I’ve been trying to get Microsoft to make a statement on this issue for three months now and I’m not the only one. The highly respected blogger Mary-Jo Foley, who has been a great help to me on this, has been trying to get an answer out of Microsoft even longer and she hasn’t succeeded either.
So what am I talking about? This is a problem that is affecting a very great number of people worldwide who now own Windows Phones, and it also includes myself.
The problem stems from your account at zune.net, which is the account you have to use, that’s tied to your Windows Live ID, in order to be able to purchase apps, games and music from the Windows Phone Marketplace. For these unlucky people their Zune.net account is set to the US. This has either happened accidentally, or perhaps because they have moved or are working abroad.
The result is that anyone in this position who lives outside of the US, who tries to log into the Marketplace in the Zune desktop software will get the following message…
“The location setting for your Windows Live ID doesn’t match the setting for your computer”
…and the system will not allow them to log-in… ever!
Don’t think for a minute this is just affecting people outside of the US either. Anyone who has an account set to another country who then moves to the US, or tries to log into the marketplace in the US will get the same message.
The upshot of this is that the Zune desktop software will not allow you to log into the Windows Phone Marketplace AT ALL!
Mary-Jo Foley a couple of months ago managed to get a statement out of Microsoft but this is the ONLY thing they have said about it and they’ve remained deathly silent ever since.
“Currently, Xbox Live Gold or Zune Pass subscribers in most markets cannot change their account country after they sign up for the service. If they move countries, they may need to create a new Windows Live ID and Gamertag and re-subscribe, depending on the country. As these services get more established, we know people want to have the flexibility to keep their subscription and account info when they move countries. We are working to increase flexibility, but we have nothing to share at this time.” –Microsoft Spokesperson
It is reasonable to assume that this isn’t even a very complicated problem to fix, that is unless all the Zune.net account databases around the world are on different servers and are even slightly different to one another. That said I know a great many database programmers who would only need a few days to sort out such a problem.
So we’re in a situation where Microsoft have launched Windows Phone, they want it to be successful and they recognise (as do we all) that any smartphone platform these days will live or die based on the quality of the apps available for it. To this end they’ve gone to great lengths to support the developer network.
Still though they’re blocking people from being able to buy any from the Windows Phone Marketplace!
There is also the issue of privacy. There is currently no way to delete your Zune.net account and start again. All Microsoft will say if that you either have to delete your Windows Live ID, which will also delete all your emails, calendar and contacts and which is clearly unacceptable, or create a second Windows Live ID to associate with your phone which would leave you without them.
It’s simply unacceptable that Microsoft have left this issue and said nothing and they still keep quiet on the issue. It’s enough, it’s gone on for far too long and they need to allow these people to change the country associated with their Zune.net account now!
It’s for this reason that you’re reading this, as the company needs to be shamed into acting. Microsoft are not well known for acting quickly on anything and this is another example of that. I’ll bring you any updates should there be any movement on this and it would be great to see your comments too.
Tags: app, markatplace, windows phone, zune, zune.netCategory: Windows 7 NewsNext Post: Battlefield 3 Game Won’t Support DX9, Windows XP »»Prev Post: What Windows Phone MUST Have in 2011 »»
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