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uh… > Consumers have spoken clearly; they don't like or want Windows 8. any evidence to back that up..? if anything, it seems the 'masses' are just fine with

uh… > Consumers have spoken clearly; they don't like or want Windows 8. any evidence to back that up..? if anything, it seems the 'masses' are just fine with it and its tech geeks that are most bothered.. Microsoft just announced that they've passed 100 million Windows 8 licenses sold in the six months since launch, which is on-par with where Windows 7 was at this point in its lifecycle. > The lack of sales has shown that, and it's why Microsoft is reversing direction and releasing this patch. again, no. if anything, i'd say Windows 8 sales are rather impressive given they’re matching the pace of Windows 7 which came following a poorly received Vista.. you'd think that a release following a very popular and stable release (7 to 8) would see comparatively less traction than one following a poor one (Vista to 7), but it’s still holding-up, and doing so in a declining PC market farcing a number of other external forces. > There's a reason this news is being covered in the Financial Times; because investors see lack of Windows 8 sales and they get very unhappy. not true. just because it’s the FT reporting doesn't mean it’s any more insightful than your typical tech blog or speak for investor sentiment, at all. MSFT shares have been performing rather well since the launch of Windows 8. either way, Microsoft is a large and increasingly diversified company, so i wouldn't put too much weight in that one way or another. you make it sound like this is the largest product flop in the history of the world.. very sensational, also very not untrue.

ebbv 13y ago
The evidence is sales for it stink. Microsoft just released the numbers and it's only selling at half the rate of Windows 7. (Win7 averaged 20mil/mo, Win8 is averaging 10.) And sales should be HIGHER following a successful release than a failed one. People were skeptical of Windows 7 when it came out because Vista had gotten so much flack. Everybody liked 7 so a solid follow up to it should have sold well. Also you missed my point about FT, I wasn't saying that FT is more insightful. Certainly it isn't when it comes to tech stuff. But it's in the FT because investors are concerned about what Microsoft is doing, and Microsoft wants the FT to report that they are releasing a fix patch for Windows 8 to calm investors down. edit: Also keep in mind that those Windows 8 sales numbers include sales of Windows 8 RT and Windows 8 on Surface Pros. Granted sales for those devices are not great either, but it's inflating Windows 8 numbers when comparing them to Windows 7 numbers; it's not an apples to apples comparison.
- simba-hiiipower 13y ago
  maybe i’m just dense, but i’m not following youth logic or your math here.. numbers have been officially reported at two intervals: 60 million sold as of January 2013 [1], and 100 million as of May 2013 [2]. both points indicate its performing fairly well, and just shy of its predecessor. while not ideal, achieving these volumes is most certainly not so catastrophic that ‘investors’ are getting worried. if anything, they appear to be rewarding the company for taking steps to adapt early-on (relatively speaking). as for sales needing to be higher following a successful release, that’s most certainly not true as a general rule and in this particular case doesn’t make sense either. we're not talking about movie release.. a PC (and, by extension, Windows to most) is a utility, not a discretionary good. most people depend on it in some form or another and if their PC isn't performing adequately to accomplish some task, they upgrade; if it’s fine, they stick it out until need be.. in the case of Vista to 7, many people were plagued with issues and in-need of new PCs (and a more stable OS), hence the rapid rate at which it sold. today, a PC running 7 from a few years back is still fairly capable and the need to upgrade is less pronounced. that it especially true if people are spending less time on a PC as many consumption-related activities can be transferred to other devices like smartphones and tablets. speaking of which, keep in mind how much has changed since 7 was released.. people are now holding-on to their PCs for longer periods of time and there is increased competition from tablets and smartphones. the market is in decline, i’m not arguing against that, but pointing to 8 as the culprit is inaccurate. [1] http://blogs.windows.com/windows/b/bloggingwindows/archive/2013/01/08/windows-8-60-million-licenses-sold.aspx http://blogs.windows.com/windows/b/bloggingwindows/archive/2... [2] http://blogs.windows.com/windows/b/bloggingwindows/archive/2013/05/06/windows-8-at-6-months-q-amp-a-with-tami-reller.aspx http://blogs.windows.com/windows/b/bloggingwindows/archive/2... edit: sales numbers are never that comparable, and its been three years.. for all the reasons listed above, they're not comparable.. introducing surface into the mix also makes them less comparable.. my point has less to do with specific milestones and more so to the point that by no reasonable standard could you call the product a failure so far. and projecting your particular dissatisfaction with the changes made (or maybe just a general grudge against the company, i don't know?) to the 'masses' is inaccurate and doesn't add any real value.
- illuminate 13y ago
  "And sales should be HIGHER following a successful release than a failed one." Sorry, no. People don't upgrade their OS as often if the previous one "just works", no matter how many bells and whistles are added.
parasubvert 13y ago
Consider what's behind these numbers... - The whole point of Windows 8 was to make massive inroads into tablets with the Surface and other OEM models; that's not happening at the rate they hoped - The PC market is clearly shrinking at an increased rate due to pressure from the smartphone, iPad and other tablets. So in summary, the growth rates of the iPad, Win 2008 licenses shouldn't be flat - they should be up. These are the charts that worries Microsoft: http://www.asymco.com/2013/05/01/surface-tension-the-effect-of-surface-on-windows-revenues/ http://www.asymco.com/2013/05/01/surface-tension-the-effect-... Not a bleak picture yet, but not roses either.

ebbv 13y ago

The evidence is sales for it stink. Microsoft just released the numbers and it's only selling at half the rate of Windows 7. (Win7 averaged 20mil/mo, Win8 is averaging 10.) And sales should be HIGHER following a successful release than a failed one. People were skeptical of Windows 7 when it came out because Vista had gotten so much flack. Everybody liked 7 so a solid follow up to it should have sold well. Also you missed my point about FT, I wasn't saying that FT is more insightful. Certainly it isn't when it comes to tech stuff. But it's in the FT because investors are concerned about what Microsoft is doing, and Microsoft wants the FT to report that they are releasing a fix patch for Windows 8 to calm investors down. edit: Also keep in mind that those Windows 8 sales numbers include sales of Windows 8 RT and Windows 8 on Surface Pros. Granted sales for those devices are not great either, but it's inflating Windows 8 numbers when comparing them to Windows 7 numbers; it's not an apples to apples comparison.

simba-hiiipower 13y ago
maybe i’m just dense, but i’m not following youth logic or your math here.. numbers have been officially reported at two intervals: 60 million sold as of January 2013 [1], and 100 million as of May 2013 [2]. both points indicate its performing fairly well, and just shy of its predecessor. while not ideal, achieving these volumes is most certainly not so catastrophic that ‘investors’ are getting worried. if anything, they appear to be rewarding the company for taking steps to adapt early-on (relatively speaking). as for sales needing to be higher following a successful release, that’s most certainly not true as a general rule and in this particular case doesn’t make sense either. we're not talking about movie release.. a PC (and, by extension, Windows to most) is a utility, not a discretionary good. most people depend on it in some form or another and if their PC isn't performing adequately to accomplish some task, they upgrade; if it’s fine, they stick it out until need be.. in the case of Vista to 7, many people were plagued with issues and in-need of new PCs (and a more stable OS), hence the rapid rate at which it sold. today, a PC running 7 from a few years back is still fairly capable and the need to upgrade is less pronounced. that it especially true if people are spending less time on a PC as many consumption-related activities can be transferred to other devices like smartphones and tablets. speaking of which, keep in mind how much has changed since 7 was released.. people are now holding-on to their PCs for longer periods of time and there is increased competition from tablets and smartphones. the market is in decline, i’m not arguing against that, but pointing to 8 as the culprit is inaccurate. [1] http://blogs.windows.com/windows/b/bloggingwindows/archive/2013/01/08/windows-8-60-million-licenses-sold.aspx http://blogs.windows.com/windows/b/bloggingwindows/archive/2... [2] http://blogs.windows.com/windows/b/bloggingwindows/archive/2013/05/06/windows-8-at-6-months-q-amp-a-with-tami-reller.aspx http://blogs.windows.com/windows/b/bloggingwindows/archive/2... edit: sales numbers are never that comparable, and its been three years.. for all the reasons listed above, they're not comparable.. introducing surface into the mix also makes them less comparable.. my point has less to do with specific milestones and more so to the point that by no reasonable standard could you call the product a failure so far. and projecting your particular dissatisfaction with the changes made (or maybe just a general grudge against the company, i don't know?) to the 'masses' is inaccurate and doesn't add any real value.
illuminate 13y ago
"And sales should be HIGHER following a successful release than a failed one." Sorry, no. People don't upgrade their OS as often if the previous one "just works", no matter how many bells and whistles are added.

parasubvert 13y ago

Consider what's behind these numbers... - The whole point of Windows 8 was to make massive inroads into tablets with the Surface and other OEM models; that's not happening at the rate they hoped - The PC market is clearly shrinking at an increased rate due to pressure from the smartphone, iPad and other tablets. So in summary, the growth rates of the iPad, Win 2008 licenses shouldn't be flat - they should be up. These are the charts that worries Microsoft: http://www.asymco.com/2013/05/01/surface-tension-the-effect-of-surface-on-windows-revenues/ http://www.asymco.com/2013/05/01/surface-tension-the-effect-... Not a bleak picture yet, but not roses either.