Microsoft misjudges customer loyalty with kill-XP plea
Microsoft neither had the customer loyalty it had assumed it had, nor a plan that made the effort attractive to those it asked for assistance. "Essentially, Microsoft was asking its customers to help it sell more product," said Grabowski.
Grabowski was referring to the appeal Microsoft made Feb. 7, when it implored its technically astute customers to help others who are still running Windows XP get rid of the soon-to-be-retired operating system.
Those same savvy users ridiculed the idea, saying that Microsoft's pitch -- which relied on upgrading Windows XP to Windows 8.1 or purchasing a new computer -- was unacceptable because they refused to recommend Windows 8.1. They also criticized Microsoft for not offering a discount on an upgrade, for not suggesting the older but more familiar Windows 7 as an alternative to Windows 8.1, and for not providing an upgrade path from XP to 8.1 that retained settings, files or applications.
"The problem here is that Microsoft is behaving more like the 'Sopranos' than a technology company," Grabowski said. "They're shaking down their customers."
Grabowski was scathing in his evaluation of Microsoft's long-planned, long-stated decision to stop providing security updates for Windows XP after April 8. That deadline -- Microsoft will officially retire the OS from support, although it will still run long after April 8 -- has prompted the company to urge customers to either upgrade Windows or buy new hardware.
Once Microsoft stops patching vulnerabilities in XP, users will be in the crosshairs of cyber criminals, Microsoft and security professionals have said.
Expert questions Microsoft's strategic sense, calls XP upgrades a shakedown worthy of the 'Sopranos'
Microsoft neither had the customer loyalty it had assumed it had, nor a plan that made the effort attractive to those it asked for assistance. "Essentially, Microsoft was asking its customers to help it sell more product," said Grabowski.
Grabowski was referring to the appeal Microsoft made Feb. 7, when it implored its technically astute customers to help others who are still running Windows XP get rid of the soon-to-be-retired operating system.
Those same savvy users ridiculed the idea, saying that Microsoft's pitch -- which relied on upgrading Windows XP to Windows 8.1 or purchasing a new computer -- was unacceptable because they refused to recommend Windows 8.1. They also criticized Microsoft for not offering a discount on an upgrade, for not suggesting the older but more familiar Windows 7 as an alternative to Windows 8.1, and for not providing an upgrade path from XP to 8.1 that retained settings, files or applications.
"The problem here is that Microsoft is behaving more like the 'Sopranos' than a technology company," Grabowski said. "They're shaking down their customers."
Grabowski was scathing in his evaluation of Microsoft's long-planned, long-stated decision to stop providing security updates for Windows XP after April 8. That deadline -- Microsoft will officially retire the OS from support, although it will still run long after April 8 -- has prompted the company to urge customers to either upgrade Windows or buy new hardware.
Once Microsoft stops patching vulnerabilities in XP, users will be in the crosshairs of cyber criminals, Microsoft and security professionals have said.