Windows 7 Ends Up On Torrent Sites - Leaked By Microsoft!?

A beta version of Windows 7 (Build 7000 of Ultimate) has been spreading around shady torrent sites like wildfire and it looks like Microsoft has deliberately leaked it into the hands of pirates…

What might seem as a big mistake - or possibly even a trap - is actually a great marketing strategy, now that you come to think of it! Here’s why:

• The timing is great - the leaked copy of Seven hit the internet just after Christmas when bloggers had nothing better to write about and the leak (and Windows 7) got a lot of attention.
• The official beta release will come out some time in January and this trial version will give people a good sniff at what they’ll be getting.
• Microsoft gets ahead of Apple. An early version of Snow Leopard is to be released at Macworld, so  Microsoft is happy to let potential customers see Seven a few weeks earlier.
• The leaked build will get a lot of buzz and interest in developments of Beta 1

Microsoft is usually very angry at piracy, especially for unreleased software, but this time they have decided to turn a blind eye.

Joe Wilcox, at Microsoft Watch, agrees:

Was this a craftily timed Microsoft marketing leak?

I sure as hell think so. It’s certainly what I would do if I worked at Microsoft on Windows evangelism. The timing is perfect, from a marketing perspective. The leaked build hit BitTorrent sometime on Saturday, right after Christmas when the Windows geeks had nothing better to do and bloggers and journalists had nothing better to write about. The leaked build is designated “7000,” which strongly suggests that the code is the same as forthcoming Beta 1, or close to it.

All the evidence supports this theory. If Microsoft didn’t leak it, they should have.

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