Microsoft Backtracks On Windows 8.1 Availability, Developers Can Get It Now

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In late August, Microsoft announced that Windows 8.1 was shipping out to OEMs. Within the same announcement, Microsoft said that subscribers to its MSDN or TechNet services doesn’t get early copies of Windows 8.1. As we learned from the Xbox One debacle, however, Microsoft will relent when enough people complain.

Microsoft announced today that Windows 8.1 RTM is now available to subscribers to MSDN and TechNet. This ensures that developers get a head start on making apps for Windows 8.1 before it launches to consumers in October.

So, what changed between late August and now? The folks who pay Microsoft an annual fee rightly complained that obtaining Windows 8.1 mutually as everybody else was unfair and, frankly, really stupid.

Here’s what Microsoft’s Steven Guggenheimer needed to say about it:

We heard from you that our decision not to initially release Windows 8.1 or Windows Server 2012 R2 RTM bits was a large challenge for our developer partners as they’re readying new Windows 8.1 apps and for IT professionals who’re preparing for Windows 8.1 deployments. We’ve listened, we value your partnership, and we’re adjusting in response to your feedback. As we refine our delivery schedules for a more rapid release cadence, we’re engaged on tips on how to support early releases to many of the audiences within our ecosystem.

As you will discover above, Microsoft apparently didn’t know the way to best approach developer needs because it moved to a rapid release schedule. Sure, developers could download the Windows 8.1 Preview, however didn’t give them the total feature set that OEMs got in late August. Perhaps Microsoft felt that the Windows 8.1 Preview was enough, but that line of thinking makes a MSDN or TechNet subscription completely unnecessary. Giving Windows 8.1 to developers now will instill some faith lost in Microsoft after the corporate initially announced its launch plans.

On a last note, Windows 8.1 isn’t the one early release that developers can come up with through their subscription. They could also download Windows 8.1 Pro, Windows Server 2012 R2 RTM and visible Studio 2013 Release Candidate. The Windows builds could be downloaded only through your MSDN or TechNet subscription, however the Visual Studio 2013 RC may be downloaded by anyone. You are able to grab that here.

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