GIN INC JOURNAL

Tomorrow is today which makes it time to get your Windows 7 pre-order in. Amazon issued a big 'ol press release telling us that it's now offering the Home Premium Upgrade and Professional Upgrade packages for $49.99 and $99.99 though July 11th, while supplies last -- nothing special there as it's the standard pricing you'll find at all your favorite on-line retailers. Amazon does promise, however , that you'll "receive the product" when released to shops on October 22nd. Note a 3 per customer limit so don't get greedy, ok? It's not like Microsoft can just press the OS onto another disc or something.

Update: Reduce priced pre-orders for the UK won't begin until July 15th with prices set at £49 for Windows 7 Home Premium E and £99 for Professional E, both will ship without Internet Explorer.

Update 2: For those wondering about the upgrade prices for Europe... there aren't any. In the UK, the Home Premium "upgrade" is actually a full-version of the OS and will cost £80 (about $131), Professional "upgrade" will cost £190 (about $312), and Ultimate will cost £200 (about $328) until the end of the year -- they'll cost £150 ($246), £220 ($361), and £230 ($377), respectively, starting January 1, 2010. According to the BBC, Microsoft claims that it can't offer the lower upgrade pricing ($120, $200, or $220 for Home Premium, Professional, and Ultimate in the US) in order to comply with European competition regulations, a claim that EU regulators dismiss. As such, going from Vista to Windows 7 will require a clean install in the EU in order to remove Internet Explorer -- no in-place upgrades will be possible according to Microsoft. Look EU, if you're going to fine Microsoft billions for anti-competitive behavior then you have to expect this kind of tail-between-the-legs retribution, honest or not. You certainly can't say that Microsoft is using its market dominance to push out the competition when Apple's Snow Leopard is coming in September for a mere $29. Happy now?

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) said it would slash prices on the main consumer version of Windows 7, the new version of its operating system, and will defer up to $300 million of revenue this quarter due to a program designed to help consumers upgrade.

The world's largest software company is under pressure to encourage customers to move rapidly to Windows 7, following a poor critical reception to its predecessor, Windows Vista, at a time of a challenging economy. Windows generates about 30% of the company's $60 billion in annual revenues.

Using a similar approach to one adopted in the run-up to Windows Vista's arrival, consumers and small businesses that buy new computers with Windows between Friday and Windows 7's Oct. 22 release will get a free copy of the new operating system when it becomes available.

The program doesn't include European countries where, due to antitrust challenges, Microsoft has decided to decouple its Internet Explorer browser from its operating system.

Accounting rules require such a transaction to result in some revenue being deferred during the program, which will end Jan. 31. 2010.

The deferred revenue projections Microsoft provided probably aren't a reliable indicator of Windows 7 demand, as they account for a small portion of total expected sales.

Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft said during an investor conference call Thursday that it is required to recognize sales under the upgrade program as two distinct products; a sale of Vista and a sale of Windows 7. Revenue recognition of products shipped to original equipment manufacturers: PC builders who bundle Windows with their products, can occur when the product is shipped to them. Revenue recognition for sales to consumers can't occur until consumers take delivery.

Microsoft expects most of the revenue deferred in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009, which ends June 30., 2009, to be recognized by the second quarter of fiscal 2010.

Microsoft also said it's cutting the retail cost of its most popular Windows product, the Home Premium upgrade version, by around 10% in the U.S, though most other versions of the product are priced comparably with the most recent retail prices for Windows Vista.

When full copies of Windows 7 go on sale in October, Microsoft plans to charge $119 for Home Premium, $199 for Professional and $219 for Ultimate.

From Friday, Microsoft will also allow customers in the U.S., Canada and Japan to buy upgrade copies of Windows 7 Home Premium for a discounted price.

Credit Suisse analysts said in a research report last week they expect Microsoft to defer nearly $1.5 billion of revenue from the first quarter of fiscal 2010, starting July 1, to the one that begins Oct. 1. Thomas Weisel Partners, in a research note Thursday, said it believed the impact in the quarter would be "upwards of $1 billion.

It's difficult to extrapolate what the deferred revenue figures suggest about overall demand for Windows 7. Deferred revenue projections provided by the company largely reflect retail sales, a relatively small portion of total Windows sales. Microsoft doesn't disclose what percentage of Windows revenue comes from retail, but analysts say sales through original equipment manufacturers are the overwhelming majority.

One analyst said getting Windows 7 into the hands of consumers as smoothly as possible through retail would help fuel demand in the OEM channel.

Microsoft shares were recently up 27 cents, or 1.2%, at $23.75.

Google plans to unveil AdSense for Mobile Applications Wednesday. The tool allows companies that develop applications that run on Apple's iPhone and Google's operating system Android to earn revenue by displaying text and image ads along with their apps.

Developers insert a small snippet of code into their application. This allows the phones to display the ads. This code plugs the application into Google's network of partners and publishers. The code gives developers control of where the ad appears on the screen. The ad targeting is contextual, similar to targeting that exists for AdSense partners.

"We are also experimenting with ways to allow advertisers to bid for ad placement on specific applications," says a Google spokesperson. Google works with application developers to determine the proper signals that help AdSense for Mobile determine the relevance of an ad. The system then matches the signals to relevant advertiser keywords who bid for placement on Google's Content Network through the AdWords interface.

Now, iPhone and Android application developers can connect their applications with Google's network. From there, ads appear within the applications and developers earn revenue, similar to regular Web sites displaying Google-brokered ads.

Tina Teng, senior analyst at research firm iSuppli, estimates 10.7 million phones worldwide will run Android in 2010, compared with 22.3 million iPhones in the market. Those numbers will rise from 4.5 million units and 18.7 million units, respectively, this year.

Tests have been underway for a few months with companies, such as game publisher Sega, music search engine Shazam and restaurant recommendation site Urbanspoon. Now, Google is ready to open up the project to more developers who meet specific criteria.

Well known for the mobile application that serves up recommendations for restaurants on the iPhone with manual search or shake of the phone, Urbanspoon began testing AdSense for Mobile a few months ago. The application lets Urbanspoon insert ads to target consumers through keyword and geography, which makes the ads relevant to the location of the user and the content of the application. So, Urbanspoon inserted the necessary snippets into the source code of their application to allow Google-brokered advertisements to appear within their application. When those ads get clicked-on, taking the user to the site being advertised, Urbanspoon collects ad revenue.

As mobile phones continue to get more sophisticated, so will ads. Adobe Systems and handset maker HTC also reported Wednesday the new HTC Hero will support Flash Platform technology to enhance Web browsing and provide access to a variety of Flash technology based content available on the Web today. Verizon and T-Mobile USA plan to offer Motorola smart phones running Google's Android OS by the end of this year.

Microsoft Corp is on track to release its new Windows 7 operating system in time for the holiday shopping season, an executive said on Monday, confirming talk it is ahead of its own conservative schedule for replacing the unpopular Vista system.

The world's largest software company has so far been vague on specifying the timing of its new operating system, wary of disappointing customers. But it has broadly targeted the end of this year or the beginning of next year.

"Windows 7 is tracking well for holiday availability," Bill Veghte, senior vice president of Microsoft's Windows business said at an event on Monday, citing good test results on the early version of the system released to developers and the public over the past few weeks.

Last month, Microsoft said Windows 7 was on track for launch in fiscal 2010, which could mean as early as July this year.

That inspired some hopes Microsoft would be able to take advantage of both the back-to-school and holiday shopping seasons, which usually bring a spike in computer purchases and accompanying software.

But Microsoft is taking care not to rush.

"Many are pushing us to release the product sooner rather than later, but our focus remains on a high quality release," said the head of Microsoft's Windows business, Steven Sinofsky, in a blog on Monday.

Over the last few weeks, Microsoft has been releasing an early version of Windows 7, known as a 'release candidate,' to developers and the public.

Once it makes some more adjustments to the software, the next stage is for Microsoft to hand the system to PC makers -- known as release to manufacturing, or RTM -- to install on machines sold in shops.

"Ultimately, our partners will determine when their PCs are available in market," said Sinofsky in his blog. "If the feedback and telemetry on Windows 7 match our expectations then we will enter the final phases of the RTM process in about three months."

That would put the company on track to have PCs with Windows 7 available this holiday season.

Microsoft's operating systems, installed on the vast majority of the world's PCs, are still the backbone of the company, providing more than half of its $4.4 billion profit last quarter.

The disappointing Vista, launched to the public in 2007, was incompatible with some low-power machines and perceived by many to be too complicated.

Storage maker Seagate is looking to win over the hearts (and wallets) of eco-concious desktop computer users with its new Barracuda LP line of 3.5-inch desktop hard drives. Available in 1, 1.5, and 2 TB capacities, the drives spin at 5,900 rpm and the company claims they can consume as little as half the electricity of a typical desktop hard drive—although, over the entire life of the drive, Seagate is only claiming up to a 44 percent reduction in energy consumption. What's more, up to 70 percent of the materials used in the drive can be recycled.

"Growing demand for power-efficient computing systems is not just a data center phenomenon as more builders of external storage devices, desktop PCs, and home networking systems work to provide customers with products that combine power-efficiency with rock-solid performance," said Seagate's VP pf personal systems marketing and strategy Joan Motsinger, in a statement. "Seagate is pleased to deliver a new low-power product line in our Barracuda family that enables system builders and end users alike to attain a higher level of environmental friendliness while cutting costs."

The drives sport an SATA interface, 32 MB of on-board cache, and an average latency of 5.5ms. The drives can peak at transfer rates of 300 MB/s, although sustained transfers will be about 95 MB/s; the 1.5 and 2 TB units consume an average of 5. Watts at idle, while the 1 TB version consumes just 3 Watts.

Seagate hasn't announced shipping dates for the Barracuda LP series, but pricing should start at $118 for the 1TB version, moving up to $156 and $358 for the 1.5 and 2 TB versions.