Best Buy To Carve Out Space For Microsoft Stores 214
UnknowingFool writes "Best Buy and Microsoft will launch 600 Microsoft stores within Best Buy retail locations in a store-within-a-store concept. The Microsoft stores will occupy 1500-2000 sq ft within each location. The terms of the deal are not announced, but I assume it benefits both as Best Buy would likely charge rent to help with declining revenue. For Microsoft, they may get cheaper facilities than building their own stores. The last I heard, MS had a very ambitious plan to launch hundreds of stores a year. I have doubts about the success of this venture, considering anecdotally almost every MS store I've seen in my travels was nearly empty. Since they all were located near Apple stores, the stark difference in foot traffic was apparent. The only exception was the MS store near Redmond, which had a decent crowd."
Windows 9? (Score:5, Insightful)
Inferiority complex (Score:5, Insightful)
Microsoft seems to have this strange idea that their name carries as much weight as Apple's in the public eye. People go to the Apple Store because Apple knows their products inside-out and in the eyes of their customers, the products sell themselves.
Microsoft, on the other hand, has users that use their products because they think they have to, and has no way to match Apple's ability to offer the entire current Apple world under one small roof.
If Microsoft wants to be the company that people are excited to see what their new product will be, they've got a long way to go towards repairing their image. They'll have to become an innovative company that brings new things to the table. And no, I don't mean support for new things that someone announced something just like it months or years ago.
Makes sense... (Score:4, Insightful)
They did a similar thing for Apple. I don't know why BestBuy changing its floor plan is newsworthy.
Next thing you know they may have a game section with all the Xbox related stuff separated from the Playstation and Wii stuff, or better yet have a mobile phone store within a store... oh wait.
Re:Windows 9? (Score:5, Insightful)
Now they just need a decent product to sell in that store-within-a-store.
Xbox One + Accessories
Surface + Accessories
Nokia Smart Phones
There, I've given you three decent products. Argue all you want about flaws and capabilities but they are still solid products that will meet the needs of 90% of their users (i.e. non-geeks). If you meant a blockbuster product.... well... that's a different story....
Re:Juxtaposed store signs? (Score:5, Insightful)
Haha you shop at BestBuy!
Everyone point and laugh!
BTW Would you like to buy a service plan with that ink cartridge or movie?
Re:Windows 9? (Score:4, Insightful)
Xbox One + Accessories
Surface + Accessories
Nokia Smart Phones
He said "decent". It also helps if they exist and are for sale.
Seriously...
The first isn't even RTM yet (and the gamers are currently screaming about how they're all gonna buy PS4s because of the stupid DRM).
The second? Which one? The one that can actually run "my Windows software", or the one whose screen/UI looks just like it but doesn't run "my Windows software"?
The third? Okay, maybe, if it didn't have to compete with those massive Android and iOS ecosystems.