Microsoft Anytime Upgrade Rip-Off

I'm quite happy with Windows Vista and have it on 4 machines. I recently
bought a new HP mini note and was going to upgrade from the OEM Vista
Business that came on the machine to Vista Ultimate, that is until I checked
out the Canadian pricing for an Anytime upgrade. Microsoft wants us to pay
$179 to move from business to ultimate which seems like a ridiculous amount.
In checking out alternatives I noted that I can buy OEM Ultimate here for
$209 or OEM Business for $165, so one would expect to pay some where around
$45 more to upgrade not 4 times that amount. Even at retail pricing the
price for full Vista Ultimate with SP 1 here is $329 and Vista Business with
SP 1 is $299 a difference of $30, so how does Microsoft get off on charging
$179 to upgrade from Business to Ultimate. I could see a small up charge
say charging $60 but $179? This pricing is a total rip off! Needless to
say this install will not be getting upgraded.

Unfortunately, this is not Microsoft. This is only a user-to-user self-help
group. You need to share your thoughts with Microsoft on microsoft.com.
You might give feedback here:
http://www.microsoft.com/globaldev/o...deaSubmit.mspx

"Kevin Young" <KY_NNTP.NoSPAM.msn.com> wrote in message
news:268E7E56-BEE9-47C1-961E-...
> I'm quite happy with Windows Vista and have it on 4 machines. I recently
> bought a new HP mini note and was going to upgrade from the OEM Vista
> Business that came on the machine to Vista Ultimate, that is until I
> checked
> out the Canadian pricing for an Anytime upgrade. Microsoft wants us to
> pay
> $179 to move from business to ultimate which seems like a ridiculous
> amount.
> In checking out alternatives I noted that I can buy OEM Ultimate here for
> $209 or OEM Business for $165, so one would expect to pay some where
> around
> $45 more to upgrade not 4 times that amount. Even at retail pricing the
> price for full Vista Ultimate with SP 1 here is $329 and Vista Business
> with
> SP 1 is $299 a difference of $30, so how does Microsoft get off on
> charging
> $179 to upgrade from Business to Ultimate. I could see a small up charge
> say charging $60 but $179? This pricing is a total rip off! Needless to
> say this install will not be getting upgraded.

On Mon, 30 Jun 2008 16:53:23 -0600, "Kevin Young"
<KY_NNTP.NoSPAM.msn.com> wrote:

> I'm quite happy with Windows Vista and have it on 4 machines. I recently
> bought a new HP mini note and was going to upgrade from the OEM Vista
> Business that came on the machine to Vista Ultimate, that is until I checked
> out the Canadian pricing for an Anytime upgrade. Microsoft wants us to pay
> $179 to move from business to ultimate which seems like a ridiculous amount.
> In checking out alternatives I noted that I can buy OEM Ultimate here for
> $209 or OEM Business for $165, so one would expect to pay some where around
> $45 more to upgrade not 4 times that amount. Even at retail pricing the
> price for full Vista Ultimate with SP 1 here is $329 and Vista Business with
> SP 1 is $299 a difference of $30, so how does Microsoft get off on charging
> $179 to upgrade from Business to Ultimate. I could see a small up charge
> say charging $60 but $179? This pricing is a total rip off! Needless to
> say this install will not be getting upgraded.


I understand your frustration, but I suggest that you complain to
Microsoft about it, not us. None of us here can do anything about
Microsoft's pricing, and all you are doing is cluttering up a
newsgroup which exists for the purpose of helping people with Vista
technical problems.

--
Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience
Please Reply to the Newsgroup

"Ken Blake, MVP" <> wrote in message
news:...
> On Mon, 30 Jun 2008 16:53:23 -0600, "Kevin Young"
> <KY_NNTP.NoSPAM.msn.com> wrote:
>
>> I'm quite happy with Windows Vista and have it on 4 machines. I recently
>> bought a new HP mini note and was going to upgrade from the OEM Vista
>> Business that came on the machine to Vista Ultimate, that is until I
>> checked
>> out the Canadian pricing for an Anytime upgrade. Microsoft wants us to
>> pay
>> $179 to move from business to ultimate which seems like a ridiculous
>> amount.
>> In checking out alternatives I noted that I can buy OEM Ultimate here for
>> $209 or OEM Business for $165, so one would expect to pay some where
>> around
>> $45 more to upgrade not 4 times that amount. Even at retail pricing the
>> price for full Vista Ultimate with SP 1 here is $329 and Vista Business
>> with
>> SP 1 is $299 a difference of $30, so how does Microsoft get off on
>> charging
>> $179 to upgrade from Business to Ultimate. I could see a small up charge
>> say charging $60 but $179? This pricing is a total rip off! Needless to
>> say this install will not be getting upgraded.
>
>
> I understand your frustration, but I suggest that you complain to
> Microsoft about it, not us. None of us here can do anything about
> Microsoft's pricing, and all you are doing is cluttering up a
> newsgroup which exists for the purpose of helping people with Vista
> technical problems.
>
> --
> Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience
> Please Reply to the Newsgroup

I may in your view be cluttering up a newsgroup with my message but at least
it might alert others to the scam that Vista Anytime Upgrades appear to be.
This is the Vista.General newsgroup not the Vista.General.TechnicalProblems
newsgroup so I would suggest my message is on topic since it refers to a
general issue about Vista. Don't worry, my concerns will certainly be voice
directly to Microsoft but don't kid yourself that MS doesn't monitor
messages in these groups. They may not respond but they do read them.

Yet you weren't scammed, as you didn't do the upgrade.
You need to look up the word "scam".
Some may find value in doing the upgrade from the convenience of their PC.


"Kevin Young" <KY_NNTP.NoSPAM.msn.com> wrote in message
news:1EE48052-9E4A-4CFE-9AB2-...
>
> I may in your view be cluttering up a newsgroup with my message but at
> least it might alert others to the scam that Vista Anytime Upgrades appear
> to be. This is the Vista.General newsgroup not the
> Vista.General.TechnicalProblems newsgroup so I would suggest my message is
> on topic since it refers to a general issue about Vista. Don't worry, my
> concerns will certainly be voice directly to Microsoft but don't kid
> yourself that MS doesn't monitor messages in these groups. They may not
> respond but they do read them.
>

You can't do the upgrade from the convenience of your PC since SP 1 was
released you can only order it. They ship you the media now when you do an
Anytime Upgrade so the convenience is? Perhaps taking 4 times the amount
that they should be from you? As for the term "scam" I concede they are not
doing anything fraudulent but is this pricing what others would consider the
way you would fairly charge the very customers that are supporting you and
your products? Charge them 400% more than the difference between OEM or
Retail pricing of the two versions.


"Hobbes" <> wrote in message news:g4c3ar$v4g$...
> Yet you weren't scammed, as you didn't do the upgrade.
> You need to look up the word "scam".
> Some may find value in doing the upgrade from the convenience of their PC.
>
>
> "Kevin Young" <KY_NNTP.NoSPAM.msn.com> wrote in message
> news:1EE48052-9E4A-4CFE-9AB2-...
>>
>> I may in your view be cluttering up a newsgroup with my message but at
>> least it might alert others to the scam that Vista Anytime Upgrades
>> appear to be. This is the Vista.General newsgroup not the
>> Vista.General.TechnicalProblems newsgroup so I would suggest my message
>> is on topic since it refers to a general issue about Vista. Don't worry,
>> my concerns will certainly be voice directly to Microsoft but don't kid
>> yourself that MS doesn't monitor messages in these groups. They may not
>> respond but they do read them.
>>
>

On Jun 30, 10:48*pm, "Kevin Young" <KY_NNTP.NoSPAM.msn.com> wrote:
> You can't do the upgrade from the convenience of your PC since SP 1 was
> released you can only order it. *They ship you the media now when you doan
> Anytime Upgrade so the convenience is? *Perhaps taking 4 times the amount
> that they should be from you? *As for the term "scam" I concede they arenot
> doing anything fraudulent but is this pricing what others would consider the
> way you would fairly charge the very customers that are supporting you and
> your products? *Charge them 400% more than the difference between OEM or
> Retail pricing of the two versions.
>
>
>
> "Hobbes" <Hob...@Calvins.lol> wrote in messagenews:g4c3ar$v4g$....
> > Yet you weren't scammed, as you didn't do the upgrade.
> > You need to look up the word "scam".
> > Some may find value in doing the upgrade from the convenience of their PC.
>
> > "Kevin Young" <KY_NNTP.NoSPAM.msn.com> wrote in message
> >news:1EE48052-9E4A-4CFE-9AB2-...
>
> >> I may in your view be cluttering up a newsgroup with my message but at
> >> least it might alert others to the scam that Vista Anytime Upgrades
> >> appear to be. This is the Vista.General newsgroup not the
> >> Vista.General.TechnicalProblems newsgroup so I would suggest my message
> >> is on topic since it refers to a general issue about Vista. *Don't worry,
> >> my concerns will certainly be voice directly to Microsoft but don't kid
> >> yourself that MS doesn't monitor messages in these groups. *They may not
> >> respond but they do read them.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

It might not be a rip off . Your Vista business is a OEM version and
to upgrade to the Ultimate is it a retail or OEM ? If its OEM ? Then
it's a rip off but if it's a retail ? Then that a good price . Brand
name computers are so cheap regardless what OS they have on it . They
get those OEM OS so cheap and that why the price to upgrade is like
that .

On Mon, 30 Jun 2008 22:04:11 -0400, "Hobbes" <>
wrote:

>Yet you weren't scammed, as you didn't do the upgrade.
>You need to look up the word "scam".

You need to look up the word jackass. Alternatively just go to Goggle
and read back some of the crap you recently wrote. THAT is being a
jackass.

<> wrote in message
news:571bea7d-2110-4b7d-a730-...
> On Jun 30, 10:48 pm, "Kevin Young" <KY_NNTP.NoSPAM.msn.com> wrote:
>> You can't do the upgrade from the convenience of your PC since SP 1 was
>> released you can only order it. They ship you the media now when you do
>> an
>> Anytime Upgrade so the convenience is? Perhaps taking 4 times the amount
>> that they should be from you? As for the term "scam" I concede they are
>> not
>> doing anything fraudulent but is this pricing what others would consider
>> the
>> way you would fairly charge the very customers that are supporting you
>> and
>> your products? Charge them 400% more than the difference between OEM or
>> Retail pricing of the two versions.
>>
>
> It might not be a rip off . Your Vista business is a OEM version and
> to upgrade to the Ultimate is it a retail or OEM ? If its OEM ? Then
> it's a rip off but if it's a retail ? Then that a good price . Brand
> name computers are so cheap regardless what OS they have on it . They
> get those OEM OS so cheap and that why the price to upgrade is like
> that .

Unlike OEM you can transfer the Anytime Upgrade (Business to Ultimate) to
another PC but in order to do so you need to have a Vista Business license
on the other machine. You are essentially giving up a license to Business
when you do an Anytime Upgrade to Ultimate. What essentially MS is doing
is charging you a price as though you never bought a machine with Vista in
the first place. For example the Anytime Upgrade where you give up your
license to Business costs $179. An upgrade to Ultimate from XP or an
earlier version of Windows only costs $199. So under this scenario they are
giving you $20 for your license to Vista Business. The full OEM version of
Ultimate is $209 here so in effect under that scenario they are giving you
$30 for your OEM version of Vista Business. Yet go to buy Vista Business
OEM through computer shops and it is $165. If it is worth $165 when I go to
buy it why is it only worth $20 to $30 when I go to upgrade it. On the
other hand maybe what they are saying is that is all it is worth, scary
thought! I actually bought a Vista Business to Ultimate upgrade in the
past when it was priced right around $100 but now it is just about double
that and at the same time the retail prices of Vista have been dropping. I
would like to be able to give MS the benefit of the doubt but in this case I
think they are way over charging the very customers that support them. With
all the bad press that Vista has received surely you'd think they would want
to keep their supporters happy not over charge them and even turn them off
the company.

Ringmaster wrote:

> On Mon, 30 Jun 2008 22:04:11 -0400, "Hobbes" <>
> wrote:
>
>
>>Yet you weren't scammed, as you didn't do the upgrade.
>>You need to look up the word "scam".
>
>
> You need to look up the word jackass.

jackass=adam albright.
Simple huh?