Microsoft plans to continue selling copies of the Windows XP operating system through June 2008, a five month extension over its previously announced plan, a move that comes in the wake of feedback from PC makers who say demand continues to be strong for the aging OS.
At the launch of Windows Vista, the software giant had said that XP sales would continue only through January 2008, but customers, specifically those who use Windows in business environments, have not flocked to Vista as quickly as the company had initially hoped. The world's largest PC makers have continued to offer XP as the default OS on new computers for many buyers and continued problems with compatibility of existing software and peripherals has led many consumers to delay their transition from XP to Vista.
While analysts are calling the continued success for XP a sign that Microsoft has disappointed many with Vista, company representatives say it's simply not true -- from January to June 2007, Microsoft sold more than 60 million Windows Vista licenses, it's fast-selling OS ever.
"We were a little ambitious to think that we would need to make Windows XP available for only a year after the release of Windows Vista," Mike Nash, a Microsoft Corporate Vice President, told Reuters.
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