Windows 7 Has Sold 400 Million Licenses Since Launch

In February of last year, Microsoft hit a major milestone with its Windows 7 OS – 60 million sold. That milestone was reached less than six months after its launch, and as a result, Windows 7 became the fastest-selling OS of all time. Momentum didn’t slow afterwards, however, as about five months later, Microsoft boasted 150 million sold – a simply mind-blowing number given the shunning Microsoft’s previous Windows iteration received.

At Microsoft’s ongoing Worldwide Partner Conference in Los Angeles, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer had an even bigger number to brag about; 400,000,000. By comparison, it took Microsoft about two-and-a-half years to sell 210 million licenses of Windows XP, and sixteen months to sell 180 million Windows Vista licenses.

As successful as Windows 7 is, Microsoft doesn’t see reason for slowdown. Corporate Vice President and CFO of Windows and Windows Live, Tami Reller, cemented that fact by saying that there are still 200 million Windows XP users worldwide, and the best possible way to have a clear path to Windows 8 is to be equipped with Windows 7. Well, let’s be fair, of course Microsoft is going to say that.

There’s no denying that the momentum of sales has been nothing but impressive, but I’m curious to see whether or not that momentum will begin to slow as the year continues on. Though sales will undoubtedly remain to be solid for pre-built PCs and notebooks, Windows 8’s prospective launch next spring might be hard to ignore. After all, it’s no fun upgrading a piece of software just to have to update it less than a year later.

I’m not the biggest Windows fan out there, but I have to give kudos where it’s due. Microsoft righted most of the wrongs with Vista (but still far from all), and I’d easily consider it the best version of Windows ever released in many ways.