwashes. Zune needs more aggressive marketing tactics.

Sad to see Zune's most prominent figure going away. Good luck Cesar, you will be missed.

I hope Microsoft does not give up on the Zune. The Zune has a lot of potential for becoming a more mainstream player, but the Zune team is really going to have to work much harder to see it work. A few suggestions:

1. More ubiquitous advertising - Apple wouldn't be anywhere if they didn't advertise everywhere. On TV ads, print ads, product placements (a biggie!), and word to word. MS has to raise the bar on making good ads, as well as expanding all types of media to get there.

2. More and more features, sizes, and colors - Diversify some more. Some people really want the 30 storage size back, make some more compelling accessories, and is it that difficult to include more color choices? A competitor to the iPod Touch is also needed.

3. More Marketplace content - Even though ZMP has a pretty big sizable selection, we definitely could use more video content, games, and even more music.

4. Integration with Xbox - Access Marketplace on the Xbox, though I don't think it can work vice versa.

5. Go international further - If getting Marketplace set up for other nations is too difficult, then just go ahead and ship the player. Most people are really interested in the Zune, and it's more of the device, than the software+store.

You're probably well aware of these things, but I'm just pointing out what most users are wanting.

I agree that Cesar makes the Zune Insider worth listening to.  Cesar is definitely more than OK.  ;)

I hope this doesn't stop the momentum that Zune has the potential to achieve.  Good luck to you in the future, Cesar.  I rate you with a Heart.

Just a thought for the future advertising of Zune.  The Family!  We have 11 Zune lovers in our family from age 10 to 76. Most of us are on the Social and three families share their Zune passes.  We love to share our music through the Social and our pictures at family functions.  MS should really get the family aspect of the zune going now.

"A recent story on CNET reports that Zune sales revenue plummeted by 54% from a year ago. Apple iPod? Down 16%, so they got hit by the economy, too."

Actually iPod was up 3% over the same period.

Sure it is sad to see Cesar go. What it goes to show is that too much customer focus, which Zune team Cesar and Rob certainly have had a lot of, doesn't always lead to increased revenues and profits. Zune needs to go global to get the economies of scale needed to compete and spread fixed Zune team costs. Then you have the possibility to do a lot more and get really personal with the customer without blowing out the bottom line. I bet you it was the decision makers in marketing and sales that made the mistakes by not taking the right strategic decisions at the right time regarding expanding the Zune business fast enough outside of North America. So many ideas coming from the parts of an organisation closest to the product and customer get squashed by those further up who think they know better. Did it happen in this case? Only Cesar and a few others in his team know the truth. And as a final question. Has Rob gone too or is he really working hard on the Podcast business as Cesar reported recently?

You'll be missed.  So, what's the address of your personal blog?  

It's sad to see anyone go in this economy, but MS did the right thing.  The Zune team wasn't cutting it, so they trimmed the fat.  Hopefully this means a regroup and a new focus.  Here are some suggestions:

1.  Advertise the Zune hardware as well as the software.  Make everyone feel that owning a Zune makes you different then other Isheep.

2.  Offer streaming radio on with a Zune subscription.  That's the direction everything is going anyway.

3.  Let local bands provide free content on the Zune Marketplace and the Zune Social.  Way to attract new users.

4. Need a touch device to compete with the Ipod touch, but you'll have to one up the Ipod touch.   Things like active noise cancelling, xbox arcade/zune marketplace online store. Silverlight development pack streamlined and cheap.  Basically you need a development platform that will be easy and cheap for developers.  You'll need a real browser experience, pie 6 doesn't cut it.

5. Open up to all music Zune Software to all music standards including ACC.  Now that Itunes is drm free this will help poeple move.  Maybe even offering a rebate to help offset the cost of uping current ITune's track to drm free.

6. The Zune social is a great idea but lacks exposure.  Put this service on Facebook.  Allow poeple to share Zune cards with other poeple this will also provide additional exposure to Zune Software.

7. I want cloud sync for my Zune.  I want the ability to sync my Zune through the internet as a service based option.  

8. Offer more then three devices per account I have 6 in my family and I'm not going to pay for two accounts.  

9.  BRING BACK THE BLUE ZUNE 120.   I've waited and waited and waited for more to be released.  Your customer service can't give me a estimated release date, it makes me want to buy something else.

We will miss you dude...  Hope to see you round the shops again.  L8trz.  :(

@  Rob Schoenfeld

"8. Offer more then three devices per account I have 6 in my family and I'm not going to pay for two accounts"

Oh come on, 3 is a pretty sweet deal.Sure it's a pain having to pay extra for something you already have but it's not half bad allowing 3 devices/PCs.

Tough pill to swallow.  Like someone commented, Cesar was/is the face of Zune.

Also, everyone seems to be focusing on price of Zune and other software-related stuff.  Me, I'm going through a nightmare trying to find a speaker dock for my 120.  There's a Universe full of iPod accessories out there and almost nothing for Zune.  I think that has a more adverse effect than price, etc., especially when the iPod Classic is the same GB.