The long-awaited operating system to replace Windows XP should reach customers as expected by Microsoft.
The company’s ability to deliver Windows Vista after five years of waiting by the market has been questioned in some circles. There would be little surprise if Microsoft chose to postpone the release again into 2007.
But the company has now stated publicly that the much-discussed Vista remains on track for release in the United States and abroad. This would deliver the operating system to volume license business customers in November 2006 and consumers in January 2007.
Ongoing battles with antitrust authorities in Europe and in South Korea also do not present a problem. Microsoft cited a “constructive dialogue” with both the European Commission and the Korea Fair Trade Commission in anticipating on-schedule product releases in both places.
“We are committed to adhering to local law in every region of the world,” said Steve Ballmer, chief executive officer of Microsoft.
Input from the EC and the KFTC has influenced changes in Vista during its development. Ballmer said Microsoft has been submitting information to “competition authorities around the world about Windows Vista as it was being developed.”
“We recognize that the European Commission does not give green lights’ for new products, and we have not asked for one,” Microsoft General Counsel Brad Smith said. “We appreciate the constructive dialogue we have had with the commission and the guidance the commission has provided.”
When Vista does arrive, it will have some differences in its licensing from Windows XP. TechWeb reported that a Vista license can be moved to another PC only one time. XP does not have that limitation.
There is also the Software Protection Platform, Microsoft’s anti-piracy technology, to consider. From time to time Vista will call back home to perform a validation check. Failing a check disables most of Vista’s functionality, and the SPP has come under fire for this.
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David Utter is a staff writer for Murdok covering technology and business.
