Exchange Rates Spell High Prices for Windows 7 In the EU 548
CWmike writes "European customers will pay up to twice as much for Windows 7 compared with US users, even though the new operating system will ship without a browser in Europe. Some of the money Microsoft stands to make on the European editions of Windows 7 comes from the weak dollar. Last week, for instance, the dollar fell against the euro the most in a month, hitting $1.41 per euro. For example, Windows 7 Professional, the key retail edition for businesses, will sport a price tag of 285 euros, or $400.60, and £189.99, or $313.84, at Saturday's exchange rate. In other words, EU customers will pay twice the $199.99 U.S. price; U.K. buyers will pay 57% more. And depending on your view on bundling IE, Europe's customers will be paying more for less, with Microsoft's decision to yank IE8 from Windows 7 in an effort to head off EU antitrust regulators, who may still force the company to take more drastic measures."
Fine (Score:5, Funny)
Really, fuck US products. I don't need your music, software, cars, or internet.
In fact, that includes Slas[NO CARRIER]
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I'm not leaving Slashdot, I'm not boycotting US products in general, and taking it as a person insult if I did is just stoopid.
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That's the only smart thing to do. Why pay exorbitant prices for a shoddy operating system? Switch to something stable, like Debian. Some of the finest cities in Europe are already doing so, as noted in another /. article yesterday.
Hell, I live in the US, and I don't want to pay for Windows!!
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One point about the price difference is in the U.S. Microsoft offers both the upgrade version, which is cheaper, and the more expensive retail version. Europe is just getting the retail version, due to the removing of IE 8 because of the European lawsuit. But Microsoft is having a half price preorder sale, which is 49 pounds for the full retail version of Home Premium in Britain. I just preordered for $49 for the upgrade version in the U.S. I'd rather have the full version for $75, but the offer in the
Re:Fine (Score:5, Funny)
Or are MS suggesting that it costs that much to spell words like "colour" and "flavour" correctly and swap the primary definition for "Hood" and "Bonnet" around?
Re:Fine (Score:5, Interesting)
I had the RC the day after release :) I'm very happy with the product, but not £189.99 happy. Especially not if the very same product is £60 - £70 cheaper in the US.
How does that even work? If the USD is low, shouldn't that make american products cheaper?
Re:Fine (Score:5, Insightful)
In IT and a few other industries they dont bother with complicated things like exchange rates so :
$199 == £199 == â199
the result of this is that we get really ripped off on some products.
Re:Fine (Score:5, Informative)
Photography stuff is even worse. It's not unknown to find a DSLR will be priced at:
$799 = £899 = â950
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What country uses A-with-a-hat-on pounds?
Re:Fine (Score:5, Funny)
What country uses A-with-a-hat-on pounds?
Those of us in the tiny mountainous principality of Asshatteryburg, you insensitive clod!
It was originally "Hapsburg," but you know what happens when stuff gets written down without a spellchecker over the years.
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Well, obviously it's far too difficult for /. to support the pound symbol properly. Or the euro symbol.
Or indeed any symbol not widely used in the US.
Can't rape the willing... (Score:5, Interesting)
...really, the only reason 'IT' companies get away with it is... because we let them. Adobe nearly stated as much. See:
http://www.amanwithapencil.com/adobe.html [amanwithapencil.com]
See also the 'spin' page for very common arguments (read: excuses) for why pricing in the EU (and other countries) is higher, along with debunking statements:
http://www.amanwithapencil.com/adobe_spin.html [amanwithapencil.com]
I do have to admit that Adobe has since then adjusted pricing a bit more favorably... .. all non-parallel because their store gets confused when you are trying to see pricing for products in 2 different tabs.) ...but it's still a pretty good chunk above the U.S. pricing.
I don't have current numbers, only from half a year ago; no good, and comparing their store prices takes a good 2 hours just to navigate, make sure you select the correct product (English language), etc.
Re:Can't rape the willing... (Score:5, Interesting)
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Yeah I was going to buy CS3 for my wife who has dreams of making money in web design. Then I found out the cost... *then* I found out the cost in the US and realized it would be far cheaper to fly to the US, buy it there and fly back. We dropped the idea..
Re:Can't rape the willing... (Score:4, Funny)
Also here in America French is not a language that is regularly spoken.
I second this. The French I hear spoken here is highly irregular.
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Re:Fine (Score:4, Insightful)
$1 is roughly INR 50
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$199 == [A^]£199 == [a^]199
I take it the "A circumflex" is a shorthand for the empty string, and "a circumflex" is a shorthand for the Euro sign?
I take it utf-8 is still broken on slashdot?
Re:Fine (Score:4, Interesting)
$199 == £199 == â199
the result of this is that we get really ripped off on some products.
Try living in Canada, where
$199 USD == $350 CAD, regardless of the exchange rate (even during the periods that the Canadian dollar was worth more than the US)
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Because it affects us?
Also, surely one could be an economics nerd.
Re:Fine (Score:5, Insightful)
How does that even work? If the USD is low, shouldn't that make american products cheaper?
The usual answer is "customers want a stable price for software, we don't bother tracking the exchange rate on a day by day basis." In the EU they have fixed prices in euros, pounds whatever.
A weak dollar means the nominal dollar price is higher. They could price lower but they are not in the business of selling at cost+n%, they are business of pricing at whatever the local market will bear. That doesn't change much with the exchange rate.
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Or are MS suggesting that it costs that much to spell words like "colour" and "flavour" correctly and swap the primary definition for "Hood" and "Bonnet" around? ;-)
Actually MS has officially said "screw you" when it comes to a British English version of Windows. So you don't even get that for your extra £££.
Re:Fine (Score:5, Informative)
It makes sense. They don't really lose anything as this is prior to you actually being able to buy it. Microsoft seem pretty confident that their new system is something to be proud of, so they get to show it off in the most ballsy way possible - by letting you actually have a copy and try it out for an entire year. The Vista criticism is now somewhat mitigated by people being able to get a copy of Windows 7 to install right now. Microsoft benefit from the "thousand eyes" testing principle of GNU/Linux. And when the time comes round that it is available to buy, you have an inducement in that its already installed and in use. There are also Advance Order deals available right now that let you buy it for half-price. Also, unlike the ridiculous number of different Vista versions there were, Windows 7 (ignoring server and mobile variants) comes in three flavours: Home, Professional and Ultimate which are easily differentiated by a short feature list of extras. Home Edition isn't the hamstrung version that it was with XP or Vista. It only lacks a couple of features that pros really would want, and Ultimate only adds things that really sound like the most exclusive features (e.g. the on and off-disk encryption utilities). So you aren't forced to buy some "deluxe" system just for basic features you'd expect.
I think Microsoft are being "generous" for very sound financial reasons. They reckon people will try this and actually want to buy it. I'm a Gentoo and Kubuntu user most of the time, but credit where its due.
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The encryption thing is bullshit. People aren't using their computers as typing machines any more. They're also using them as accounting machines and online shopping machines.
Which means that personal, financial information is getting written out to the storage medium. Whether accidentally or purposely saved, or unintentionally cached.
IOW, every machine needs to have some basic encryption functionality by default, just to mitigate the risk of thieves getting access to people's bank accounts when they st
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Im after downloading it for free and getting a legal key valid till 2010
My son did the same thing for his HP tablet which had Vista Home premium which he found annoying, however come the crunch in 2010 he will just get the latest crack. If Microsoft think he will pay for a legitimate version of Windows 7 after foisting Vista on him then they can live in hope.
Me, well I use Fedora but if I absolutely need any Microsoft product I have a corporate laptop. Of course I can run a virtual machine under Fedora which can sand box MS Windows and allows me if I wish to run any Microsoft
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Dodge is far from unknown in Europe. Just unpopular.
When the gas prices went up to 4 dollars for a gallon (0.70 Euros for a liter) I told some dude in California that I hadn't seen gas that cheap since 1982 in Europe.
Having said that, Dodge and most other American car companies make cars that guzzle gas, are too damn big and impractical for the streets of Amsterdam, Rome, Paris or Prague, have a complete inability to corner and generally are quite ugly.
It's not only Europe (Score:5, Informative)
In Australia, the price of Windows 7 is AU$200. The US equivalent is AU$60.
You do the math.
Yes, this is a big "f*** you" from Redmond.
AC
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Oh well, we'll just leech it from http://thepiratebay.org/ [thepiratebay.org]
Re:It's not only Europe (Score:5, Informative)
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Pirating Windows just helps Microsoft
I think the best thing that could happen to Linux and other alternative operating systems would be if Microsoft made it absolutely impossible to pirate Windows. It would be very interesting to see the result of that.
(I'd like to see the same thing happen with Photoshop too. I have a feeling Gimp development would get quite a boost as a result. So many people use Photoshop over alternatives just because it's so easy to get a pirate copy.)
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It would be nice if the EU, instead of bitching about MS including Internet Explorer in their OS (leading to the ludicrous situation where they omit to include ANY browser with the win7 E version) did something about this blatant price gouging of european consumers.
If this isn't monopoly abuse, I don't know what is.
Re:It's not only Europe (Score:4, Insightful)
It's 2009 on the Internet. Nobody here is bothered by the use of the word "fuck". But we object to your incorrect use of "could really give a fuck". It's "couldn't really give a fuck". Honestly. What is it with Americans and their blindspot for this phrase? How much sense does it make to say "I could care less" in a dismissive way? You're saying that you do care with this phrase when what you're trying to say is that you don't: i.e. that you couldn't care less. HTH :)
OEM Prices Please (Score:5, Interesting)
I've never ever bought a retail copy of windows. I've only met one person who actually has. Stop wasting our time and quote the OEM prices, because thats what everyone buys.
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I also bought a retail copy, because I won a Mac and can't use an OEM version. I guess many more people are in my situation.
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Yeah, I misspelt. I OWN a Mac, I didn't win it.
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except for the 50% of people who don 't qualify for the OEM/ education versions.
If your OEM and your installing it on non authorized machines then you will be sued by MSFT it is just a matter of time until they find out.
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Non-authorized machines? What is that, exactly? If I sell a machine, the customer wants Windows, I install it from an OEM disk that I legally paid for, what's the deal?
Or, are you referring to those people who use the same OEM disk to install on dozens or hundreds of machines?
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except for the 50% of people who don 't qualify for the OEM/ education versions.
"Qualify"? You just go to a shop, buy an OEM/SBE Version and install it. Perfectly legal - in some (most?) EU-countries...
Huh? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Huh? (Score:4, Insightful)
You clearly don't understand Globalisation.
Re:Huh? (Score:5, Insightful)
Indeed. Globalisation makes source material cheaper for companies and end-products more expensive for consumers while the same consumers at the same time have to be more accepting of corporate bullshit, lesser quality and have to be flexible when it comes to their jobs.
Meanwhile, consumers are NOT allowed to profit from globalisation themselves. That would defeat the whole idea of carving more money out of your customers.
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Indeed. Globalisation makes source material cheaper for companies and end-products more expensive for consumers
You are very wrong. [american.com]
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Intel and Microsoft and Google are all US companies. I am in the UK. I use all 3 companies products and I also use the world wide web, which an English guy helped design based on underlying code that the US developed. As a Uk developer I sell to everywhere, including Nigeria and China.
What alternative to globalisation do you suggest? That Spanish people have to rely on Spanish made and designed chips and the Spanish version of TCP/IP?
Globalisation, if coupled with a lack of regulation and transparency can l
Re:Huh? (Score:4, Funny)
For an example, take a capital letter L, invert it, and place it next to a lower-case o. The customers is the L. For added realism, put a capital F behind the inverted L and keep adding and deleting a single space between them.
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I see...
Re:Huh? (Score:4, Interesting)
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Only if you could buy at the dollar price. When pricing products for different markets, companies usually pick some arbitrary exchange rate, often USD == EUR. This means you end up with something like $100 for one and â100 for another. A few years ago, this was close to being accurate, so the dollar and Euro prices were similar. If the Euro becomes stronger by, say 50%, against the dollar, then the prices are still $100 and â100, but the Euro price is now equivalent to $150. If you buy the US
Not surprising (Score:2, Informative)
For some reason, pretty much everything in technology is assumed 1€=1$... at least ever since the dollar is weak. Poor Britons have it worse, because they often get 1£=1$
Try buying Apple hardware here... That hurts.... Smallest MacBook? 945€ In the US 999$ (which translates to 712€ at current rates)
Re:Not surprising (Score:5, Informative)
Not forgetting that the EU price includes sales tax, while the US one doesn't, lets add for example belgium's 21% sales tax -- that makes the US price actually â861. Still not a great deal in the EU, but not as royally shafted as you made it look.
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[citation needed]
I frankly seriously doubt that. In that case, an Apple computer in New York should be much more expensive than an Apple computer in rural Ohio.
Also, the price of an Apple computer in Italy should be different than an Apple computer in Germany (Those countries definitely have different cost of living). This is not the case... Both are 945€
But it never works the other direction (Score:5, Insightful)
Interestingly enough, when the dollar was strong against the Euro (e.g. 1 Euro = 0.8 US$), we did not have the reverse effect. At that time in Europe, Prices of goods from the US were just increased.
Been there, done that (Score:3, Informative)
News for nerds... (Score:5, Funny)
People actually pay for Windows?
Wow.
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No, real people don't!
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This article is an unfair characterization of what's happening. It's not that Europeans will pay twice as much as Americans (well it is, but that's not the point). It is that in America, we're having a huge sale, everything must go, and everything is half off (for our rich European friends).
And if any of you Europeans think this is unfair, do not despair, we can certainly make it up to you. Now that George W. Bush is out of office, I'm pretty sure that he would be willing to go to Old Europe on a consultati
Well, whaddaya know (Score:3, Interesting)
Microsoft actually wants me to leech this off of BitTorrent. There's no other explanation.
Well, wouldn't want to disappoint them, no? I was pretty surprised at how little I hate Windows 7. I was actually thinking of buying. But it seems my perfect track record of never paying for Windows will remain perfect.
I mean, think about it. You can get new machines for what? 500 Euros? Do they really think that a, almost, 60% bonus for the OS will fly? I realize that OEM deals will look decidedly different, but come on...
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I'm sure the magic of monopolistic bundling with hardware will solve this problem. After all, it's why Vista sold. Seriously, why does the EU care about browsers, the tying to hardware crap is so much worse from an anti-competitive standpoint.
Re:Well, whaddaya know (Score:5, Insightful)
Microsoft actually wants me to leech this off of BitTorrent. There's no other explanation.
I am confused. Where does this feeling of entitlement to someones product come from? If you don't agree with their pricing for Windows 7, you are free to use the older version if you have it or switch to any of the many different free operating systems available.
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There is no feeling of entitlement. It's the feeling of "I want the product, but MS is pricing me out of my ability to buy it"
The other thing is, MS really needs to compete against piracy. People can't justify huge expenditure to themselves if they know can get the exact same thing elsewhere for £0 (or â0 etc.) - irrespective of the legality of it. This problem is big for software too, because the high pricing is really just an intangible barrier. There's no real reason the physical goods/s
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Whoa, whoa, whoa, XP? Y'all from the future?
Give me a compelling reason to move from (DRM free) 2K Pro, and we can talk.
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Clueless, huh? Windows NT can connect to the intertubes at the same speed as Win7, or any other operating system. Fire up a virtual machine and test it out, huh?
Not a problem really (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Not a problem really (Score:5, Insightful)
A neighbour asked if I would build him a grunty machine to do video production and as a general use computer. He told me he had heard Vista was a nightmare, he needed a machine now, and he wasn't sure what he should do.
I told him that XP probably wouldn't 'get the juice' out of the current generation of processors properly and that windows 7 won't be out for a while and would he like to give Ubuntu (studio) a go. I told him he would at least save on the price of a copy of windows and he might be able to buy some other gear. As suggested by a slashdotter here I let him know that there would probably be problems as any computer has but we can work through any issues that arise, so far all has gone well.
I was pleasantly surprised by the latest Ubuntu Studio Jaunty release. His video camera and mobile phone worked with it immediately, the webcam on the ASUS monitor works well with skype. We setup Amarok for his music collection. I showed him how to install more software, told him there were other video programs aside for Kino but to give this one a go, now he is using it to make dvd's of his fishing trips.
My neighbour is a fireman, and is quite humble about his proficiency as a computer user. I told him the machine is NOT windows or a mac but he is using the machine with confidence blowing away any pre-conceptions in my mind of Linux usability. He is about as far away from being a Linux geek as anyone can be and keeping the purchase price of windows, to him, meant he could afford a kick ass logitech speaker setup and most of the purchase price of a new HP printer. When I asked him a few days ago about how the new computer was going his exact word were:
"I'm lovin' it"
Linux may not be ready for the desktop, but I think it's fast becoming the new value proposition.
Linux unusable in the mind of MS & Apple fanbo (Score:5, Interesting)
The day I installed Ubuntu on my mum's computer (Hello Mum!) and then she proceeded to send emails, download a few images and do some searches, I knew Linux had reached maturity.
Linux may lack the marketing that both Microsoft and Apple have, but the word is spreading.
For example here in hte UK, for the first time I saw a Linux magazine in a local supermarket news stand (Sainsburys). Yeah, the same kind of place that sells TV magazines, PCWorld, MacWorld and all what would be considered broad hobbyist and popular interest publications. That is telling me that people actually risking money in the publishing business have identified a need, irrespective of Open Source politics.
At the same time a major local retailer (WH Smith) is now regularly stacking between 2 and 3 Linux magazines (Linux Format, Linux Magazine and/or Linux User) against normally only one OSX magazine.
So people actually doing business have detected that there is a swell of interest in Linux, that says more than anything Netcraft would report.
So don't buy it.... (Score:5, Insightful)
There are other options these days.
Yeesh.. (Score:2)
So you buy Windows 7 ...
or.......
You could use Linux and spend the money you save on a a netbook.
Standard conversion rate is USD=Euro (Score:3, Insightful)
Usually the conversion rate is 1 USD is 1 Euro. For example, look at the prices for video games. A $60 game consts 60 euros. Even Valve applies this conversion rate in Steam, and Apple for their store. It's extra income for the company. And most customers don't mind that much.
Of course there are some companies that want even more, for example the Rockband game in europe was 250% the price compared to the US retail price. EA said this was due to higher shipping rates (it's not like the other plasic toys from China cost that much).
But I guess that Microsoft went the same way (or as a retaliation to the fines they got), because they don't even do the $1=1 euro conversion. I bet they Blame it on localization. I'm sure that costs 85 euro per copy.
There's a fair chance this will hurt MS, because their TCO just went up a lot.
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The same for Linux (Score:5, Funny)
It costs twice as much in Europe as in the USA.
Re:The same for Linux (Score:4, Funny)
Not if you happen to be Finnish. In that case you need to write it yourself.
Hey Guys... (Score:5, Insightful)
If you don't like the price, then don't buy it.
Don't pirate it either. Use something else.
But don't pirate it. If you do, you're doing what Microsoft considers "the next best thing" - ignoring alternatives. Alternatives scare the piss out of Microsoft. Back when Microsoft didn't have a stranglehold on the market, people were happy enough pirating 95 and 98, while ignoring things like BeOS and OS/2 (both competitively priced and more powerful) and it suited Microsoft and Bill Gates just fine.^1 Both OS/2 and BeOS are gone from the market because of piracy's market distortion.
Hopefully Windows 7 will come with an even more strict WGA and OGA to extract more pain from consumers. Maybe they'll wake up.
--
BMO
1. Of course, Microsoft executives prefer that people buy, but theft can build market share more quickly, as company co-founder and Chairman Bill Gates acknowledged in an unguarded moment in 1998.
"Although about 3 million computers get sold every year in China, people don't pay for the software. Someday they will, though," Gates told an audience at the University of Washington. "And as long as they're going to steal it, we want them to steal ours. They'll get sort of addicted, and then we'll somehow figure out how to collect sometime in the next decade." http://articles.latimes.com/2006/apr/09/business/fi-micropiracy9 [latimes.com]
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Hopefully Windows 7 will come with an even more strict WGA and OGA to extract more pain from consumers. Maybe they'll wake up
Microsoft better get Windows 7 right.
Getting WGA and a strict OGA will hurt Microsoft and not customers.
Microsoft is allowing installable ISO editions of its Windows 7. This is really Great!
I could buy online, download it online and install it.
BeOS failed because it did not coexist with anybody else.
OS/2 is still running ATMs. IBM pulled it from Retail because it realized that its strong point is mainframe.
Both of them did not go under because of piracy.
Get your facts right.
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Both of them did not go under because of piracy.
That's not what he's saying. The grandparent's point is that it was difficult for BeOS and OS/2 to compete with pirated Windows. I ran BeOS 5 for a while, and it was a nice system. It was also cheaper than Windows. It was not, however, cheaper than pirated Windows, and the advantage of software compatibility you got from pirated Windows was better value for money than BeOS.
Why the UK/EU price difference? (Score:5, Interesting)
Any customer in the EU is free to purchase from UK retailers.
If Microsoft tries to prevent this they could be fined by the comission. (Happend before to VW and others.)
Funny you would say that. (Score:4, Interesting)
I am Spanish speaker, I have always prefered English localizations.
The reason is simple: one has to learn all the English lingo anyway, otherwise people like you and me would have to learn each other's language (Das passt nicht! )
I always felt at a disadvantage until I was able to use English in a regular manner.
What has the US price to to with the EU price? (Score:2)
If the euro price has already been established as ân*, the USD can fall to 5 bucks a euro if it wants; it doesn't make it any more expensive to buy in Europe except in people's imagination. :shrug:
Americans are still paying the same price; Europeans are still paying the same price. The exchange rate goes down and Microsoft makes a windfall. Lucky Microsoft.
*NOTE: "â" is slashdot's lame interpretation of the euro symbol.
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But if the price according to the exchange rates at release differs %100, I believe it's a scam.
"Even though"? (Score:2)
European customers will pay up to twice as much for Windows 7 compared with US users, even though the new operating system will ship without a browser in Europe.
No IE? Surely you mean "because"? :)
Correction: "... will be ASKED to pay ..." (Score:2)
If Microsoft strat gouging customers in various parts of the world, they really shouldn't be surprised if one of two^H^H^Hthree things happen:
People don't buy their new products - and make do with older versions
People find alternatives that are cheaper
People obtain the product from unauthorised sources - i.e. piracy
Now, operating systems development is basically a sunk cost. You pay for all the work (well, apart from t
Why not buy the US edition? (Score:2)
Exchange Rates? (Score:3, Funny)
Well, if Exchange rates are the reason for the high price, why don't people purchase the thing without Exchange? It was a silly program anyway.
Nothing new to see here (Score:3, Informative)
Just business as usual, screwing as much profit out of the consumer as possible.
Guys am I the only one to see this? (Score:5, Insightful)
How do you think they'll make pay the EU for the fines? By making windows more expensive!
Occam's razor does apply here.
Easy peasy.
Cheers,
Isn't this backwards? (Score:3, Insightful)
The US dollar is cheap, and getting cheaper. Therefor, Windows over in Europe ought to be cheaper than it would have been, not more expensive.
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The US$ IS weak. Didn't you read the article? It's the whole point of it. The Euro price has NO RELATION WHATSOEVER to the US$ price. The weaker the US$ gets, the more we pay relative to US customers.
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Um, we actually took M$'s money, now we've elected a PirateParty member into the European Parliament. The way it looks, Balmer & co. are the ones bent over and awaiting our second coming :D
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I hope there will be more to come. When more than half of our delegates are local PP members, Balmer will more likely start to reconsider his crap.
Re:Thats what you get for (Score:5, Insightful)
I think you might have that a bit backwards. If .eu says that Microsoft isn't playing by their rules, and the prices go all askew, competitors will eat MS's market in that region. There's already been many stories about various European governmental entities using various Linux distros as a Windows replacement. It'd be great to have alternatives to Windows become the standard operating platform across an entire 1st world country.
However, at this stage piracy will still keep Windows in the dominant user position.
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You think the US can hold MS afloat by itself?
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Uhhhmm - I need some perspective. You are European, or American? Or, possibly standing on the outside looking in?
Windows is simply unnecessary. I only run it in virtual machines, mostly for the fun of it, and to test stuff. I don't "need" it. It's trash, considering that it's the only OS to be consistently eaten up by virus, worms, trojans, etc.
Yeah, before you jump on that, I know that every operating system has it's bugs. Bug, Windows IS A BUG!!
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"pissing off a big corporation.. Europe, get ready to pay back the massive fines microsoft was forced to pay by European legislators. Bend over and take it."
An interesting post, however it has one slight flaw...You appear to be suggesting that the reason for the high price is the recent fine that was imposed on M$. It isn't. M$ has always ignored actual currency exchange rates and fixed its prices at a rate that is most favourable to itself. This is merely business as usual for M$.
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But what about customs fees? They usually exceed VAT a lot, due to protectionism. And will a US copy of Windows activate from a European IP address / European phone call?
Actually, the higher price is probably also due to I18N translation costs, though that is certainly not the only reason. The main reason is IMHO simply higher purchasing power in the EU, compa
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Actually, the higher price is probably also due to I18N translation costs, though that is certainly not the only reason.
Bollocks is it.
The only change they make for the UK is the date format and default currency symbol. Hell, even when you tell Windows that you're in the UK it still defaults to a US timezone and keyboard.
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The EU as an entity has a yearly budget of around 140 billion Euros (~$200 billion) and that's not counting any of the individual states. I hardly think that a couple of hundred million from Microsoft is going to make such a huge impact financially that the EU is picking on them as a money-making exercise.
Re:Biggest Shock Of All (Score:4, Informative)
Windows pricing is exactly opposite as you describe, so you just reinforced the original posters point.