Microsoft touts new online store as a netbook complement

Microsoft launched in the U.S. this week its online software store and is touting it as one way for netbook PC users who don't have optical drives to more easily obtain software.

The Microsoft Store, which opened for business here on November 13, allows users to purchase and download Microsoft hardware and software -- games, keyboards, games and gaming consoles, Windows (client and server versions), Office and development tools. It doesn't stock business applications like SQL Server, System Center, SharePoint Server, etc., which tend to be products purchased via resellers and/or volume-license agreements.

Microsoft Senior Program Manager Trevin Chow highlighted the appeal of electronic software distribution (ESD) -- especially for the growing number of netbook users -- in a November 13 entry on his personal blog:

"(I)n a world where lighter weight laptops, such as  netbooks, are becoming more common, ESD makes things easier when an optical drive isn’t easily accessible. The first thing I do when I setup a new machine at home, is to run Windows update, and download all the freeware I use such as 7-zip. By extending ESD to Microsoft software, we’re able to increase convenience across the board for a variety of customers, regardless of whether they are using a speedy desktop gaming PC, or the latest netbook."

The Microsoft Store didn't materialize out of thin air. Microsoft has been operating electronic-distribution sites in the UK, Germany and Korea for some time now.

Microsoft also has been testing the electronic-software-distribution concept for several years via its Windows Marketplace effort. Windows Marketplace is an online store that relies on Microsoft's "digital locker" technology to "purchase & download hundreds of software titles from multiple resellers." The digital locker stored customers' product keys and purchase information so they could backup and reinstall software from a single location.

I'm not sure whether the Microsoft Store will replace Windows Marketplace. (Currently, the Marketplace site is still live.) I'm also not clear whether the Microsoft Store uses the same digital locker technology as Marketplace. I've asked Microsoft for more information on these two questions and will update this post once I have answers.

Update: The short answers: Yes, Marketplace is being replaced by the Microsoft Store. And digital locker is going away, too. See the end of this post for full details.

The new Microsoft Store also allows users to re-download and reinstall software they've purchased until mainstream support for the product ends. "Typically this is 5 years after the product is released," said Chow in his blog entry.

Would you be willing to buy Microsoft products via an online store? Any Windows Marketplace users or Microsoft Store users overseas have any previous experience with Microsoft ESD to report?

Here are Microsoft's answers to my questions, which I received at the end of the day Friday via a company spokesperson:

Does Microsoft plan to do away with Windows Marketplace now that it has launched its own online software store in the U.S.?

With the launch of the Microsoft Store, Windows Marketplace will shut down as an ecommerce site.  Marketplace will transition from an ecommerce and referral site to a static web page that will refer customers to sites such as Microsoft Store, Windows Vista Compatibility Center, and other appropriate destinations.

Does the online store use the same Digital Locker technology that Windows Marketplace pioneered? 

We will keep the Digital Locker service running for at least 9 more months.  In that time, we will send out email and web communications to help customers transition away from the Digital Locker.

Is it fair to call the new Online store the successor to Windows Marketplace, or the next gen of the marketplace?

Yes