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A Zune executive previously acknowledged that such a product is a possibility, and some gadget sites are assuming that it's inevitable or imminent.

But based on Ballmer's response last week, it's possible -- just possible -- that some of the widely held assumptions about the Zune phone might be premature, or not exactly in line with Microsoft's plans.

Of course, going from past experience, it's never safe to assume that Microsoft is ruling anything out. And it's tough to draw definitive conclusions from what Ballmer said. However, when asked about a "Zune phone," he specifically replied that it's "not a concept you'll ever get from us." Instead, he said Microsoft is thinking about Zune in the context of multi-functioned Windows Mobile devices.

My colleague, P-I reporter Andrea James, covered the event. (See the final item in this week's Insider column.) I've listened to her recording and double-checked what I was hearing with others who were there. Lieberman asked, "When can we look forward to a Zune phone?" and Ballmer responded:

"It's not a concept you'll ever get from us. We're in the Windows Mobile business. We can put Zune into Windows Mobile, we can put Xbox into Windows Mobile. We can pour everything in. We wouldn't define our phone experience just by music. A phone is really a general-purpose device. You want it to make telephone calls. You want to get and receive messages -- text, e-mail, whatever your preference is. You may want music, you may want to play games, you may want to carry your contacts with you, and you may want to pay for things. I think we have to think about the phone instead of as a fixed-function device, a phone is really kind of a general purpose device that we need to have clean and easy to use."

To be sure, Ballmer's comments are open to interpretation. For example, when he responds as he did to the question about a "Zune phone," what exactly does he have in mind? Is he downplaying the possibility of any Zune-branded phone? Or, based on his subsequent comments, is he simply saying that any such phone would run Windows Mobile and have not only Zune-related music functions, but also other features that come with Windows Mobile-powered devices?

Up to this point, Microsoft has generally declined to comment on reports of a Zune phone. I've asked representatives of the Zune team for more information, based on Ballmer's remarks, and I'll update this post if they provide clarification.

At the very least, Ballmer's response could put all those Zune phone reports in a different light. And it might serve to reassure Microsoft's mobile-phone hardware and wireless-service partners that the company isn't planning to shift focus away from the Windows Mobile operating system, Zune phone or not.