By Ian Fried, 16 May 2007 09:02
NEWS
Microsoft has sold nearly 40 million copies of Windows Vista so far - or more than the total install base of Windows' largest competitors, according to company chairman Bill Gates.
Giving a keynote speech at the Windows Hardware and Engineering Conference (WinHEC) in Los Angeles, Gates told a crowd of hardware developers: "As of last week, we've sold nearly 40 million copies. That's twice as fast as the adoption of Windows XP, the last major release we had."
Confirming news that had already leaked on its website, Microsoft also announced Windows Server 2008 as the official name of Windows Server "Longhorn", which is due to be finalised later this year.
In announcing the Windows Server 2008 moniker, Gates poked a little fun at his company's penchant for less-than-dynamic product names. "We've been working hard thinking about it," Gates said. "We played around with a couple [of] different ideas but what we are going to go with is... Windows Server 2008. We know it's a surprise for us to pick something so straightforward."
Gates also announced several new partners for its Windows Home Server product, including Gateway and Medion. Microsoft has already said HP will have home servers based on the technology later this year.
Gates said Windows Home Server will launch in the autumn. He also said smaller computer makers, known as system builders, will be able to build products based on Windows Home Server. Microsoft has positioned the product as a central repository for media such as photos, movies and music as well as a more seamless way to back up PCs in the home.
Microsoft also announced the results of a study it commissioned IDC to do that found for every dollar it makes off Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008, other technology companies will take in an additional $18. IDC also found other companies will sell more than $120bn in products and services around the two Microsoft operating systems.
Ina Fried writes for CNET News.com
Comments
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1. anonymous
40 million copies?
More meaningful stats might be:
- what proportion of new PCs are being sold with Vista?
- how many copies have been sold stand alone or as upgrades?
- how big is the PC market now compared with when XP was launched
2. Richard
How "green" is a Home Server?
Now that we've all changed to low energy light-bulbs, unplugged dormant phone chargers, taken TVs off "standby," etc., etc.:
Why are we now introducing Home Server computers which must be powered-on 24 hours a day?
3. Anthony Hunt
How many copies of Vista have been activated?
I'll bet Bills salary it isn't anywhere near 40 million.
4. Karen Challinor
would that be 40 million copies to end users ?
or would that be 40 million copies including all the copies sitting on shelves in shops, sold to OEM's for installation on new systems but not yet installed as well as the odd upgrade that end users purchased and the ones on the newly purchased PC's that end users have bought
can we have a breakdown of this 40 million figure please I'd like to see how many licenses are actually in use
5. W.S.Becket
Either Mr Gates is massaging the figures or there are a lot of clueless users around.
Vista seems to be incompatable with any third party software that is more than ten minutes old and if this company was to go from XP to Vista, it would mean spending thousands of pounds on Adobe (et al) upgrades that we do not really want. All this for the sake of Mr Gates' wallet? No fear.