In what is surely a long overdue move, Microsoft are set to open their own retail stores to “create a better PC and Microsoft retail purchase experience for consumers worldwide”.
The guy brought in the head it all up is David Porter, former heard of Worldwide Product Distribution at Dreamworks SKG. I’ve often thought it’d be cool to pop into the Microsoft shop to check out the latest releases of products etc & soon we’ll be able to. With the huge buzz around Windows 7 and the upcoming releases around Windows Mobile, this is a perfect time to open the stores as they’ve got consumers back on their side đŸ™‚ People will love going in to see products such as Windows 7 & WinMo 6.5 being used to their full abilities which will help people make more informed purchases in my opinion.
Will these stores offer tech/setup support as well in a geek squad style? That would really help regular home users make the most of their purchases. Porter being in the Entertainment division suggests that Xbox’s and Zunes will feature heavily in the stores-perhaps leading to Zunes being available in Europe?
It’s interesting to note that Porter served 25 years at Walmart, rising to “vice president and general merchandise manager of Entertainment” and he’ll be reporting directly to Kevin Turner; himself a former Walmart star.
Also, it should be decreed that every store MUST have a Surface-that would be wicked đŸ™‚
Cloudy with a chance of Licensing 