has nixed any future iterations of its and player, according to a Bloomberg report, adding another name on the list of devices killed by 's hardware and entertainment ecosystem.

Microsoft has yet to make the death of its Zune official, but unofficial it's believed the decision is based on poor demand for its players since the Zune line was introduced almost five years ago.

In the music and video player market, Apple's iPod is still king. NPD's figures put its domination at around 77 percent of the market last year. In comparison, Microsoft's players weren't even in the top five devices on the market, despite a price drop in early 2010.

Zune's inevitable hardware demise won't be sudden though. According to Bloomberg's sources, Microsoft will continue to sell existing versions of Zune, probably until remaining stock is exhausted.

via Macworld UK.