Peaks, valleys and vistas: Microsoft

The Economist: Peaks, valleys and vistas: Microsoft

The launch of a new version of Microsoft Windows, called Vista, is not quite the event it used to be. Has the software giant reached the pinnacle of its power?

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Vista took five years and $6 billion to develop. Some 8,000 people worked on it. Yet it is two years late. A corporate version was released in November—just before the holidays when few firms would install it. This gave Microsoft the chance to complete small bits of ancillary code to make it run smoothly. Most users are expected not to bother upgrading (see article), but to acquire Vista only when they buy a new computer. With hindsight, the release of Vista may mark the moment when Microsoft's Windows and Office are seen as having reached the zenith of their supremacy.