Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Technology Stocks : Novell (NOVL) dirt cheap, good buy? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: EPS who wrote (28775)	11/2/1999 4:06:00 AM
From: EPS	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 42771

Microsoft outlines Windows 2000 pricing By Joe Wilcox Staff Writer, CNET News.com November 1, 1999, 11:15 p.m. PT update A new pricing method for the forthcoming Windows 2000 could prove costly to some e-commerce businesses. Microsoft today detailed its pricing scheme for the next Windows operating system for business-use PCs and server computers, setting the software's retail value in line with current products. But a new way of calculating the required number of user "licenses" may mean some businesses have to purchase more copies than before. Software makers require a license for each user authorized to work with a given product, typically charging fees on a sliding scale that decreases as volume increases. Microsoft requires companies to pay for a license for each employee relying on Windows for services like network file storage or printing, but in the future the software giant will also count Web surfers from the outside world. The Redmond, Washington, giant has hoped Windows 2000 will further the company's inroads into the lucrative world of corporate computing, but could find that smaller companies which have already embraced Windows NT balk at increased charges. Meanwhile, larger companies have been emboldened by the proliferation of alternative operating systems, analysts say. When it debuts in February, Windows 2000 Professional will sell for an estimated retail price of $319, the same as its predecessor, Windows NT 4 Workstation. An upgrade from Windows NT will cost $149, the current price to move from Windows 95 to NT, the company said today in a briefing. Customers looking to upgrade from Windows 95 or 98--both consumer operating systems--will pay $219. Pricing grows more expensive and more complex as deployment grows in size and sophistication. Windows 2000 will be sold in three different versions, for use ranging from desktop systems to sophisticated networks. Microsoft's revised scheme for calculating so-called client-access licenses (CALs) could mean additional costs for smaller e-commerce businesses. Under the Windows NT 4 licensing program, Microsoft required a CAL for every user accessing a Windows NT server for filing and printing services, but not for Web surfers not in a company's employ. Beginning with Windows 2000 a CAL is necessary for each individual requiring authentication, such as would be necessary for a secure online transaction. As a result, customers planning to move e-commerce applications from Windows NT to Windows 2000 could face a price increase. The cost of each CAL varies depending on volume discounts and other factors. Microsoft estimates that a customer who needs more than 50 CALs would be better off paying a flat rate of $2,000 for authorization it calls the Internet Connector, essentially an unlimited license. The Internet Connector is intended only for external access over the Web and not for access across a corporate network or Intranet, the company said. Customers confused about the previous pricing plan precipitated the change, said Mike Nash, a general manager for Windows 2000. "We found many customers were buying CALs when they didn't need them and still others weren't buying them when they did need them." "If I decide to put up mikenash.com and I want to sell T-Shirts with my picture on them, for something uninteresting like me five CALs is all I need since I probably won't have more than five people buying at one time," Nash predicted. Turning to larger corporate purchases, the big issue is how the pricing scheme will affect Internet service providers and particularly application service providers, analysts said. "There is no question they can price themselves out of that market, which would easily look to alternative [operating systems], like Linux and Unix," according to Dataquest analyst Kimball Brown. "Microsoft will be less aggressive on the pricing than three to six months ago because there is kind of a ground swell with their major customers feeling more and more emboldened," Brown said. "Between the [antitrust] court case and Microsoft having less of an ability to strong arm things and the growth being in places where Microsoft isn't, such as Internet service providers, companies are more confident about coming out with non-Microsoft solutions." The much-delayed Windows 2000 Professional, Windows 2000 Server, and Windows 2000 Advanced Server are due February 19. Windows 2000 Datacenter is scheduled to ship about 120 days later.