“Microsoft Corp. said Monday it sold 20 million consumer copies of the new Windows Vista operating system worldwide in February, but analysts said the data shed little light on the program’s popularity during its first month on the market,” Jessica Mintz reports for The Associated Press.
Mintz reports, “By comparison, Windows XP, Vista’s predecessor, sold 17 million copies in the two months following its 2001 launch, Microsoft said.
“‘It’s a stronger than expected start,’ Bill Mannion, a director of product marketing for Windows, said in an interview,” Mintz reports. “But given that the personal computer market has nearly doubled since XP launched, Vista sales ‘probably should be more,’ said Michael Silver, vice president of research at Gartner, a technology research group.”
“The analyst said 51 million PCs were sold to consumers worldwide in 2002; this year, the research group predicts 96 million consumers will buy a computer,” Mintz reports. “Starting in late October, PC makers included coupons for free or low-cost Vista upgrades that could be used once the software became available at the end of January. Microsoft’s February sales total includes those promised upgrades, in addition to licenses ordered by PC makers to install on new computers, shrink-wrapped copies sold in retail stores and downloads from the Windows Marketplace Web store.”
Mintz reports, “‘That would say that those (Vista sales) numbers aren’t all that great if that includes all that backlog,’ said Silver.”
“Shipments of Vista to U.S. retailers in February lagged XP’s first-month shipments by about 56 percent, according to the NPD Group,” Mintz reports. “NPD analyst Chris Swenson said he thought Microsoft’s advertising strategy, which he said was light on TV commercials, was partly to blame for the drop in retail sales. Microsoft should have more TV ads selling Vista than Apple has criticizing Vista,’ he said.”
Full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “The Wzrd” for the heads up.]
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What a great line, “Microsoft should have more TV ads selling Vista than Apple has criticizing Vista.”
I laughed so hard I almost pissed myself.
Kegel excercises, egads. They will help prevent those little “accidents.”
Poor Microsoft… Like Hitler, just no killing…. But the same mind screwing.
My friend, a long time PC user, bought a Sony laptop in Feb. with Vista installed. Two words best describe her experience with Vista – “It sucks”.
I don’t watch much TV, but just the same, i have yet to see a Vista ad on TV. The closest i have seen is numerous repeats of Best Buy ads, selling Gateway computers with Vista installed and free GeekSquad help in moving your files to your new computer – in and of itself a backhanded swipe at Vista.
Microsoft, keep up the good work! Seriously! You’re doing a hell of a job (at shooting ypourself in the foot!)
What are kegel exercises?
Yes I have seen those BB ads as well… what I find funny is the Geek Squad guy saying they will “personalize” your PC for you… What?
…anyone else see the stupidity of something being “personalized” by someone other than the end user…
Microsoft is having their chance to advertise slipping by before the Leopard is let loose, but maybe it’s not good idea to make too much noise as a cow when there are already predators around.
So, MS is comparing 4 months of sales of Vista against 2 months of sales of XP, while there is double the market today? In other words, Vista sales are dissappointing by a factor of 4 in comparison to XP.
So what actually exactly did M$ spend the record billions in advertising on?
In any case, it hardly matters, I think any advertising by M$ is a waste of money. People use Windows out of ignorance or alternatives or fear of change, so why do they need to advertise?
The lask of sales, therefore in my mind, can only be explained by a growing awareness of people to the shortcomings of Vista, vis-a-vis XP and the Mac, and therefore they are in no hurry to upgrade until necessary. Advertising Vista aint gonna change that.
Ah, common! If that wasn’t worth a MDN take, then what is!
It won’t mater what their sales are, they will assimilate just by selling new computers. People won’t have a choice.
Well, they’ll have one.
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A Kegel exercise, named after Dr. Arnold Kegel, is an exercise designed to strengthen the pubococcygeus muscles. The exercises consist of the regular clenching and unclenching of the muscles which form part of the pelvic floor (sometimes called the “Kegel muscles”).
The aim of Kegel exercises is to restore muscle tone and strength to the pubococcygeus muscles in order to prevent or reduce pelvic floor problems and to increase sexual gratification. Kegel exercises are said to be good for treating vaginal prolapse[1] and preventing uterine prolapse in women.[2]
Kegel exercises may be beneficial in treating urinary incontinence in both men and women.[3] Kegel exercises are also known as pelvic floor exercises, or simply Kegels.
Although Dr. Kegel contemporized and popularized this practice, it is by no means new. The Taoists of ancient China developed a number of different sexual practices to strengthen and tone these same muscles for health, longevity, sexual gratification, and spiritual development.[citation needed] Directly akin to the Kegel exercise is the Taoist practice of the Deer Exercise. The Yogis of India also had a similar practice in Hatha Yoga known as Aswini Mudra (the horse gesture) that is taught and practised till this day.[citation needed]
—————-
from Wikipedia, “Kegel exercise” entry
Ain’t the interweb amazin?
Gates, bought 10 Million Copies, @$300 = $3 Billion
Ballmer, 5 million copies, @300 = $1.5 Billion
Everyone else, 5 million copies.
Me, 1 copy, windows ultimate, @ $0
isohunt.com
20 million copies? That’s about the number of the entire OSX installed base. Not to shabby for a month.
Yo, Morty, se blabla?
Queso, Moriarty! When youse gots the installed base of Microshot, 20 mil ain’t worth a cap in de ass. You capeesh? 17 mil XP is more happenin’ cuz there were fewer pooters. Ya? I woulda thunk they’d sell 50 mil, for what dat’s worth. See? So. Get it?
“Microsoft Corp. said Monday it sold 20 million consumer copies of the new Windows Vista operating system worldwide in February”
There are approximately 20 million users of Mac OS X in different flavors, according to Apple.
Otherwise, MS sold about as many copies of VISTA in a month as Apple has OS X users.
Not trolling, just showing the scale of what Apple is up against in terms of market share.
Forgedaboutit.
Yo, Perspective, dude! How often I gotta go through this, huh? Anyone hang around here for long knows we got something along the lines of 7%-15% installed base o’ de market. So. If we take that 20 mil that you threw out as, say, the 10%, that make the market 200 mil. Which would make the base of Windoze and what all 180 mil. So, Microblow sells 20 mil and it ai’t worth squanto. Apple sells 10 mil, and the cock crows. See? It’s dat easy. Capeesh?
Qka,
I’ve seen the ads and they seem so restrained. You’ll usually see the them during young(er) people’s programing. The ads seem to be lacking something, and if I was to use the Zune marketing they lack the “Wow” factor. Perhaps it’s because of all the copycat stories, the delays, the problems with the OS and the excellent “I’m a Mac, I’m a PC”ads. At all events they’re boring!
However I just went to Microsoft’s website (and I feel sooooo soiled) and there was no in your face link to their advertising vids. If you do a search then you find the video advertising. So unlike Apple.
That’s because Apple has ads to be proud of, of course. I sometimes watch them just for the hell of it. Come, you know you have too! I can’t ever get enough of that Accept or Deny stuff, or the PC making a complete ass of itself with the new Japanese camera. Ore wa chotto nihongo wo hanasemasu. Wakarimashita desu. I probably know more Japanese than he does, lol.
VISTA = DOA
A stillborn ilegitimate child of mixed parentage.
End of story.
When will people realise that having 90% market share in desktop OS means fuck all these days.
Gone are the days when Apple needed market share to compete.
Apple is more than an OS company these days, they are a company that sell a broad range of innovative products.
Microsoft may have 90% global market share, but that means fuck all when everyone using their OS complains about how crap it is everyday.
Microsoft are successful because people have had no choice for such along time and that most people are relatively happy with a mediocre product.
THIS is why Apple makes big headlines in every market they go into – because Apple NEVER make mediocre anything, they make excellent everything.
NEXT APPLE SUCCESS STORY: – Apple iPhone sells 30million handsets in 3 months!
re: So what actually exactly did M$ spend the record billions in advertising on?
—-
ANSWER:
on overpaid marketing companies that know fuck all about marketing, that are only interested in screwing as much cash out of a client as much as possible!
I don’t watch much TV. (PBS get the lion’s share and it would be nice to see Apple do some corporate backing.)
I saw one Vista commercial briefly. All I remember was that it said something like,
“Finally I can do something with all my photos”
or something like that.
Nice to see MS continuing to drop the ball every time they try to copy Apple.
In related news WalMart sold 16 kajillion boxes of laundry soap last month based on the number on coupons printed in newspapers and mail catalogues. Actual sales of laundry soap may vary.
I bought XP for BootCamp last year (for kids’ schoolwork apps) and it came with a Vista coupon, so I am one of their statistics, but there is no way I am upgrading to Vista, mainly since ‘Microsoft Genuine Extortion’ will not let me downgrade back to XP.