42 Million Computers Cry for Vista Enterprise Upgrades

Windows Vista Enterprise is an edition of Vista reserved exclusively for Microsoft's Software Assurance customers. During the Financial Analyst Meeting 2007, Kevin Turner, Microsoft Chief Operating Officer revealed that Vista Enterprise together with the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack have been at the heart of Software Assurance success. Microsoft also emphasized the fact that upgrades are just one of the aspects inherent to SA agreements and that customers will also benefit from adjacent technologies, advanced technical support and training. Joe Matz, corporate vice president of Worldwide Licensing and Pricing also underlined the crucial role played by Vista Enterprise and MDOP.

"On the business side, volume licensing, which you all would have seen out of our Q4 numbers, new sales and renewals is growing at the best rate we've seen in many, many years, and that's driven by customers interested in both Windows Vista Enterprise and the ability to get the Enterprise edition deployed, as well as something we affectionately call MDOP, which is the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack. And that is where we deliver more value beyond upgrade rights in our Software Assurance offering. So that allows us to be able again to get more value into each socket or unit that we sell into the enterprise and commercial space," Turner stated.

"In the Windows Client division, high enterprise renewal rates and new annuity sales drove a 25 percent increase in volume licensing unearned revenue balance. The Microsoft Business Division beat high-end guidance by about $200 million, with growth driven by Office Enterprise Agreements and SharePoint. In fiscal year 2008, Microsoft expects to see a continued increase in volume licensing sales on the Windows Client side, because more customers are taking advantage of differentiated technologies such as Windows Vista Enterprise and the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack," Matz explained.

Matz additionally informed that the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack has enjoyed an excellent uptake from volume license customers. In excess of 2 million licenses of MDOP were sold in the pack's first six months of availability. This alone makes the product the fastest selling item in the history of volume licensing for Microsoft. And in addition to the success of MDOP, Vista Enterprise proved to be the "fastest growing business in Enterprise Agreements this past year." And yet there is still room for growth as the volume licensing annuity agreements cover more than 42 million machines, for the Vista operating system.