Windows 10: Microsoft: Windows 10 will not be sold as a subscription

I was thinking more along the lines of Xbox connectivity, holographic capabilities, accessing company domains, data encryption.
That sort of thing.

 

Yep like OneDrive, Bing and Office just to name a few. I don't think Bing will cost, as it's always been free. We already have a subscription for Office. I don't know why they would charge for One Drive, when 8.1 uses it now. Bing has adds, OneDrive is not free it has a cost it will not be free for long and office is not free. Some apps are not free.

 

Yep that too.

 

How is this going to apply to our Wphones?. Mine came with 8, it upgraded to 8.1, hoping to do an easy upgrade to 10?

 

Sounds like that's the plan. You'll no more after the next conference.

 

I was wondering that as well. Going by this Ars Technica article, it's because Microsoft want a unified Windows ecosystem and a high adoption rate of that ecosystem.

I'm guessing in the grand scheme of things (and going by that article) a lot of people don't actually bother upgrading their OS to a newer version of Windows, they just stick with what was on their PC when they bought it. Therefore, the only time they upgrade is when they buy a new PC and as PC's are being replaced at a much slower rate than in the past, that would mean a lot of people stuck on Windows 7 for a while.

By making it free, it helps to overcome the adoption rate problem and presumably Microsoft wants all those Windows 7 users to have the ability to access Windows Store, so that they have the option to use it if they so choose. So although the OS is free, they're hedging their bets on that being offset by people using the store for digital content such as games, music, apps, video on-demand, etc., which you'll be able to use across all your devices whether it be desktop, laptop, tablet, phone, TV, Xbox, etc. That's my guess anyway (and it is purely a guess).

Another possibility is that it will only be the very basic version that'll be free and the 'Pro' version will cost, however I can't see Microsoft doing that as a lot of people will feel deceived after todays announcement. So I'm going with them hoping that people buy stuff from their store that over the years will be equal to or greater than the amount they'd spend on a Windows licence.

Don't forget, Microsoft will still be getting their licencing fee when people buy new machines (and enterprise licencing, etc.), it's just the upgrade that's free.

 

Actually the store angle makes much more sense than what I was saying.

 

Yep it does as the way I understand it the free upgrades also get the new stuff for free. M$ need to get legacy users on W10 fast in order to have a large user base. The way I see it now the only way that XP users will switch is when there hardware fails. New keys will not be free I think.

 

Well, if they want me to upgrade (even if it is free) I want some method to re-install in the future, either an ISO or a key or something.

And we still don't know what the end product will actually be, or if it will destroy OEM factory restore options, etc.. I was a little surprised at how little they talked about Windows 10 itself, and so much about Spartan, Office, X-Box, Hologram, etc.. I still feel in the dark about Windows 10 at it's core, there was really no talk about Windows actual functions, metro (or the app store), interface options, things like this.

Guess we will find out.

 

I'm pretty much in agreement that only when their hardware fails will XP users give up. And by that time, Windows will have changed so drastically that they'll be totally lost. Kinda like I was when that blasted ribbon came out. It took a lot of willpower to keep from chunking my computer into the dirt! I did learn, and I can use it to do what I need to do, but Office 2003 was way easier to use. *Shock

On one paw, I feel sorry that XP users won't get the upgrade free, but on the other paw, they've been given the same opportunities we had to upgrade. Having said that, I do realize that some folks really don't have the financial means to upgrade. Especially senior citizens. I know because I support them when they need help. Invariably I'm told they can't afford it.

 

Y'know, Trust, I think that's the whole point. The operating system is invisible and just works for those who want it like that. My daughter is a prime suspect, "Mom, I don't want to know about that; just fix it for me."

I'm with you, though, there are too many questions that don't have answers.

I have enough full versions of Windows 7 to put on all my machines and that's probably what I'll do so that my Windows 8.1 keys will be safe if Windows 10 turns out to be a disappointment. So far, I'm not thinking it will be, though.

 

These folks know what they're doing.

Offer the upgrade free: people think about it
they just got a Win8 machine
or
they just bought Win7 (XP users)

Business are conservative when it comes to upgrades.
let's say that 20% take advantage of the offer, and that's probably being generous.

The year length is interesting - they must have some analysis.
It might all be to overcome the stigma of Win8 - some people might take a wait and see approach or MS figured out that is the optimal purchasing period (not all people are early adopters)

That leaves them 80% of their market who will pay for the upgrade after the year offer expires.

Other revenue streams
Sell branded services: OneDrive cloud storage, Skype credits/plans,
Ad revenue: Bing (~96% of Google revenue is ad based)
Hardware: Surface, Phone, HoloLens ....
Store Revenue: % of app$

MS knows what is at stake and they're going all in.

 

And on top of that, Bill, Office for iPad and Office for Android are out there for free . . . once people on Android see how good Office is, they may get a subscription.

 

This question always seems to come up very often around Window beta/RTM releases for some weird reason or another *Confused

Why anyone would want to pay every month(s) or so just to use their machine is mind-boggling... "A fatal error has occurred. Please enter your Credit card to continue."

This didn't start with Windows 8 and dates back to pre-2000 and issues introduced by new Windows releases and/or Service Packs - It used to be standard policy for the majority of users and companies wait at minimum 12 months before even trying out those updates or newer systems as to allow time for any major bugs or other major issues to get sorted out - It would be more of an enticement to get some of those people or companies to jump on Win10 as early as possible without waiting (?)

 

This didn't start with Windows 8 and dates back to pre-2000 and issues introduced by new Windows releases and/or Service Packs - It used to be standard policy for the majority of users and companies wait at minimum 12 months before even trying out those updates or newer systems as to allow time for any major bugs or other major issues to get sorted out - It would be more of an enticement to get some of those people or companies to jump on Win10 as early as possible without waiting (?) It didn't even start with anything Windows or PC related. Banks duplicated data entry on paper. It took large corporations 6 months to sign off on a plan - not to implement the plan - just to get everyone having some authority to sign off on it. Getting them to actually implement the change - well you know....

One client was all set and I was on-site when things didn't work - we went over the plan and the client "realized" that they needed a minor system update. Of course they couldn't just apply the update... I went back a year later.

Maybe a year is enough time to entice some to move - the question they'll have to ask is how does the update benefit the company. Free is good, training costs more.

My experience with large organizations is that they buy new systems. Smaller organizations without much training consideration probably fit the upgrade mold better. That is a large percent of businesses, but it's also a segment that doesn't necessarily view technology as a priority.

No argument here, really. All I intended to say was "someone at Microsoft must had figured out the best threshold"
I probably should have just said that, then *Smile

Bill
.