OzHub, the Macquarie Telecom-led cloud computing alliance, has come down firmly on the side of Optus over the copyright controversy surrounding Optus TV Now, warning that any moves to change the law "risk branding Australia a global luddite state."
What the market knew was going to happen months ago was made official by Microsoft yesterday. PC buyers from October 26 will be able to upgrade to Vista for either a discount or for free, depending on the operating system version and the PC vendor.
The plan, which is designed to keep PC sales ticking over during the
period between now and March 2007, will cover preloaded copies of
Windows XP on OEM computers from HP, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba, Fujitsu,
and many other large and lesser known brands. Microsoft, which is
funding the upgrade coupons plan, has offered a similar plan for Office
2003 purchasers who wish to upgrade to an equivalent version of Office
2007.
The only caveats for Windows XP and Office 2003 purchasers is that they
must pay Microsoft's shipping expenses for the new software and they
must upgrade by March 31, 2007.
Aside from shipping expenses, as a rule of thumb, the coupons will
enable purchasers of high end Windows XP products, such as XP Media
Center or XP Professional to upgrade to their Vista equivalents, Vista
Home Premium and Vista Business, for free. However, lower end products
such as XP Home will only enable purchasers to get a 50% discount if
they want to upgrade to the low end Vista Home products.
Rutland Smith, general manager of retail chain Harvey Norman’s
Computers and Communications group, said XP Home buyers would be able
to upgrade to Vista Home Basic for AUD$99, while high end XP upgrades
to Vista will be free, The plan will apply across the store's entire
range of PC brands.
"We expect this to be very good for sales over Christmas as users will
be able to purchase their PCs with confidence," Mr Smith said.
"For customers it means that they can now buy PCs and notebooks with
the assurance that their technology investment is protected because
Microsoft and its partners will be offering discounted upgrades to
Windows Vista and Office 2007 when the products ship" said a spokesman
for Microsoft. "The exact details vary between OEM partners, who will
set up their own arrangements with their customers, but the bottom line
is that now is a great time to buy a new Windows Vista-capable system,
even though it may be running Windows XP and Office 2003
initially."
David Frost
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