Microsoft gives away 90,000 Windows Phone 7 handsets
Microsoft has confirmed it’s giving a Windows Phone 7 handset to every employee. It’s given away a phone to everyone attending its Professional Developers Conference this week.
The confirmation of the previously rumored staff freebie came in an interview by Network World with Microsoft exec Guy Gilbert.
It’s not yet clear if Microsoft will be footing the bill for service charges for employees as well as the handset costs. (The 1,000 delegates at the conference will definitely have to sort out their own service plans.) The leaked e-mail that first brought the giveaway to light mentioned that, “The process will vary based on your market, your carrier, and your launch date.” The phones will be going to all 89,000 employees, regardless of the country they work in.
It will also be interesting to see if the giveaway prompts a policy — either officially announced or merely understood — that staff will be expected to use the phones at work rather than a rival handset. It’s previously been rumored that staff at the main Redmond, Washington office know it’s best to keep iPhones out of the sight of senior executives.
The move certainly isn’t cheap: given that the pure components and manufacturing costs of an iPhone are around $179, it’s easy to imagine manufacturers of Windows Phone 7 devices wanting at least $200 from Microsoft, even for what is certainly a bulk order.
That’s a total bill of $17.8 million, assuming the company doesn’t pick up the tab for service charges. Then again, when you’ve just made $5.41 billion in three months, it doesn’t seem so much.
I don’t see this as being as much of a promotional tool as some commentators suggest: even if the employees do rave about their new phones, most friends and family are going to view them as something of a biased source.
More likely it’s simply Microsoft’s idea of the most effective way to give staffers a holiday season bonus. Though it would probably have been cheaper to give them all a left over Kin.
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October 31st, 2010
Heard of dogfooding?
Microsoft has just turned their entire staff into a focus group for Windows Phone.
It speaks volumes about their commitment to delivering the best user experience for the smart phone market.
November 9th, 2010
When the original Windows Smartphones came out – specifically the MPX200 – they paid for MANY of the devices. Everyone in MCS got one. And yes, they paid for the plans too.
This being a strategic platform for Microsoft int he future, it just makes sense (and also eliminates any reason for any Softie to carry an iPhone!)