Although when it comes to Apple versus Microsoft in the digital music market, most of the fight is believed to be between the iPod and Zune, there is more to the market than just the player, and content is just as important, if not more. So far, Microsoft's music service, the Zune Marketplace, has gone largely unnoticed; it is, however, quite interesting. Unlike the iTunes Store, which offers one clicking , microsoft has different plans to make things as complicated as possible.

Because currency is too simple an affair, Microsoft has gone the other way and has opted for a system called Microsoft points. In the United States, points are available in denominations of $5 for 400 points, $15 for 1,200, $25 for 2,000 and $50 for 4,000. That makes $1 worth 80 points. A song will cost 79 points, making a song about the same price as on iTunes; however, there is more than just a price comparison here.From a marketing point of view, this is a good idea. The psychological price of 79 points is less than that of 99 cents, which could lead to more sales. Also, since an average album that would normally cost $9.99, would be approximately 790 points, Microsoft can keep your money for you. Looking at the point packs, one notices that there is no 800 point package, meaning that you either have to buy two 400 point packs or buy a 1200 one and not use it all. This means that you provide an interest free loan to Microsoft, a company that has $40 billion in the bank.Once again, it is quite obvious that Microsoft is very up to date on how to make more money out of their customers and quite out of touch with what customers actually need. All the hassle of having to keep converting money into 'Microsoft Money' every time you want to buy a song is sure to discourage a lot of potential users.