J
Just.some.guy
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23406638/
Executive: Company 'botched' marketing of computers as 'Vista Capable'
SEATTLE - Microsoft Corp. will cut the price of some versions of Windows
Vista, the software maker said late Thursday.
The move came a day after court filings revealed internal dissent over which
Windows XP computers would be considered capable of running the new
operating system - and a feeling on at least one executive's part that the
company had "botched" the marketing of computers as "Vista Capable."
Only copies of the year-old operating system that are sold in boxes directly
to consumers are affected by the price cuts _ not the versions pre-loaded on
personal computers. The cuts will range from 20 percent to 48 percent.
The reductions are to coincide with the late March release of Vista Service
Pack 1, a collection of security fixes and other improvements.
Microsoft said the new prices will apply to the Home Premium and Ultimate
versions of Vista, in both their full editions and the editions that upgrade
an older or more basic operating system.
Both versions serve the tiny percentage of users who install an operating
system on their own most people get the latest version of Windows only when
they buy a new PC.
Windows Vista's January 2007 launch was plagued by delays. To keep consumers
buying PCs in the holiday season of 2006, Microsoft and PC makers promised
free Vista upgrades later to shoppers who bought Windows XP computers.
At the launch, Microsoft was widely criticized for offering too many
versions of the operating system _ including Home Basic, which didn't have
the snazzy new signature look called "Aero" _ and for setting the price too
high for the high-end versions.
Brad Brooks, a corporate vice president for Windows marketing at Microsoft,
said in an interview that the company has since tested lower prices and
found "product was moving much, much faster."
Brooks said he expects so many customers to buy Vista at the new prices that
the price cuts will increase Microsoft's revenue, not subtract from it.
A federal judge recently said consumers could pursue a class action suit
against Microsoft for labeling PCs as "Vista Capable," even though many were
not powerful enough to run all of Vista's features, including the Aero
interface.
Company e-mails produced in court chronicle Microsoft settling on a plan to
market a wide range of XP-based PCs as "Vista Capable" after company
officials realized in early 2006 that 30 percent or fewer of computers on
the market could run the full-fledged version of Vista with Aero.
That realization apparently caused computer makers like Dell Inc. to worry
that people would stop buying PCs for almost a year - until Vista launched.
The e-mails also showed Microsoft lowering the bar for "Vista Capable" to
protect Intel Corp.'s sales of some widely used chips that weren't powerful
enough for the full Vista experience.
Microsoft employee Anantha Kancherla was particularly blunt in his March
2006 response to a question about whether a certain PC configuration would
be considered "Vista Capable."
"Based on objective criteria that exist today for "capable," even a piece of
junk will qualify," he wrote. "For the sake of Vista customers, it will be a
complete tragedy if we allowed it."
According to the e-mails, Jim Allchin, the executive in charge of Windows at
the time, wasn't involved in the decision to brand a wide swath of XP
computers as "Vista Capable."
Upon learning the details, Allchin wrote, "We really botched this."
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may
not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Executive: Company 'botched' marketing of computers as 'Vista Capable'
SEATTLE - Microsoft Corp. will cut the price of some versions of Windows
Vista, the software maker said late Thursday.
The move came a day after court filings revealed internal dissent over which
Windows XP computers would be considered capable of running the new
operating system - and a feeling on at least one executive's part that the
company had "botched" the marketing of computers as "Vista Capable."
Only copies of the year-old operating system that are sold in boxes directly
to consumers are affected by the price cuts _ not the versions pre-loaded on
personal computers. The cuts will range from 20 percent to 48 percent.
The reductions are to coincide with the late March release of Vista Service
Pack 1, a collection of security fixes and other improvements.
Microsoft said the new prices will apply to the Home Premium and Ultimate
versions of Vista, in both their full editions and the editions that upgrade
an older or more basic operating system.
Both versions serve the tiny percentage of users who install an operating
system on their own most people get the latest version of Windows only when
they buy a new PC.
Windows Vista's January 2007 launch was plagued by delays. To keep consumers
buying PCs in the holiday season of 2006, Microsoft and PC makers promised
free Vista upgrades later to shoppers who bought Windows XP computers.
At the launch, Microsoft was widely criticized for offering too many
versions of the operating system _ including Home Basic, which didn't have
the snazzy new signature look called "Aero" _ and for setting the price too
high for the high-end versions.
Brad Brooks, a corporate vice president for Windows marketing at Microsoft,
said in an interview that the company has since tested lower prices and
found "product was moving much, much faster."
Brooks said he expects so many customers to buy Vista at the new prices that
the price cuts will increase Microsoft's revenue, not subtract from it.
A federal judge recently said consumers could pursue a class action suit
against Microsoft for labeling PCs as "Vista Capable," even though many were
not powerful enough to run all of Vista's features, including the Aero
interface.
Company e-mails produced in court chronicle Microsoft settling on a plan to
market a wide range of XP-based PCs as "Vista Capable" after company
officials realized in early 2006 that 30 percent or fewer of computers on
the market could run the full-fledged version of Vista with Aero.
That realization apparently caused computer makers like Dell Inc. to worry
that people would stop buying PCs for almost a year - until Vista launched.
The e-mails also showed Microsoft lowering the bar for "Vista Capable" to
protect Intel Corp.'s sales of some widely used chips that weren't powerful
enough for the full Vista experience.
Microsoft employee Anantha Kancherla was particularly blunt in his March
2006 response to a question about whether a certain PC configuration would
be considered "Vista Capable."
"Based on objective criteria that exist today for "capable," even a piece of
junk will qualify," he wrote. "For the sake of Vista customers, it will be a
complete tragedy if we allowed it."
According to the e-mails, Jim Allchin, the executive in charge of Windows at
the time, wasn't involved in the decision to brand a wide swath of XP
computers as "Vista Capable."
Upon learning the details, Allchin wrote, "We really botched this."
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may
not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
