Microsoft overcomes virals to reach Windows 7 sales record

by Staff, revolutionmagazine.com 06-Nov-09, 12:30

NEW YORK - Windows 7 may have been promoted with one of the most derided viral videos of all time, but sales of Microsoft's new operating system have broken records.

According to the research company NPD, US sales of Windows 7 outpaced those of previous operating system Vista by 234 per cent in terms of the number of units shifted.

It's good news for the software giant, as analysts had seen the Windows 7 launch as something of a make or break for Microsoft. It is also a triumph of good product reviews over bad marketing - the company was widely pilloried for a viral posted on YouTube suggesting people host launch parties to celebrate Windows 7's arrival.

Stephen Baker, vice-president of industry analysis at NPD, said: "Microsoft's programme of early low-cost pre-sales, high visibility marketing, and aggressive deals helped make the Windows 7 software launch successful. In a slow environment for packaged software Windows 7 brought a large number of customers into the software aisles."

NPD's findings back Amazon's reports that pre-sales of Windows 7 were higher than for any product in its history, beating previous record holder 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'.