"Windows Vista Capable"

[Guest George Wallace]

PC buyers: 'Vista Capable' machines weren't Vista capable

Judge calls for trial - By Cade Metz in San Francisco

 

 

How misleading was Microsoft's "Windows Vista Capable" campaign?

Misleading enough for a judge to approve a federal trial.

 

On Tuesday, a federal judge ruled that two PC buyers, Dianne Kelley and

Kenneth Hansen, can proceed with a lawsuit that accuses Microsoft of

deliberately deceiving the public with the "Window Vista Capable"

stickers it slapped on Windows XP machines in the run-up to Vista's

January debut, InformationWeek reports. Microsoft had asked for a

dismissal, but US District Judge Marsha Pechman of Seattle is happy to

oversee an October trial.

 

With their class action suit, filed in March, Kelley and Hansen claim

that Microsoft used "bait and switch" tactics to move XP systems as the

world waited for the long-delayed Windows Vista. They argue that

Microsoft's stickers reassured buyers "that they were purchasing

Vista-capable machines when, in fact, they could obtain only a stripped

down operating system." Some "Vista Capable" machines, they say, were

only capable of running versions of the OS that lack things like

Microsoft's new Aero interface and a spruced-up Windows Media Center.

 

Indeed, Microsoft offers a neutered version of Vista, known as Home

Basic, that requires nothing more than an 800-MHz processor, 512MB of

memory, a 20GB hard drive, and support for Super VGA graphics. And

though the company recommends a 1GHz processor, 1GB of memory, a 40GB

hard drive, and DirectX 9 support for "premium" versions of the

operating system, these editions will still run on less powerful

machines - with certain OS features disabled.

 

Microsoft has argued that its "Vista Capable" marketing campaign also

included a "Vista Premium Ready" component that explained the

differences between various versions of the OS, but Judge Pechman

believes there's reason enough to let the suit go ahead.

 

Ray Persons, a partner with the international law firm King & Spalding

who specializes in class actions, is amazed that Pechman approved a

trial - let alone that she approved it so quickly. "It's awfully unusual

for a court to certify a class action where the allegation is a bait and

switch," he told The Reg. "In order to prove fraud, you've got to look

at whether the individual reasonably relied on the defendant's alleged

misrepresentations, and that kind of individual-by-individual

determination really defeats the efficiencies of a class action."

 

Of course, it isn't likely that the trial will actually happen. "In most

instances, civil cases - including class actions - get settled," Persons

said. "Seldom, if ever, is a class action tried."

 

PC buyers who believe they've been duped by Microsoft can expect

low-value coupons towards the purchase of machines that run premium

versions of Windows Vista. These might fetch a few dollars on eBay. ®

[Guest PvdG42]

Re: "Windows Vista Capable"

 

"George Wallace" <nospam@nospam.net> wrote in message

news:46baf458$0$4724$4c368faf@roadrunner.com...

> PC buyers: 'Vista Capable' machines weren't Vista capable

> Judge calls for trial - By Cade Metz in San Francisco

>

>

> How misleading was Microsoft's "Windows Vista Capable" campaign?

> Misleading enough for a judge to approve a federal trial.

>

> On Tuesday, a federal judge ruled that two PC buyers, Dianne Kelley and

> Kenneth Hansen, can proceed with a lawsuit that accuses Microsoft of

> deliberately deceiving the public with the "Window Vista Capable"

> stickers it slapped on Windows XP machines in the run-up to Vista's

> January debut, InformationWeek reports. Microsoft had asked for a

> dismissal, but US District Judge Marsha Pechman of Seattle is happy to

> oversee an October trial.

>

> With their class action suit, filed in March, Kelley and Hansen claim

> that Microsoft used "bait and switch" tactics to move XP systems as the

> world waited for the long-delayed Windows Vista. They argue that

> Microsoft's stickers reassured buyers "that they were purchasing

> Vista-capable machines when, in fact, they could obtain only a stripped

> down operating system." Some "Vista Capable" machines, they say, were

> only capable of running versions of the OS that lack things like

> Microsoft's new Aero interface and a spruced-up Windows Media Center.

>

> Indeed, Microsoft offers a neutered version of Vista, known as Home

> Basic, that requires nothing more than an 800-MHz processor, 512MB of

> memory, a 20GB hard drive, and support for Super VGA graphics. And

> though the company recommends a 1GHz processor, 1GB of memory, a 40GB

> hard drive, and DirectX 9 support for "premium" versions of the

> operating system, these editions will still run on less powerful

> machines - with certain OS features disabled.

>

> Microsoft has argued that its "Vista Capable" marketing campaign also

> included a "Vista Premium Ready" component that explained the

> differences between various versions of the OS, but Judge Pechman

> believes there's reason enough to let the suit go ahead.

>

> Ray Persons, a partner with the international law firm King & Spalding

> who specializes in class actions, is amazed that Pechman approved a

> trial - let alone that she approved it so quickly. "It's awfully unusual

> for a court to certify a class action where the allegation is a bait and

> switch," he told The Reg. "In order to prove fraud, you've got to look

> at whether the individual reasonably relied on the defendant's alleged

> misrepresentations, and that kind of individual-by-individual

> determination really defeats the efficiencies of a class action."

>

> Of course, it isn't likely that the trial will actually happen. "In most

> instances, civil cases - including class actions - get settled," Persons

> said. "Seldom, if ever, is a class action tried."

>

> PC buyers who believe they've been duped by Microsoft can expect

> low-value coupons towards the purchase of machines that run premium

> versions of Windows Vista. These might fetch a few dollars on eBay. ®

 

 

Wow! Microsoft went around to Gateway, Dell, HP, etc. and slapped stickers

on their machines? Interesting reporting. The qualifications necessary for

the "Vista Capable" vs. "Vista Premium Ready" were always available to

consumers who took the trouble to become informed before buying, but we

can't expect them to be responsible for themselves, right?

Oddly, I have a Gateway laptop here with the "Vista Capable" sticker on it,

and it does run Home Premium *with* features such as Aero just fine, so I'd

conclude that not all PC makers used the stickers on inadequate (in the eyes

of the buyer) hardware.

Shouldn't the ambulance chasers be going after the PC makers here? Oh,

sorry, I forgot about the ambulance chasers' creed: "always go for the

deepest pockets".