Microsoft: 40 million Windows 8 licences sold so far, 85% launch the desktop on day one

[Jos]

Microsoft has sold 40 million Windows 8 licenses after the operating system's first month of retail availability. Tami Reller, corporate vice president for Windows and Windows Live, revealed the number at a recent investor conference held by Credit Suisse but stopped short of mentioning how many of those came from new PC sales and how many came from end users actually buying upgrades.

The 40 million figure is about in line with Windows 7's first month sales. But even if Windows 8 is just slightly outpacing its predecessor's launch that isn't necessarily bad considering the different market dynamics. Windows 7 was an iterative release met with considerable demand from day one as consumers, business users, and even OEMs sought to skip the much-maligned Vista. Windows 8 on the other hand introduces a few radical changes for the platform to a market that is generally happy with the traditional desktop experience. The PC market hasn't exactly seen tremendous growth in the last few years either, but Microsoft is hoping to counter that by getting Windows 8 into tablets as well.

The company claims Windows 8 is outpacing Windows 7 in terms of upgrades, which is probably a better metric to gauge consumer reception. However, once again there are some key differences to keep in mind, such as the fact that Windows 8 upgrades are substantially cheaper than Windows 7 upgrades were. In any case, no solid numbers were given, though last month CEO Steve Ballmer told an audience of developers at the Build 2012 conference that they had sold 4 million upgrades in four days.

A few other interesting tidbits were shared during the conference. According to Reller, the number of apps in the Windows Store "doubled" since launch (for reference, it was at around 120,000 by the end of October), and a number of apps have already crossed the $25,000 revenue mark.

She also said that 85% fire up the traditional dektop on the first day, while 90% use the Charms feature, and the average user adds 19 tiles to the Windows 8 start screen in the first three weeks. This pattern of usage is supposedly “as it is intended to be” and users are getting familiar with Metro at decent pace.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/50930-microsoft-40-million-windows-8-licences-sold-so-far-85-launch-the-desktop-on-day-one.html

 

[Seventh Reign]

Of course they did .... and 35 million of those licenses are still sitting on shelves at Best Buy, Staples, Office Max, Walmart etc. A nice try from the masters of skewing numbers, but we've figured out their game.

 

[psycros]

Of course they did .... and 35 million of those licenses are still sitting on shelves at Best Buy, Staples, Office Max, Walmart etc. A nice try from the masters of skewing numbers, but we've figured out their game.

Not all are on the shelves. I'd say about half of them are on new PCs that nobody is buying (unless they can get a Windows 7 upgrade, that is). Also, its clear from their carefully massaged PR that Windows 8 is reporting most of your activity to Microsoft. Just another reason to avoid it completely.

 

[misor]

39,999,998 are still in the shelves because I bought two windows 8 pro x64 from microsoft store.
/s or

microsoft needs to provide details:
1. how many bought the 39.99$ windows 8 pro upgrade from microsoft store?
2. how many bought the 14.99$ windows 8 pro upgrade offer?
3. how many bought the system builder kit / full retail copies?
4. how many users are using pirated copies of windows 8.

 

[Guest]

Don't know about you, but I got a W7 licence with a new laptop some time ago, I wish I could get it without (and pay a bit less on it) cause I really like Linux, it's free and there are some great open source apps I suppose that was +1 for W7, but not because I really needed it (and wanted it) XD

 

[hrmmmmm]

Of course they did .... and 35 million of those licenses are still sitting on shelves at Best Buy, Staples, Office Max, Walmart etc. A nice try from the masters of skewing numbers, but we've figured out their game.

Not all are on the shelves. I'd say about half of them are on new PCs that nobody is buying (unless they can get a Windows 7 upgrade, that is). Also, its clear from their carefully massaged PR that Windows 8 is reporting most of your activity to Microsoft. Just another reason to avoid it completely.

^^^^^^ must be mac fanboys to the max! anyways windows 8 will sell good no matter how much you hate on them. I for one have windows 8 and couldn't be happier, very easy to use if you have half a brain. windows 8 reporting on your activity? like APPLE does GOOGLE does FACEBOOK does! everyone has their choice of OS! you probably will job back to PCs soon since 90% of apple fan base is just pure hipsters! APPLE is starting to decline since Steve passed away. APPLE is going to the dumps like when Steve left the company before! Iproducts will soon be a thing of the pass. APPLE has no clue what they are doing right now. They are starting to fire everybody. LOL

 

[Guest]

The key information is $25000 for app developers. Right now they are not making money on Android and better Money on IOS. I have to admit IOS is a proven platform developers make money from. If Windows 8 can prove to be profitable for software makers, it will succeed over android on tablet if it has not already. Android on phone is doing a good job, but on tablet it has failed. I would like a 2nd alternative to Apple IPAD. This may be it.

 

[Archean]

It is amusing to see how so called 'enthusiasts' beating the hell out of Win8 for one feature I.e. UI, which is pretty damn easy to sidestep / avoid anyway and ignoring the rest of the OS which is a pretty solid upgrade in general.

 

[Guest]

I'm either in the monority or silent majority when I say that I really like Windows 8. I've purchased several upgrades and really enjoy the power and flexibility the OS offers so far. It's been especially good for my younger kids who can easily navigate the new Start screen and pick their games out. Once people get used to the changes, I think they will like it as well.

 

[Jack Buaer]

Of course they did .... and 35 million of those licenses are still sitting on shelves at Best Buy, Staples, Office Max, Walmart etc. A nice try from the masters of skewing numbers, but we've figured out their game.

Of course they did .... and 35 million of those licenses are still sitting on shelves at Best Buy, Staples, Office Max, Walmart etc. A nice try from the masters of skewing numbers, but we've figured out their game.

Not all are on the shelves. I'd say about half of them are on new PCs that nobody is buying (unless they can get a Windows 7 upgrade, that is). Also, its clear from their carefully massaged PR that Windows 8 is reporting most of your activity to Microsoft. Just another reason to avoid it completely.

39,999,998 are still in the shelves because I bought two windows 8 pro x64 from microsoft store.
/s or

microsoft needs to provide details:
1. how many bought the 39.99$ windows 8 pro upgrade from microsoft store?
2. how many bought the 14.99$ windows 8 pro upgrade offer?
3. how many bought the system builder kit / full retail copies?
4. how many users are using pirated copies of windows 8.

Don't know about you, but I got a W7 licence with a new laptop some time ago, I wish I could get it without (and pay a bit less on it) cause I really like Linux, it's free and there are some great open source apps I suppose that was +1 for W7, but not because I really needed it (and wanted it) XD

Of course they did .... and 35 million of those licenses are still sitting on shelves at Best Buy, Staples, Office Max, Walmart etc. A nice try from the masters of skewing numbers, but we've figured out their game.

Not all are on the shelves. I'd say about half of them are on new PCs that nobody is buying (unless they can get a Windows 7 upgrade, that is). Also, its clear from their carefully massaged PR that Windows 8 is reporting most of your activity to Microsoft. Just another reason to avoid it completely.

^^^^^^ must be mac fanboys to the max! anyways windows 8 will sell good no matter how much you hate on them. I for one have windows 8 and couldn't be happier, very easy to use if you have half a brain. windows 8 reporting on your activity? like APPLE does GOOGLE does FACEBOOK does! everyone has their choice of OS! you probably will job back to PCs soon since 90% of apple fan base is just pure hipsters! APPLE is starting to decline since Steve passed away. APPLE is going to the dumps like when Steve left the company before! Iproducts will soon be a thing of the pass. APPLE has no clue what they are doing right now. They are starting to fire everybody. LOL

He is correct Windows 8 calls home on everything you do, see the market place is changing and smart companies are now doing what the CIA has done for year profiling and user habit data collection. Windows 8 is not secure you can hack the OS in 5 minutes and have full administrative access. Windows 7 is still better than windows 8. Why do you think Microsoft has created the flash approve list for the Metro UI soon you will have to pay to be on the list.

Only sheep with use the windows 8 OS. Wake up!!

 

[jonathanodom]

^^^^^^ must be mac fanboys to the max! anyways windows 8 will sell good no matter how much you hate on them. I for one have windows 8 and couldn't be happier, very easy to use if you have half a brain. windows 8 reporting on your activity? like APPLE does GOOGLE does FACEBOOK does! everyone has their choice of OS! you probably will job back to PCs soon since 90% of apple fan base is just pure hipsters! APPLE is starting to decline since Steve passed away. APPLE is going to the dumps like when Steve left the company before! Iproducts will soon be a thing of the pass. APPLE has no clue what they are doing right now. They are starting to fire everybody. LOL[/quote]

The key information is $25000 for app developers. Right now they are not making money on Android and better Money on IOS. I have to admit IOS is a proven platform developers make money from. If Windows 8 can prove to be profitable for software makers, it will succeed over android on tablet if it has not already. Android on phone is doing a good job, but on tablet it has failed. I would like a 2nd alternative to Apple IPAD. This may be it.

It is amusing to see how so called 'enthusiasts' beating the hell out of Win8 for one feature I.e. UI, which is pretty damn easy to sidestep / avoid anyway and ignoring the rest of the OS which is a pretty solid upgrade in general.

Of course they did .... and 35 million of those licenses are still sitting on shelves at Best Buy, Staples, Office Max, Walmart etc. A nice try from the masters of skewing numbers, but we've figured out their game.

Not all are on the shelves. I'd say about half of them are on new PCs that nobody is buying (unless they can get a Windows 7 upgrade, that is). Also, its clear from their carefully massaged PR that Windows 8 is reporting most of your activity to Microsoft. Just another reason to avoid it completely.

^^^^^^ must be mac fanboys to the max! anyways windows 8 will sell good no matter how much you hate on them. I for one have windows 8 and couldn't be happier, very easy to use if you have half a brain. windows 8 reporting on your activity? like APPLE does GOOGLE does FACEBOOK does! everyone has their choice of OS! you probably will job back to PCs soon since 90% of apple fan base is just pure hipsters! APPLE is starting to decline since Steve passed away. APPLE is going to the dumps like when Steve left the company before! Iproducts will soon be a thing of the pass. APPLE has no clue what they are doing right now. They are starting to fire everybody. LOL

You are too stupid to own a computer. Please get an etch a sketch and doodle all day.

 

[Guest]

Yea..and how many have downgraded after buying that Windows 8 new Laptop or Desktop.

I did 3.

Marketing Hype it seems.

 

[Guest]

Well upgrading from Win7 Home Premium to Win8 Professional from US$40 was a good deal as I missed some of the 'Professional' features. The new desktop works better with Start8 or Classic Shell than with the Metro style start screen.

I wonder about the 10% (that's apparently 4 million people) who never found or used the Charms bar. How do they shut down or change their settings?

What makes me concerned in the article is the fact that somehow Microsoft knows how many Icons I have on my start screen, how many times I use the Charms bar and probably many other things about how I use my computer. I don't remember giving them permission! Combined with the strong push for using a personally identifiable Windows Live account for login, that seems like another erosion of privacy.

 

[Archean]

@Guest#14
People are averse to change, fear of having to learn something new perhaps or whatever may be reasons behind that. One of the beauties of windows has been a user (at least the so called 'enthusiasts' who happen to know a lot) can do whatever they want to do with it, hence, the issue of UI is really a non starter for me. And after reading countless forum threads, the only major issue with this bunch is UI ignoring rest of the improvements new OS brings.

Now on the privacy side, I haven't heard anyone complaint about Google retaining our search phrases (with our IP) for 18 months?

Also have any one ever bothered to notice why almost every app in the Google playstore want to read/access stuff it has no business to do with?

So expecting 'privacy preservation' from a corporation is really living in the fools paradise, but that is just my opinion.

 

[Guest]

Breaking News: 86 million Windows 8 licences sold so far, 98% launch the desktop on day two

 

[Chazz]

39,999,998 are still in the shelves because I bought two windows 8 pro x64 from microsoft store.
/s or

microsoft needs to provide details:
1. how many bought the 39.99$ windows 8 pro upgrade from microsoft store?
2. how many bought the 14.99$ windows 8 pro upgrade offer?
3. how many bought the system builder kit / full retail copies?
4. how many users are using pirated copies of windows 8.

Why does this even matter?

 

[wiyosaya]

Of course they did .... and 35 million of those licenses are still sitting on shelves at Best Buy, Staples, Office Max, Walmart etc. A nice try from the masters of skewing numbers, but we've figured out their game.

Not all are on the shelves. I'd say about half of them are on new PCs that nobody is buying (unless they can get a Windows 7 upgrade, that is). Also, its clear from their carefully massaged PR that Windows 8 is reporting most of your activity to Microsoft. Just another reason to avoid it completely.

^^^^^^ must be mac fanboys to the max! anyways windows 8 will sell good no matter how much you hate on them. I for one have windows 8 and couldn't be happier, very easy to use if you have half a brain. windows 8 reporting on your activity? like APPLE does GOOGLE does FACEBOOK does! everyone has their choice of OS! you probably will job back to PCs soon since 90% of apple fan base is just pure hipsters! APPLE is starting to decline since Steve passed away. APPLE is going to the dumps like when Steve left the company before! Iproducts will soon be a thing of the pass. APPLE has no clue what they are doing right now. They are starting to fire everybody. LOL

As I see it, 8 will only go so far without the business world - which recently upgraded from NT to 7. At this point, the business world will avoid 8 like the plague except where it is deemed to be cost-effective, and I would expect those cases to be few.

BTW - I fall in the category of crApple hater.

 

[Guest]

archean
Well Microsoft did not inform me about what data they collect and I have not seen the settings where to opt out. One thing that can be switched off is SmartScreen (discussed on Extremetech recently), but that is only part of what is mentioned here. Is this data only collected when you opt in to one of their "Customer Experience Improvement Programs" or is it collected from all users of Windows 8?

I agree we have the same lack of transparency with Google Android, IOS and a host of applications. Making this the new 'normal' on a desktop OS like Windows will only make it worse.

 

[Archean]

I remember MS too gather data but they keep it for 9 months. But it doesn't absolve MS from privacy concerns arising from its practices. Hence, my last comment in the previous post.

 

[Guest]

Microsoft sold 40 million Windows 8 licenses... This is all marketing to get the herd mentality going so people will jump on board. As we all know they don't have 40 million active installations.

Here's a good headline, "Linux sold 0 licenses, Millions of users are using Linux"

The truth is pick and choose what works best for you and let others pick and choose what works best for them.

 

[lawfer]

Microsoft sold 40 million Windows 8 licenses... This is all marketing to get the herd mentality going so people will jump on board. As we all know they don't have 40 million active installations.

Here's a good headline, "Linux sold 0 licenses, Millions of users are using Linux"

The truth is pick and choose what works best for you and let others pick and choose what works best for them.

It's not marketing. You can't lie about sales numbers. If you could we wouldn't have a stock market.

Perhaps you, and like some others, are saying that yes maybe 40 million licenses were sold, but how many of those were upgrades? Or better yet, how many of those have been sold to OEM and retailers instead of actual sales?

Both fair questions. However, you forget one simple detail: Windows 8 has been available to OEMs, partners, and to some enterprise customers before GA.

As the term implies, general availability refers to consumer availability, which means these numbers are consumer sales.

What you should be asking, instead, is how many of these licenses are upgrades. Which is a fair question considering W8 is cheaper as an upgrade than W7. But that's it.

Even then you'd have to see that, I assuming more people upgraded to W8 instead of going out to buy W8 PC's, it still shows people who came from a perfectly functional W7 (which is not hard to assume it's the OS most people came from) were mostly unaffected, and arguably more open to the change than most "passionate" users around here.

Any made-up theories that these number do not accurately reflect Windows 8's success are, at this point, sad.

 

[Camikazi]

Microsoft sold 40 million Windows 8 licenses... This is all marketing to get the herd mentality going so people will jump on board. As we all know they don't have 40 million active installations.

Here's a good headline, "Linux sold 0 licenses, Millions of users are using Linux"

The truth is pick and choose what works best for you and let others pick and choose what works best for them.

It doesn't say anywhere that MS had 40 million activated installs, it just said that they sold 40 million licenses which is true and they did get paid for it. It's not marketing and they are telling the truth you are just against it cause they are not using a metric you like.

 

[oldikes]

It is amusing to see how so called 'enthusiasts' beating the hell out of Win8 for one feature I.e. UI, which is pretty damn easy to sidestep / avoid anyway and ignoring the rest of the OS which is a pretty solid upgrade in general.

I like some of the new features but honestly without using the start menu to get to control panel and stuff its pretty damn annoying changing anything. Not like theres any major problems with that new UI (apart from its general clunkiness and designed-for-tabletness). BUT THE NEW UI DOESNT IMPROVE ANYTHING. its simply a change. I shouldnt have to get used to a change IF THERE WAS NO REASON FOR IT.

 

[Guest]

I bought W8 first day it was out, awesome OS, I personally find it feels damn near the same as W7 minus the Metro screen (which you really dont even need to use if you choose).

Anyways Microsoft has sold that many, Even if they are sitting on shelves, Now its up to best buy, Futureshops and whoever else to sell them and get there money back.

 

[Guest]

How many funny Steve Ballmer pictures does techspot has?