NEWS
Some PC makers now have an extra four months to sell Windows XP.
The BBC reported Monday that Microsoft has extended the deadline for smaller PC builders and resellers to obtain licenses for the discontinued operating system from the previous deadline of 31 January 2009 to 30 May 2009.
"Microsoft is making accommodation through a flexible inventory program that will allow distributors to place their final orders by January 31, 2009; and take delivery against those orders through May 30, 2009," a Microsoft representative said in an e-mailed statement. "This is not an extension of sales."
Even after May 30, however, it's still not the end of XP. The operating system will be available on ultra-low-cost PCs until June 30, 2010, and the low-end Windows XP Starter Edition will continue to be available in emerging markets until the same date.
Plus, big PC makers plan to offer PCs with Vista Ultimate and Vista Business that have been factory downgraded at customers' request until July 30 next year.
Comments
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1. W.S.Becket
In a sensible world, Microsoft would give users the choice of XP or Vista.
2. Karen Challinor
if someone asks for XP why don't microsoft simply sell it to them as is with no support beyond the normal MS update system, they have a database of all the licenses don't they, so it's an easy job to find those issued after a particular date and deny telephone or written support for them, they could even make it a downloadable iso with a license purchased separately so the cost to Microsoft would be around a gigabyte of web space plus a secure purchasing web page
in fact this could be done for all the earlier versions of Microsoft operating systems
costs to Microsoft - practically nil
benefits to Microsoft - in monetary terms it's vast as people exercise their purchasing choice and in non monetary terms goodwill alone would almost guarantee return customers, simply knowing they are available would raise Microsofts stock points in many eyes
yes I understand there is a significant investment in Vista and the soon to be released Windows 7 that Microsoft needs to recoup
but at the end of the day both these and their earlier products have a 'long tail' on the sales curve which they are missing out on
revenue is revenue and it doesn't matter which product is generating it
just one thing though, if someone from Microsoft reads this and picks it up, please don't indulge in the typical internet pricing trick of 'oh you are in the uk that'll be £300 please' / 'oh you are in the us that'll be $199' lets have the same price everywhere for a change, after all it won't cost you anything