Microsoft sets Windows 8 release time to late October
updated 02:02 pm EDT, Mon July 9, 2012
Windows 8 release to manufacturer due early August
Microsoft has revealed that Windows 8 will be on sale in stores in late October. Tami Reller, corporate vice president and CFO of the company's Windows and Windows Live Division, noted at the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference in Toronto that the Release to Manufacturing (RTM) build will arrive in the first week of August, and that Microsoft is "on track" to finalize Windows 8 within that schedule.
Windows 8 will be available in 109 languages across 231 markets upon release. The offer to upgrade to Windows 8 online for $40 will start at the same time. The commerce platform for app sales will be available alongside the RTM build, giving developers ample time to get their apps ready for the launch date. Potential users wanting to try out the operating system can download the Consumer Preview edition from the Windows website.
Windows 7 was also mentioned in the presentation, where Microsoft boasted that it had reached 630 million license sales, and that over half of enterprise desktops were running the operating system. The company claims to have sold 600 licenses, as noted during a speech at Computex last month.[via Windows Team Blog]
