Does Microsoft Need to Ship Windows 7 in 2009?

Microsoft officially says it will ship the Windows 7 operating system within three years of the January 2007 consumer release of Windows Vista. But speculation abounds that the software giant is gunning to ship halfway through 2009 to be on machines for the back-to-school and holiday seasons.

Microsoft has hinted, whether intentionally or by accident, at a 2009 Windows 7 release by saying on its WinHEC website that, "WinHEC [2008] is the only chance for you to engage with the team at this level-there is not another WinHEC planned before Windows 7 is released." This is eyebrow-raising given that the next WinHEC is scheduled for early May 2009.

Adding to the bits of evidence that Windows 7 will ship early is a slip of the tongue from Jerry Shen, CEO of Windows OEM Asus, who said in a recent interview: "In the second half of next year we will put Windows 7 on Eee PCs."

No matter when Windows 7 actually ships, industry analysts agree that the marketing and release of 7 needs to go off without a hitch to avoid the problems encountered during the tumultuous release of Windows Vista.

Gartner: The Earlier the Better

Gartner Research has predicted that Microsoft will ship Windows 7 in time for the 2009 holiday season, which would require shipment to take place around August 2009.

"It's much better for a new version of Windows to ship before the holidays than after," says Michael Silver, a vice president and research director at Gartner. "After the holidays there are all sorts of problems with advertising the new release to consumers because ads can't start before the holiday because they might suppress PC sales."

Sign up for ITworld's Daily newsletter
Follow ITworld on Twitter @IT_world

• Email
• Print
• Share
  • Slashdot
  • Digg
  • Stumble
  • Reddit
  • Newsvine