Windows Vista hits shelves in Japan

TOKYO – Microsoft’s Windows Vista for home computers hit stores in Japan yesterday to start a worldwide launch, with hundreds queuing up to buy the software giant’s first new operating system in more than five years.

Hundreds of people waited in the cold to buy Windows Vista at stores in Tokyo’s Akihabara electronics district, and broke into a loud cheer outside the Yodobashi Camera shop when the clock struck midnight (1500 GMT). Retailers and the electronics industries are hoping that Windows Vista, which took five years and US$6 billion to produce, will revive sagging demand for personal computers in Japan.Darren Huston, president of Microsoft Japan, told reporters following the countdown event that the size of the crowd at the Yodobashi Camera store showed that enthusiasm for personal computers was still high here.”Don’t take my word for it.Go out and try it yourself,” Huston said later at a press conference, predicting that the new system will win the hearts of Japan’s legions of techies.Huston showed off the features of the operating system, which will be released later in the day elsewhere in the world, along with partners such as video-game maker Sega, music store HMV and broadcaster Nippon Television.Keeping up with the local tradition, Microsoft executives broke a wood barrel of Japanese sake to celebrate the launch of the new product.”If you look back at the history of computers and advances that were made technologically, it really was Japanese and American companies …driving innovations together to make the world better place.I think it will continue on in the future,” Huston said.”We work very closely with our partners in Japan to bring about some of the very positive societal changes,” he said.The simpler, more secure and more powerful Windows Vista should sell twice as much as its predecessor Windows XP operating system in Japan and in the world, Huston said, adding that the new product will prove “XP will not be good enough.”Demand for the new operation system should be high as personal computers continue to become faster, more capable and store greater memory, while the availability of broadband Internet access also grows, Huston said.Sega said it was exploring the new system’s touch-screen and tablet technologies, which come with the standard keyboard and mouse, to offer an easier-to-use interface for everyone, including elderly and children.In 2006, shipments of personal computers in Japan fell three per cent from the previous year to 12,33 million units, the first annual decline in four years, an industry group said earlier this month.Japanese and global makers are to introduce 247 new personal computers equipped with the new operating system, Microsoft said.Microsoft began selling business versions of Vista and Office 2007 in November.Nampa-AFPRetailers and the electronics industries are hoping that Windows Vista, which took five years and US$6 billion to produce, will revive sagging demand for personal computers in Japan.Darren Huston, president of Microsoft Japan, told reporters following the countdown event that the size of the crowd at the Yodobashi Camera store showed that enthusiasm for personal computers was still high here.”Don’t take my word for it.Go out and try it yourself,” Huston said later at a press conference, predicting that the new system will win the hearts of Japan’s legions of techies.Huston showed off the features of the operating system, which will be released later in the day elsewhere in the world, along with partners such as video-game maker Sega, music store HMV and broadcaster Nippon Television.Keeping up with the local tradition, Microsoft executives broke a wood barrel of Japanese sake to celebrate the launch of the new product.”If you look back at the history of computers and advances that were made technologically, it really was Japanese and American companies …driving innovations together to make the world better place.I think it will continue on in the future,” Huston said.”We work very closely with our partners in Japan to bring about some of the very positive societal changes,” he said.The simpler, more secure and more powerful Windows Vista should sell twice as much as its predecessor Windows XP operating system in Japan and in the world, Huston said, adding that the new product will prove “XP will not be good enough.”Demand for the new operation system should be high as personal computers continue to become faster, more capable and store greater memory, while the availability of broadband Internet access also grows, Huston said.Sega said it was exploring the new system’s touch-screen and tablet technologies, which come with the standard keyboard and mouse, to offer an easier-to-use interface for everyone, including elderly and children.In 2006, shipments of personal computers in Japan fell three per cent from the previous year to 12,33 million units, the first annual decline in four years, an industry group said earlier this month.Japanese and global makers are to introduce 247 new personal computers equipped with the new operating system, Microsoft said.Microsoft began selling business versions of Vista and Office 2007 in November.Nampa-AFP