Microsoft may be considering releasing a free or low-cost version of Windows 8.1 in an attempt to compete against Google's Chromebooks. If taken, such a move would find itself in the unenviable position of playing catch up to an established player.
The reasoning behind such a move is logical. Microsoft is still the dominant laptop and desktop operating system, but the company has failed to make major inroads into the tablet and smartphone markets. Both of which are quickly making Microsoft's main business model obsolete. Currently, Windows 7 has 47.4 percent of the market; XP, which Microsoft will no longer support as of April 8, has 29.3 percent; meanwhile the wildly unpopular Windows 8 and 8.1 combined have just over 10 percent.
Deciding to enter this market years after Google may seem odd, but it does play into how Microsoft has been operating of late. For almost a decade Microsoft has made a habit of leading from behind. Apple released the iPod in 2001, Microsoft came out with the Zune five years later. Sony, Nintendo and even Sega beat Microsoft to the punch with their gaming systems.
The rumored plan would have Microsoft putting together a bundle to include a less robust version of Windows 8.1 along with its Bing search engine. This would either be offered to vendors and consumers for free or at a low cost. One line of thought behind the move is that it will be used as an incentive to prod consumers content with Windows 7 into upgrading Win 8.1, which computer owners are staying away from in droves.
Another issue that Microsoft has to take into consideration and could be behind such a move is the inroads being made by the Android OS in laptops and all-in-one PCs. The first of these began appearing late last year and more are expected. Since computers running Android can be sold at a much lower price than those equipped with Windows 8.1, and with only a small fall off in overall performance, there is a good chance they could catch on. Hewlett-Packard and Lenovo are among the vendors already in this field so perhaps the execs in Redmond, Wash. feel they have to go on the offensive on some front or face watching their market share slowly erode.
And this does not take into consideration how well Chromebooks have sold in both the education and now consumer markets.
If the rumors prove true and the move and is successful it could provide incoming CEO Satya Nadella some wind in his sails as he takes over direction of the company.
Microsoft did not reply to an attempt to obtain a comment on this story.
