Vista signed by Gates up for grabs

by Angus Kidman

Friday, 19 January 2007

Microsoft Australia has come up with a novel incentive to convince people to queue for the late-night release of Vista -- a copy of the operating system signed by Bill Gates.

Customers who plan to purchase the package at the special midnight opening at Harvey Norman's store in Alexandria on January 29 will be entered into a draw. The winning name will be drawn just before midnight by Harvey Norman chairman Gerry Harvey, while Microsoft's new local MD Tracey Fellows will also be in attendance.

While the scheme will undoubtedly represent a promotional bonanza for Microsoft, the winner will still have to pay for their copy. However, Harvey Norman is offering a 10% discount on hardware sales for any customer brave enough to queue all night, and giving away free cameras to the first 100 purchasers.

That copy won't quite qualify as the first commercial sale for Vista anywhere in the world, however, as midnight openings in New Zealand stores will beat it by a couple of hours. A total of 43 Harvey Norman stores are planning the special midnight openings.

There's been much speculation as to whether the hype for Windows Vista will be matched with retail demand, but Harvey seems confident. "We're excited about the demand Windows Vista is generating at Harvey Norman, it's fantastic," he said in a statement announcing the promotion.
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