And Microsoft confuses us again….
via The hidden cost of product segmentation — UX Hero.
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Microsoft
The inevitable has happened… finally.
Microsoft and Yahoo have partnered on search – taking Google head on.
via Microsoft’s Press Release…
Yahoo! and Microsoft announced an agreement that will improve the Web search experience for users and advertisers, and deliver sustained innovation to the industry. In simple terms, Microsoft will now power Yahoo! search while Yahoo! will become the exclusive worldwide relationship sales force for both companies’ premium search advertisers.
Here are the details:
- Yahoo! will be using the Bing search engine on it’s sites
- Microsoft will integrate Yahoo search technology into its own platforms
- Yahoo will sell ads on both sites
- Both companies will share revenue from traffic on Yahoo! sites
Bing’s reach has just gone up exponentially… Is your website optimized for Bing?
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer on the deal…
Yahoo! CEO Carol Bartz on the deal…
Live Discussion
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To put this in context – Apple is releasing their new OS Snow Leopard for $29. There are no other versions – just the OS for $29. Okay.
Now you’d think Microsoft would have learned from the marketing debacle that was Vista. Here’s the pricing info for Windows 7, announced today.
These estimated retail prices for upgrade packaged retail product of Windows 7 in the U.S. are:
- Windows 7 Home Premium (Upgrade): $119.99
- Windows 7 Professional (Upgrade): $199.99
- Windows 7 Ultimate (Upgrade): $219.99
And the estimated retail prices for full packaged retail product of Windows 7 in the U.S. are:
- Windows 7 Home Premium (Full): $199.99
- Windows 7 Professional (Full): $299.99
- Windows 7 Ultimate (Full): $319.99
Confused yet? So am I.
I have a MacBook and a PC. I’ll definitely be upgrading to Snow Leopard. But there is no way I am $220 to upgrade my Vista Ultimate machine to Windows 7 Ultimate – if that’s even the right upgrade path. But if you want to – it will be available on October 22!
Oh Microsoft haven’t you figured out that less is more? Why so many choices? At least the case is easy to open.
Real Time Discussion (RSS Readers Click Through)
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Awhile ago I addressed the myriad of choices that is Microsoft Windows versioning and how they need to learn a lesson for the Windows 7 launch.
The same goes with pricing… Apple announced today the upgrade to Snow Leopard will be $29…
Microsoft – can you match that for a Windows 7 upgrade? Or will it be $300 for the Ultimate version?
In many cases it’s as expensive to buy a new PC to get a Windows upgrade… Don’t you see a problem with that?
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For the last several years I have been looking for the holy grail of media consumption. Two years ago I wrote this post asking for an a la carte tv service. I’ve changed my mind on how that model should work – but that’s a different post altogether. But since then we have come a long ways – but we’re not quite there.
Hulu has taken the concept of providing media to consumers when/how they want it to the next level by taking it mainstream – but it’s not quite there yet. Their latest offering – Hulu Desktop – is very cool and proves the market demand exists… But it’s hard to find a non-geek with a PC hooked up to their television.
South Park and PBS are pioneering commercial distribution of media on the web but the future is not media silos.
Netflix and Amazon are close to getting it right and their partnership with Roku and integration with XBOX are almost there.
But we’re not quite there yet. What’s going to take this to the next level? Boxee shows promise. But honestly, I think Microsoft has the best chance…
Why? 3 things – XBox, Partnerships, and market reach. Oh, and they’ve been planning it for ten years.
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