Resellers show mixed reactions to Windows XP

Nelson Johny

MUMBAI: The usual enthusiasm that surrounds new launches is missing among

resellers with regard to the launch of Windows XP on October 25. While some say

that the retail release of XP is expected to help push PC sales, others are not

convinced that it would do much to revive the market from the current slowdown.

Majority of the resellers are keeping their fingers crossed, hoping for the

best.

Attempts are being made by various international groups to stall the launch

of XP, alleging technology violation, privacy invasion and unfair and deceptive

trade practices by Microsoft. Besides, the new Windows Product Activation

feature and Microsoft's future plans to make XP a subscription model, has also

caused confusion among partners.

Karthik Padmanabhan, marketing manager, Microsoft Corporation India, says,

"We are very optimistic about the response for XP from the Indian market.

It is a definitive release in the Windows family. The product provides a whole

new range of user experiences for the end-user -- whether it is a home user, or

a business user."

While quite a few are betting on the new OS, some resellers are not very

convinced about the XP doing any good to the market. Deepak Jhaveri, director,

Magnamious Systems, says, "I don't think users are looking forward for

Windows XP with much enthusiasm. Usually, corporate users try to upgrade their

software once in four to four-and-a-half years. However, with XP, Microsoft

wants upgradation to happen every two years. Corporates are finding this

unacceptable."

According to Ashish Aggarwal, Trifin Technologies, response to XP will

largely depend on prevailing market conditions. "I don’t foresee too much

upgradation happening anyway, though it might pick up by the year-end."

G M Kamat, director of PC Center and a Microsoft reseller, says, "Sales

of software is related to the sale of hardware. As soon as the hardware market

picks up the software also will do well."