Starting today Zune users can pay ($1.99/ea show) to watch more than 800 episodes of popular TV series on their Zune (or computer). Shows include Comedy Central’s “South Park”, NBC’s “The Office”, “Heroes” and “30 Rock”. The Zune software has been updated as well to include auto playlists, browsing videos, editing album and track information and gapless playback. Keep reading for a full list of Zune service and player upgrades.

Link: Zune

New updates to the Zune online music community include the following:

– Syncing Zune Cards to a device. Consumers simply drag and drop Zune
Cards from friends to a Zune device and get updates on what friends are
listening to every time they sync. If the song is available with Zune
Pass, subscribers automatically have the full tracks on their Zune
while nonsubscribers have full album information and artwork. If
consumers hear something they like, they can add it to their collection
with one click. Next time the user syncs his or her Zune, he or she
will be asked to confirm the purchase.

– Enhanced friends search. Consumers now have the ability to add their
name, location and bio to their Zune music community profile, making it
easier than ever to find their friends.

– Instant friends. The true power of the Zune online music community is
unlocked when friends are added and consumers can follow the music
they’re listening to. Now, when new Zune owners join the Zune online
music community, they’ll find the top music editors from the Zune
Marketplace team already added to their friends list, giving them a
head start in finding new music.

– Artist and album reviews. Inside the Zune music community, members have
the ability to write and post their own reviews for artists and albums,
providing another community-driven feature to support the exploration
and discovery of music. The music community helps to find and recommend
the best music.

– Reputation badges. Now members of the Zune community can earn badges
that are displayed on their Zune Card showing they’re passionate fans
or active members.

– Windows Live connections. Windows Live Messenger contacts will now be
able to see what users are listening to via the Zune software. Clicking
on the tracks displayed in the “Now Playing” feature will connect the
Windows Live Messenger friend directly to that artist’s page on the
Zune Social.

A More Integrated Way to Manage and Enjoy Entertainment

Responding directly to customer feedback, Zune has updated and added
features and functionality to address better integration between the
software, the online music community and the store. In addition, the
updates include frequently requested features such as the ability to sync
multiple Zune players at once. Specific feature updates include the
following:

– Auto playlists. Users can create an auto playlist that updates itself
automatically as new music is added.

– Browsing videos. Consumers can browse their video collection by genre
and series, plus they can preview videos before they play them on full
screen.

– Editing album and track information. Users are able to edit track or
album information (metadata) quickly via multi-select and
drag-and-drop. The advanced metadata editing features make it easy to
edit multiple tracks or survey albums and artist information.

– Organizing collections. In addition to sorting by artist or album,
consumers can now sort by genre. While browsing by genre they can
further sort music by artist, album or release year.

– Gapless playback. Consumers will now be able to listen to an album
without the brief gap between tracks, both on their Zune and in the
Zune software. This is a must-have for live-concert recordings and
compilation albums.

– Syncing groups. Zune software now syncs to multiple Zune players
simultaneously. Users can prepare which content on their computer to
sync even when their Zune isn’t connected. Consumers can create custom
sync groups for music, pictures and videos.

– Zune reminders. Experience is improved when a Zune player’s memory is
nearing capacity, via an easy-to-use tool.

Link: Zune.net Online Service