Neowin is reporting that a company representative confirmed to them that Microsoft will release the Zune internationally this year. Australia, China, and Europe have been identified so far but other countries are also expected.
The news comes on the heels of a Tweet by Brian Seitz from the Microsoft Zune team that announced that new Zune hardware is coming this year.
Neowin has a few more details about this future hardware. According to them, we can expect a slim model without the d-pad. This clearly suggests a touchscreen Zune model.