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Six months ago when Microsoft introduced the Zune audio player to compete with Apple's iPod, Zune general manager Chris Stephenson spoke of plans to create a Zune phone, saying "A Zune phone is definitely part of the future of this brand."

To quote Robert Burns: "The best laid schemes of Mice and Men oft go awry."

Recently, Microsoft's CEO Steve Ballmer put the kibosh on the idea of a Zune phone during the USA Today CEO Forum on the University of Washington, according to a blog posting at the Seattle Post-Intelligencer online.

In response to a question about the prospects of a Zune phone, Ballmer said "It's not a concept you'll ever get from us." He then explained why, saying "We're in the Windows Mobile business."

With that Ballmer logically answered the question we’ve had on our lips ever since we first heard about the concept of a Zune phone: Why would Microsoft cannibalize its own Windows Mobile smartphone business with a direct competitor of its own making?

Microsoft already offers a platform in Windows Mobile that combines phone calling and much more, including music playing, in an integrated device, the smartphone. Also, the company's Windows Mobile licensees, those who build devices based on the OS, wouldn't be happy with Redmond coming out with a competitor to their products—be it based on Windows Mobile or Zune.

Adding Zune functionally to Windows Mobile is another matter entirely, however.

"We can put Zune into Windows Mobile, we can put Xbox into Windows Mobile. We can pour everything in," Ballmer explained. Adding features such as Zune to its existing (and proven) smartphone platform is a smarter move and one that is likely to gain support of all parties (e.g. carriers, licensees, developers, and even consumers).

It is not like consumers have embraced Zune as a standalone music player in the six months since its introduction. So why would they do the same for a version of the audio player with phone added.

Microsoft originally got the concept of a Zune/phone concept backwards: The idea of integrating Zune technology into its existing mobile platform makes a whole lot more sense.