You can't get to a billion upgrades without making a few enemies, but Microsoft has found that its aggressive Windows 10 push might have gone a bit too far: After losing a lawsuit, the company has stated that it will make the Windows 10 free upgrade prompts clearer and less persistant.
As the Seattle Times reports, Teri Goldstein said that her travel agency relied on a computer that, without Goldstein's permission, started upgrading itself to Windows 10. The upgrade failed, bringing her computer — and business — to a halt, sometimes for days at a time.
She won a $10,000 judgment, a tough precedent for Microsoft given the scale of the Windows 10 rollout.
Whether it was that judgment or other user pushback, Microsoft has begun to soften its approach to pushing Windows 10, according to a statement released by the company. As posted by Mary Jo Foley, Terry Myerson, executive vice president of the Windows and Devices Group, said that the prompts would be clearer and less persistent, as soon as later this week:
Our most important priority for Windows 10 is for everyone to love Windows. Since we introduced a new upgrade experience for Windows 10, we've received feedback that some of our valued customers found it confusing. We've been working hard to incorporate their feedback and this week, we'll roll out a new upgrade experience with clear options to upgrade now, schedule a time, or decline the free offer. The 'Red X' at the top corner of the dialogue box will now simply dismiss the reminder and will not initiate the upgrade. We'll continue to be led by your feedback and always, earning and maintaining your trust is our commitment and priority. We recommend people upgrade to Windows 10 as it's the most secure version of Windows and take advantage of the free upgrade offer before it ends on July 29.
What do you think? Is going with a lighter touch a good move by Microsoft, or does the whole ecosystem benefit when folks are brought on board Windows 10? Let me know in the comments.
