If x86 compatibility would have been left behind anyway it would have opened up Windows to Intel competitors (I remember that PA-RISC was pretty hot at the time

If x86 compatibility would have been left behind anyway it would have opened up Windows to Intel competitors (I remember that PA-RISC was pretty hot at the time, and Alpha was also still quite revelant, although that was in the years right before the Itanium). AMD essentially saved Intel from becoming the new IBM.