Anyone wishing to purchase a copy of Windows 8 after Microsoft’s promotion ends will need to do so at a much higher price.
A retail copy (aka one with its own fugly looking packaging and physical DVD) of Windows 8 Pro will likely cost $200 on Feb. 1, 2013, reports The Verge. The company is currently planning to offer a retail version of the OS for $70 through the end of the year as a way to drive adoption.
Microsoft is also planning to boost the price of its Windows 8 Pro upgrade option — available for anyone currently using an old version of Windows on their PC — from $70 to $100 after January 31, 2013, according to The Verge’s report. Microsoft previously announced that it would offer the same upgrade for $40 online for anyone who doesn’t mind forgoing the physical retail copy in favor of a direct download.
Many people (including VentureBeat) are using Microsoft’s pricing of Windows 8 as an indication of how badly the company wants to spur adoption. The low promotional price — along with the $15 upgrade program for anyone who purchased a Windows PC in June — led us to believe that the company was worried most people wouldn’t bother with Windows 8. However, the non-promotional prices for Windows 8 are much more in line with prices for older versions of the OS.
Unlike Apple, which also lowered the price of its latest operating system, OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, to drive uptake, Microsoft must still treat Windows 8 as a legitimate product rather than supplementary software that sells its hardware. Although with Windows 8’s focus on tablet devices and an increased emphasis on its apps marketplace, that could eventually change.
Image via The Verge
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