Windows 7 shipping early but may not revive PC market
Some computer manufacturers could be shipping Windows 7 as early as nine days before its official release date. But an Asian industry newspaper reports that industry sources are unconvinced the system will have a quick effect on PC sales.
The early shipping involves system builders, otherwise known as original equipment manufacturers. These are companies which build machines to order rather than mass-producing computers and then offering a more limited level of customization.
One system builder firm has noted Microsoft has given it permission to ship Windows 7 systems from Oct. 13. That’s particularly useful for such firms as the terms of their license allows them to physically install Windows on as many machines as they like, but only pay once they are ready to ship to a customer.
Microsoft has said this isn’t an intentional strategy to allow system builders to get a head start on major retailers. Instead it notes that the physical Windows discs won’t ship to system builders until Oct. 12 and that it estimates that it will take most firms until at least the official Oct. 22 release date to install the software and get the computers to customers.
While the possibility of an early release may drum up a few extra orders for system builders, it’s far from guaranteed that Windows 7 is going to provide an instant boost for the entire PC manufacturing industry.
Digitimes, a Taiwan based daily newspaper dedicated to the tech manufacturing business, says sources at major notebook producers say they don’t expect Windows 7 to make any major difference to sales until at least the second half of next year. Those predictions are based on the logic that business sales are more significant and that many major businesses only set purchasing budgets in the spring.
The sources even warn that there’s a risk of manufacturers winding up with excess stock if they overestimate demand.
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