January 18, 2007
Download Windows Vista Online
Of course if they are downloading it, it will be online but others will debate that statement…
Microsoft announced that they will be releasing Windows Vista for download. A relatively low number of computer users are likely to get Vista by downloading it from the Internet. But the mere availability indicates that Microsoft is fiddling with distribution methods for the extremely profitable franchise at the core of its business.
The download program, being announced late Wednesday will also include the Office 2007 line of software when both are released for consumers Jan. 30. At least initially, the huge downloads will be available in North America only.
Bill Mannion, director of consumer marketing for Windows, called these three steps part of an overall effort “to give more flexibility to end users.”
Here’s how that will work. For consumers, Vista will come in four flavors, Home Basic, which retails for $199, Home Premium ($239) Business ($299) and Ultimate ($399). Though consumers will pick one version when they buy a computer, higher versions will be embedded on the machine’s hard drive or packaged on discs that come with it.
Anyone who wants to move up the chain — from Home Basic to Home Premium for another $79, Home Basic to Ultimate ($199), Home Premium to Ultimate ($159), or Business to Ultimate ($139) — will be able to click a new “Windows Anytime Upgrade” function, pay for the upgrade online and then receive a coded license “key” that will unlock the more expensive edition.
