Windows 7 Family Pack Confirmed

[Singh400]

A special thank you to our beta testers is needed for their time and effort in helping make Windows 7 a solid release. The special pre-order offer we did offering Windows 7 Home Premium and Windows 7 Professional at almost 50% discount was done with our beta testers in mind. And many of you jumped at the chance to take advantage of this deal – thank you!

I know there have been some rumors going around about a “family pack” for Windows 7. We have heard a lot of feedback from beta testers and enthusiasts over the last 3 years that we need a better solution for homes with multiple PCs. I’m happy to confirm that we will indeed be offering a family pack of Windows 7 Home Premium (in select markets) which will allow installation on up to 3 PCs. As I’ve said before, stay tuned to our blog for more information on this and any other potential offers.

Beta testers will not automatically receive a free copy of Windows 7. Many beta testers are already subscribers to TechNet; those of you who fit that description will be able to download Windows 7 RTM shortly after RTM happens for free as part of your subscription.

However, if you don’t have TechNet and are waiting for GA (to either purchase Windows 7 or wait for your pre-order to arrive) you can continue to use the RC. In fact, you can continue to use it until it expires on June 1st, 2010 (expiration actually starts March 1, 2010, this is when the reboots start).

While our special pre-order offer with the near 50% has ended, Windows 7 can still be pre-ordered today from the various online retailers (including the Microsoft Store).

We are also going to release an evaluation of Windows 7 Professional for IT Professionals via the Springboard Series shortly after RTM. Over 40% of beta testers are IT Professionals and this will allow them to quickly access the RTM code and plan for deployments.

Great stuff!

[2Cold Scorpio]

Cool! It won't do me much good since I intend on getting Win7 Professional on my main rig, but I do know a few folks who might benefit from this. Glad Microsoft did this; if nothing else, it gives the Macheads one less thing to brag about.

[Salazaar]

Aren't there questions as to whether the family pack makes it to Europe...?

[CaptainCrash]

Yes, it's been suggested that MS will withold the family pack from European customers in a fit of pique.

Also, the wording of the EULA for the family pack isn't yet clear - if it's three full unrestricted licences then all well and good, but if it's something more akin to an OEM licence (where each installation is irrevocably tied to a particular machine), it would be rather less attractive.

[Singh400]

More news on the Windows 7 Family Pack...

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Now let’s talk about the Windows 7 Family Pack. Last week I confirmed we were doing a family pack for Windows 7 consisting of Windows 7 Home Premium for installation on up to 3 PCs.



Today, most homes have more than one PC in them. When you run Windows 7 on more than one PC on a home network, you can do more with features like HomeGroup. HomeGroup allows people to connect to PCs on their network and share files, music and photos with the whole family – easily. The Windows 7 Family Pack is an easy and affordable way to get all your PCs in your household running Windows 7 through licensing to install Windows 7 Home Premium on up to 3 PCs.

The Windows 7 Family Pack will be available starting on October 22nd until supplies last here in the US and other select markets. In the US, the price for the Windows 7 Family Pack will be $149.99 for 3 Windows 7 Home Premium licenses. That’s a savings of more than $200 for three licenses. This is a great value and we’re excited to be able to offer it to customers.

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