Zune HD 32GB and Zune HD 16GB are both $20 off at the online Microsoft Store, while the devices are also experiencing steep discounts on retailer sites such as Amazon.com. A fairly complete list of the price cuts can be found here.

A few other bloggers have commented on this already, but I figured the sale was worth mentioning within the context of the Mobile World Congress rumors about a "Zune Phone," or smartphone with Zune software, making its debut at some undefined future point. Price cuts sometimes come simply because a manufacturer wants an uptick in sales of a particular product, but the promotional quiet surrounding these particular Zune discounts, in conjunction with those MWC rumors, makes me think (along with other writers) that there could be something going on here.

On Feb. 6, the blog PPC Geeks reported (quoting unnamed sources) that Microsoft will announce a new mobile platform at a press conference in Barcelona on Feb. 15, one that features an interface very similar to the one already present on the Zune HD. In addition, the platform will supposedly integrate Zune syncing and software.

That PPC Geeks rumor followed another rumor from last week, generated by Spanish blog MuyComputer, which said Microsoft planned on announcing a "Zune Phone" running "Nvidia's Tegra platform" at the conference. That rumor also quoted unnamed sources, which means it should be taken with the appropriate bowling-ball-sized grain of salt, but nonetheless seemed to jibe somewhat with the PPC Geeks' talk of Zune integration.

So there's the possibility that Microsoft is dropping the pricing on the Zune HD ahead of launching a new (and more expensive) multimedia smartphone with Zune software. Except I'm not wholly convinced, at least based on what I've seen, that Microsoft will put Zune branding at the center of its next mobile operating system iteration: First of all, pushing Zune functionality within that context has the high potential of turning off the enterprise and business audience, which is the one segment that Microsoft can absolutely not afford to alienate if it wants to regain any traction in the mobile space.

Secondly, Zune's market share is in the single digits, and I haven't seen anything lately that makes me think that the device's stagnant/declining trend will reverse itself in the short term. (Despite the quality of the Zune HD--I reviewed one back in September and thought it a worthy competitor to my much-loved but hopelessly battered iPod Touch--I've never seen anyone actually using one.) Therefore, it seems unlikely to me from a branding perspective that Microsoft would use "Zune" as the banner under which it would choose to rally its declining mobile OS franchise--better to start anew, as it did with Bing, than to tie itself to something that hasn't made much marketplace headway.

But maybe I'm thinking about it in the wrong way. Maybe Microsoft hopes that it can raise the fortunes of both Zune and Windows Mobile by bringing the two franchises together. The idea still seems strange to me, though.

I've asked Microsoft for comment and they haven't gotten back to me yet, but I'll update when I find out more.