MSFT synopsis at H&Q Technology Conf.
HEARD IT HERE FIRST: Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq,
MSFT) for months has been downplaying the
financial significance of Windows 98, the latest
edition of its dominant PC software. The event
this summer associated with the upgrade simply
won't be as big as the colossal unveiling of
Windows 95, itself a major technical step forward
from Windows 3.0.
It seems clear that Windows 98 won't be as big as
its predecessor; it's just not that different.
But there's room for a sneaky suspicion that
Microsoft, for a variety of reasons, has been
sandbagging the product launch. If federal or
state prosecutors don't stand in the way and if
the upgrade is a wild success, investors in
Microsoft's stock could see an unexpected boost.
This is an assertion that can't be proved,
unless, of course, some memo shows up some day in
a lawsuit that says something like ''Let's
let on how successful this is going to be.''
But the presentation Monday at the Hambrecht &
Quist Technology Conference by Robert J. Herbold,
Microsoft's chief operating officer, could almost
be termed optimistic on Windows 98.
The new software ''anticipates where the world is
going,'' Herbold said, noting that Windows 98 is
compatible for digital video disks and WebTV. It
also contains nifty software to help
automatically clean up a PC's hard drive and
conduct meetings over networks. And Herbold was
as giddy as a career Procter & Gamble Co.
executive can be about the rave reviews beta
versions of Windows 98 have received in the trade
press.
Why would Microsoft downplay the impact of
Windows 98, scheduled for consumer rollout June
25? |
