14 DAY TRIAL // We’ve already told you that Microsoft is planning to sell the Surface tablet in some third-party stores, but it seems that the Redmond-based software titan is already close to reaching an agreement with some Australian retailers.
Smarthouse reports that JB HiFi and Harvey Normal are two of the retailers that may sell the Surface tablet in Australia, with the first unit expected to hit shelves before Christmas.
“We have been talking to Microsoft for some time about selling their Surface tablet. It's now a question of stock levels and whether we can get the device into stores prior to Christmas,” Scott Browning, marketing director of JB HiFi, told the source.
While it’s yet unclear whether Microsoft plans to adopt a similar tactic for its upcoming Surface Pro tablet, the lack of distribution has been considered one of the main reasons for Surface RT’s poor sales.
Surface Pro is the second Surface tablet in Microsoft’s family and will feature Windows 8 Pro, with support for legacy Windows apps.
Market researcher DFG suggested earlier this month that Microsoft needs to cut $200 (€150) off the Surface price if it really wants to be successful.
”This combined with Microsoft's inability to launch Surface Pro tablets in volume in Q4 suggests that Microsoft's tablet strategy is in disarray,” DFG said.
What’s more, the analysts claimed that Microsoft’s decision to sell the device through its stores exclusively is seriously hurting Surface sales and the product would be a lot more successful in case it decided to bring the tablet at large retail partners such as Best Buy and other large stores, not only in the United States, but also across the entire world.
“Lack of distribution is killing the product. [The lack] of retail exposure at Best Buy and others is severely depressing sales,” the firm said.