Microsoft hit after it delays launch of Vista
Microsoft has come under attack from the stock market and industry watchers after it again delayed the launch of Vista.
Microsoft has come under attack from the stock market and industry watchers after the world's biggest software company again delayed the launch of its latest operating system, Vista.
In trading on the Nasdaq exchange, Microsoft's share price was down 2.67 percent at $27.00 dollars on Wednesday following the company's announcement late on Tuesday.
Microsoft said its much-heralded Vista platform will only be launched to the public in January, two months after it is offered to major corporate clients.
The delay means Microsoft and personal computer makers will miss out on lucrative end-of-year holiday sales, as customers who want to upgrade their PCs from the five-year-old XP system are kept waiting.
Analysts said that for an industry that relies on relentless innovation to power sales and earnings, the delay to a system touted as the best platform for the multimedia age is bad news.
"It's certainly disappointing for the PC manufacturers that had hoped Vista would help holiday sales, and this is a flagship product that already had been plagued by a number of delays," said Matt Rosoff of the independent consultancy Directions on Microsoft.
"It's nothing that's going to harm the company in the long run, but it's definitely a setback."
Among major PC makers, Dell's share price was 0.07 per cent lower at 30.
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