The Economic Impact of Microsoft Windows Vista

This Paper quantifies the forecasted economic impact the Microsoft Windows Vista operating system will have on a region consisting of six European countries: Denmark, France, Germany, Poland, Spain, and the United Kingdom. The impact is seen in IT employment and in revenues to local firms. It is based on an IDC methodology that has been applied over the last several years to more than 40 countries. Because of the use of different currencies in the region, figures are quoted in euro. The availability of Windows Vista, Microsoft's first major new operating system released for PCs since Windows XP appeared in 2001, will begin in late 2006 with the launch of an enterprise version for selected customers and will continue through 2007.