Microsoft Planning to Gouge Mac Users Wanting to Run Vista

It appears that Microsoft is planning to charge a premium for Mac users wanting to run its upcoming Vista operating system using virtualization. AppleInsider reported earlier this week that Vista’s licensing agreement states that its users “may not use the software installed on the licensed device within a virtual (or otherwise emulated) hardware system.”

Instead, Microsoft apparently plans to require users to purchase a Vista Business or Vista Ultimate license (expected retail prices of $299 and $399 respectively) in order to emulate the Windows environment. That type of license allows you to “use the software installed on the licensed device within a virtual (or otherwise emulated) hardware system on the licensed device.”

While Apple’s Boot Camp software allows Intel Macs to run Windows operating systems natively and without the need for emulation, most users appear to favor virtualization solutions, such as Parallels. Boot Camp allows users to run either Mac OS X or Windows when they start up their machines, but virtualization solutions allow both operating systems to run simultaneously.

It appears to me that while Apple is working to make its computers and operating systems more available to everyone, Microsoft is doing the opposite. Is this a case of Microsoft beginning to acknowlege the heat that Macs are putting on PCs, or is this simply a case of Microsoft trying to gouge as much money as it can at every turn?

Source: “Microsoft Seeks Premium to Allow Virtualization of Vista” published at AppleInsider.