REDMOND, Wash., Feb. 9, 1999 — Microsoft Corp. today announced that 1998 holiday sales of Microsoft® Windows® 98 operating system licenses topped nearly 3 million units, making it the most popular version of Windows ever sold during the holiday season. These figures represent North American license sales of both retail upgrades and versions preinstalled on new PCs. Microsoft also announced today that worldwide licenses of Windows 98 have reached 25 million units.
Since Windows 98 was released in June of last year, its license sales have been extremely strong. According to market research firm PC Data Inc., the increasing number of PCs being used at home because of lower costs has helped make Windows 98 the top-selling software product of 1998.
“This past year we saw PC penetration into homes to be better than ever,”
said Ann Stephens, president of PC Data.
“The continuing lower costs of PCs, software titles and peripherals such as printers and scanners gave consumers incentive to purchase PCs, many for the first time.”
“License purchases of Windows 98 this past holiday season outpaced our previous holiday retail sales records for Windows,”
said Yusuf Mehdi, director of Windows client marketing at Microsoft.
“We are delighted that consumers are taking advantage of improved performance, reliability, Internet access and ease of use, as well as great hardware and entertainment capabilities by choosing Windows 98.”
Retailers are encountering strong demand from consumers who want to experience the newest innovations in PC hardware unlocked by Windows 98.
“Windows 98 continues to be a top-selling software product in our stores,”
said Larry Mondry, executive vice president of merchandising, CompUSA Inc.
“This last holiday season, Windows 98 generated strong sales of USB peripherals optimized for Windows 98 and also sparked the interest of first-time PC buyers.”
Great end-user features such as Universal Serial Bus (USB) support, Windows Update and Microsoft Internet Explorer have made Windows 98 a popular choice for 25 million families and home users around the world. Windows 98 is available in 31 different languages around the globe.
Next-Generation Hardware Support in Windows 98 Ignites Holiday Peripheral Sales
Peripherals for Windows 98, especially devices that take advantage of the native support in Windows 98 for the USB standard, continue to experience record growth. According to the USB Implementers Forum, more than 100 USB devices are already on the market, and more than 300 new USB peripherals are expected to be developed in 1999.
Xirlink Inc., one of the world’s leading suppliers in the video CD market, has seen sales of its award-winning C-it PC Camera skyrocket since the launch of Windows 98.
“Because of Windows 98 and USB, we have been able to have our C-it PC Camera included on several leading PC makers’ machines, an industry-first,”
said Dominic Costantino, director of sales and marketing at Xirlink.
“Sales had gone from several thousand units a month before the launch of Windows 98 to almost 50,000 during the holiday season.”
Windows 98 Grows in Value for Millions of Users
While Windows 98 can immediately improve PC performance from its first use, it also has unique features that make it even better over time. Windows Update, the online extension of Windows 98, makes it easy for users to discover and install new features and updates that enhance the computing experience as they become available.
In addition to the easy Internet access and features designed to keep the PC running in top form, Windows 98 also turns the computer into a three-in-one computing and entertainment device. With Windows 98, a PC converts into a gaming console with support for the latest graphics, sound and multimedia technologies and the easy addition and removal of peripheral devices. With the WebTV® for Windows feature and a TV tuner card, a PC becomes a television, bringing broadcast and cable television directly to the user’s desktop.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers. The company offers a wide range of products and services for business and personal use, each designed with the mission of making it easier and more enjoyable for people to take advantage of the full power of personal computing every day.
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http://www.microsoft.com/windows98/
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