MICROSOFT ANNOUNCES NEW $10 ZUNE MUSIC PASS

It may not enjoy quite the same level of buzz that the likes of Spotify, Rdio and MOG have been basking in lately, but Microsoft's Zune service is still kicking, and the company's now working to make it a bit more appealing and more widely available. For folks in the US, the big change today is a new $10 per month Zune Music Pass, which is identical to the existing $15 service with the notable exception that you no longer get to keep ten free MP3s each month (that $15 option remains available to existing subscribers, though). Elsewhere, Microsoft has also now finally brought the Zune Marketplace and Zune Pass to Canada -- it opens up on October 3rd, with the Zune Pass running the same $10/month (or $100 for a year of service).

Microsoft gets antitrust approval to buy Skype

Microsoft has won U.S. antitrust approval to buy the Internet phone service Skype, the Federal Trade Commission said in a website posting on Friday.

Microsoft announced in May it was buying Skype for $8.5 billion, its biggest-ever acquisition, placing a rich bet on mobile and the Internet to try and best rivals such as Google Inc.

The approval was announced in a listing of deal approvals that comes out several times a week.

Microsoft's interest in the money-losing, but popular service highlights a need to gain new customers for its Windows and Office software. Skype has 145 million users on average each month and has gained favor among small businesses.