Slashdot Mirror
Microsoft Teaming up with RadioShack
ViceClown writes "Microsoft is teaming up with RadioShack in a sweeping 5 year deal to set up Microsoft 'stores' inside RadioShack brick and morter shops. Customers will be able to view demonstrations and sign up for MSN internet access. "
Every time i buy something at RadioShack, they make me tell them my name on phone number. Microsoft seems to support the same general idea, expecially with this new Windows 2000 pricing scheme of theirs.
This is the best news ever!
Here are two reasons:
1) It have wished and wished for an R/C Car that had a 'start' button. Maybe it will even shutdown and require a reboot every two laps.
2) I always hate being able to go to a store that has all the cool electronic bits and peices I want but never carries a good copy of "learning Win98." I mean, who in their right mind solders breadboard chips and circuits without their trusty Win98 for dummies books?
-Davidu
# Hack the planet, it's important.
Lets see:
Spyglass was to share the profits from the sale of Internet Explorer.
Digital was to benefit from NT. (Oh, and NT was going to be VMS done right.)
Sybase was going to benefit from its SQL partnership with M$.
Microfocus was offered a deal. M$ was to take 10% of its cash across the whole product line so Microsoft would keep selling its COBOL product.
Microsoft has a history of leaving its partners in worse shape than before they started.
Now, I'm waiting for Radio Shack to get the short sticky brown end of the stick. Cuz thats the end most EVERYONE else has gotten.
If it was said on slashdot, it MUST be true!
This is a good thing for Microsoft to do. Creating partnerships is a good way to benefit from the markets that the other company has.
Hopefully Radio Shack did this out of their own will and because Microsoft told them that if they didn't Radio Shack would be out of business in 3 years. Microsoft wouldn't violate anti-trust laws just after the Judge released the FoF documenting their transgressions in they past, would they?
Nah...
-Brent--
This is a good thing for Microsoft to do. Creating partnerships is a good way to benefit from the markets that the other company has.
Hopefully Radio Shack did this out of their own will and *not* because Microsoft told them that if they didn't Radio Shack would be out of business in 3 years. Microsoft wouldn't violate anti-trust laws just after the Judge released the FoF documenting their transgressions in they past, would they?
Nah...
-Brent--
Usually I would agree with you that something is going on but I seem to recall MSNBC getting the big anti-MS stories first and not putting on the kid gloves at all. I'm sure they wouldn't report about really bad stuff first, but then again none of the network news entities would report about bad news for the parent corps so they're not alone.
On a slightly related note, did anybody watch the "Smoke in the Eye" Frontline episode a couple of weeks ago? It was a pretty damming account of the Big Tobacco vs. CBS debacle. It showed pretty plainly that the 60 Minutes/CBS lawyers didn't want to report a bad story about the tobacco industry so CBS wouldn't have a huge lawsuit in it's books when the higher ups were trying to sell it to Westinghouse. An excellent example of what can/does happen when giant corps own the conduits of the news.
- FIRST POST!!!
- Micro$oft sucks
- Ha, Linux is better
- <FLAME>NO YOU FOOL, USE BSD</FLAME>
Then the comments likely to be caused by this particular topic...- The Whores!!! I'll never shop there again
- Ha! the place was overpriced anyway!
OK then, unless you have something other than these comments, try to make it amusing...You are not me, therefore you are not important
Right ?
I wonder why MS simply doesn't set up an online store for all their software ? It isn't like stores will stop carrying MS product if they do. MS could catch some of that margin for themselves. Like they need the money.
Well, if Win 2000 is as crappy as the RC2 indicates it might be, then they may actually need every penny they can scrape up.
Win 2000's DNS server managed to destroy all the domain records on my intranet (Linux 2.2.5 Bind 4) when I started it...that was a neat trick. I know everyone on the Internet will want that feature. It is time to upgrade to BIND 8 people. Worse Win 2000 Server didn't give me the option NOT to install its DNS Manager. Win 2000RC2 also uses 30% more RAM on my system immediately after a system startup. (104MB with 2000RC2, 68MB on NT4 same hardware.)
Oops, this turned into an anti-Windows rant...sorry. Then again Win2K deserves it more than any Windows to-date. Beta or otherwise
Don't post innacurate information
If you do, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet I will end you.
When's RedHat, or ANYBODY involved with Linux, going to do the demonstration part????
That's the way buying computers used to work. You tried the Apple IIe, the Atari 800, and the Commodore 64 in your local department store, then picked the one you liked best.
Currently, consumers think they have no choice, Linux or no Linux, because they can't play with Linux in the store. If they could, then they could make an informed decision. Right now they have to go by the reviews on the Internet, which just isn't the same IMHO as actually getting down and trying the OS.
Now that all Intel instruction set based computers need not be the same, I think it's important to find a way to get Linux machines set up on display in major computer stores to help boost its growth even more.
Glückwünsche, haben Sie Slashdot ermordet, indem Sie zum korporativen Druck beugten und Subskriptionen einlei
Companies that have relied on agreement with Microsoft winding up getting screwed: Apple, IBM, SCO, H-P.
Radio shack is a retail outlet and might be a perfect host for Microsoft. Why would the software giant kill such a lucrative host that can push its warez? Radio Shack may be a poor place to buy parts (or anything else!) but they cater to the public and push credit so they may buy. Christmas shoppers and gift looking people for birthdays, etc., often find their catalogs attractive and take advantage of Radio Shack's offerings.
If you want electronics, there are many good places to find parts on the web. I'd rather take apart a television than go to the shack these days!
This turned out to be a big non event. It seems that the collective reaction has so far been: "So what?"
There was a lot of hype yesterday in the mainstream news. Both CNET and CNN were reporting breathlessly that some really really really big announcement from MS will be forthcoming tomorrow. Even Yahoo ran a little blurb.
It was going to be a major announcement about a mega-mega deal, I read yesterday, we promise.
And the announcement is ... [drumroll] ... Microsoft is going to sell stuff in Radio Shack.
Huh?
That's the big announcement?
By complete accident, I happen to find myself at www.radioshack.com earlier today (what a useless site, BTW). They had this splattered all over the home page. They had one of the fancy live webcast thingies going on.
Really, I must be missing something, but I don't see what the big deal is. The reason that only MSNBC is reporting on this, and only now, is because nobody else really cared about it, once they found out what was the big announcement.
--
Although this seems to make me an unusual Slashdotter, I actually liked Radio Shack. Yeah, their prices were often a bit high, but they had stuff I never managed to find anywhere else. Honestly, I challenge anyone here to give me the name of a store as widespread as RS that carries all the same stuff.
Now, Microsoft's ripping Apple off yet again (this deal looks disturbingly similar to Apple's Stores-Within-A-Store at CompUSA, Fry's, and Micro Center). It'll be interesting to see how they do this one.
I'm glad I live 20 minutes from Frys...
- ----------------
Hear hear!!!! Because we all know what excellent, knowledgeble salespeople work at Fry's!
I'm glad I live 40 minutes from Fry's!
-----------------------------------------
So. The worst consumer electronics chain in the world (Radio Shack) is teaming with the company that makes the most bloated software in the world (Microsoft) running on the most bloated hardware in the world (Compaq).
This is actually convenient. I can avoid everything at once.
dragonhawk@iname.microsoft.com
I do not like Microsoft. Remove them from my email address.
The articles I've read seem to say they'll be signing people up for MSN, selling people WebTV units and so on... Not selling the usual software, books, etc.
This is a pretty smart move. Selling Win98 in Radio Shack would probably not be a bit hit, but nowadays at least my local Radio Shacks are havens for clueless people who for some reason desperately need cell phones. Great audience for pushing the consumer connectivity stuff.
/* The beatings will continue until morale improves. */
I've got to wonder what the real angle on this is. What's the point of a "Microsoft store in a store"? It was a wise move for Apple, the alliance with CompUSA actually made software and hardware more available to a lot of people. In just about every store I've come across that sells software there's already a highly visible display unit with oodles of Microsoft software stacked up. So any market share they pick up will be miniscule (hard to get market share in the consumer arena when you're already at 98% or whatever) in exchange for 100 million dollars.
From the miniscule press release it sounds like they're trying to sell MS wireless and internet access but how many computers does Radio Shack really sell? Radio Shack isn't exactly the first place most people run to for finding an ISP either.
Microsoft doesn't usually make unwise marketing moves, so there's got to be an angle, I'm just not seeing it. Were there any other people trying to get their software or services in Radio Shack that Microsoft is effectively keeping out? Red Hat? Apple? AOL?
I think the really interesting point is not that Microsoft and Radio Shack are teaming up and Microsoft will now be everywhere. It is this:
... And customers gain end-to-end connectivity solutions from Microsoft and RadioShack -- brands Americans trust to make technology accessible and understandable."
/z ^4 198.162.1.1:24;=)
"...found a home connectivity partner, offering not just services but innovative technologies as well.
Where else in the country is there a place to go specifically for "home connectivity"? I know my house is connected, but I did that myself from hacking together DSS, Cable Modem and a nifty little p90 linux gateway. But what do you do when you're joe schmoe, and don't have the knowledge to do it yourself?
Now the average guy may have somewhere to go to get it all in one package. Sprint, Microsoft, RCA, etc... One stop shopping for all the hardware and software to wire your home. All run by a simple Microsoft interface.
This may actually be a good thing. Something my mother could do. What's easier to understand? This:
1) install linux
2) configure network scripts to run dhcpcd
3) Setup dhcpd sever on eth1
4) ipchains -q
5) debug terminal
6) and the list goes on...
or this:
1) push power
2) push start button.
3) Something bad happens, repeat.
Us dorks might have Architecture issues with the system, but the average guy just wants it to work.
"You want to kiss the sky? Better learn how to kneel." - U2
"It was like trying to herd cats..." - Robert A. Heinlein
Sig:
Barbeque is a noun. Not a verb.
I was always confused about their choice of words.
- ---------------
SHACK, after all, evokes imagery of a crappy,
run-down, outhouse type of thing. Well, it's
appropriate but not a very strategic marketing move.
I think Microsoft should change their name
to reflect the partnership. Junk-ass-stuff, or
Dubious-Morals-Software, Inc. Something like that.
------------------------------------------
Hmm.
public class SlashdotRant
{
public static void main (String[] args)
{ String microsoft, radioshack;
if ((microsoft == overpriced_software) && (radioshack == overpriced_hardware))
{
microsoft + radioshack = worst of both worlds;
}
else
{
System.out.println ("It's still not worth it. Shop somewhere else.");
}
}
}
Woohoo. Posting in java. I feel like a geek, and I love it!
I always considered Windows to be a migraine in a box and RadioShack to be an invasion of my privacy- I'm sorry, but I shouldn't have to tell you where I live to buy a damned patch cable: it's not Plutonium or an AK47! Screw legality- if a company wants to be nosy, they're going to drag me kicking and screaming. I buy at RS, and when the inevitable question comes up, I do one of two things, depending on how generous I'm feeling:
1. Lie.
2. "Sorry, that's not something I have to give you. If you want to push it, I'll take my business elsewhere."
Number one has the effect of pissing off the schlepp that lives in my old apartment. Number two has always gotten me out quick, with item in hand.
Seriously, I fail to see how this is a good thing. Bookstores and computer stores are already swamped in MS books and paraphenalia- a partnership w/ RS is only increasing their reach into one area they don't control. Isn't this spreading the monopoly?
When I think "quality", MS is the last thing on my list- why RS would want to promote a substandard product is beyond me. Since the whole environment of the store seems to be more for electronics hobbyists and people trying to connect their cuisinart to their Dreamcast through their Amiga, one would think it an ideal environment for Linux.
Combining a desktop monopoly with the vast database of customers that Radio Shack has is a disturbing thought. Microsoft wanting to get their mitts into that, possibly? Ouch. "Sympathy for Microsoft!" junk mail, anyone? Anyone?
Only Death is Silence.
Acceptance is Surrender.
Radio Shack has always sucked, as has MTV. Ok, at one point back in the early 80's MTV sucked _less_ but it still sucked.
Microsoft has always sucked too, so I can see the commercials now:
Hey! You got your Microsoft in my Radio Shack. No, you got your Radio Shack in my Microsoft! (voice over) MS RadioShack! Two sucky things that suck tgoether!
I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?
I used to work at "the shack" and was always amazed at the boneheaded things they would come up with. First was DCC (Digital Compact Cassette) which lasted about as long as the VIS (Video Information System - roughly a 286 with a CD and some game controllers running Windows 2.x). Both failed miserably. The only thing RS has ever had in their stores the past few years that did anything was Sprint. They don't have a single thing (except parts - and not a whole lot of those any more) that really excites me in their catalog. I can run down to Best Buy, the higher end AV store, or the local ham radio store and get much better stuff in the long run.
I guess what I am getting to is this - just because it is Radio Shack and their 6000+ stores does not make this a good deal for either party. RS is becomming more and more of a K-mart/TG&Y like place. You ain't gonna find the top quality stuff there, and everybody knows it. If MS wants to be associated with that image, more power to them.
Stability? Performance?
Get real!
Get Realistic OS!
;)
10) Transistors all run WinCE, quintupled in size.
9) Sound level meter now constantly asks "Are you sure you want to use that decible setting"?
8) RC cars now automatically attempt to seek and destroy nearest DOJ agent.
7) Old Tandy computers are back, running Microsoft BobCE (tm) as ther OS. Dual processor models availaible, in the BobCE Twin model...
6) Now asked for name, address, and full list of licenced Microsoft products in house.
5) Salesmen required to wear Microsoft Bob masks to appear more friendly.
4) Required to show proof of MSCE to buy most electronics.
3) Radio Shack computers now overpriced and unreliable - the more things change, the more they stay the same.
2) New Microsoft demo of Microsoft Laser Pointer 2000 accidentially blinds entire mall security force.
1) New toy of the year - RC Paperclip.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Almost all of the comments I have seen completely miss the reason why Microsoft is doing this deal...
It's the connectivity, stupid! Microsoft has invested millions already into companies that provide cable modems... they have also invested heavily in DSL companies such as Northpoint, who signed a deal with Tandy/Radio Shack to market their wares in Radio Shack.. what that means is that Microsoft's fledgling DSL service can work with Northpoint's national DSL service in offering high-speed connectivity across the nation, and of course the default ISP for these "great deals" will be MSN. Radio Shack will have their own install trucks and personnel to bring DSL to the masses, probably using the newest, most consumer-friendly type of DSL which allows respectable bandwidth and telephone calls over the same line. In other words, Microsoft wants to dominate your desktop, your web browser, your gate way to the net, and even make a profit off of getting you connected.
Contrary to what some people think, DSL is a good thing, and getting a lot better real soon. Sure there is the possibility of fast access on cable modems, assuming that all your neighbors don't want on the 'net too... but do you really want to share your bandwidth (and your "secure" network) with Billy down the street? Already, there is information showing that DSL is faster than cable modems during evening hours. Why? Because little Billy is watching that streaming porn again...
Personally, I hope a lot of you are right and that this flops, but I suspect that many drones will jump on the bandwagon once the price range hits about $40 a month... Hey! They can offer three months of free service with every upgrade to Windows 2000! Whee. The idea of using a good DSL modem to deliver MSN is kinda repulsive, no?!? It's like racing your new sports car with the great paint job over gravel roads. Pretty grating...
The Tandy 2000 featured an 80186, which is an 8086 with built in UART and DMA controller. The Tandy 2000 also featured a 640x480 color display at a time when the CGA was standard. All in all, it was about 4 years ahead of its time.
I remember a strange thing about the announcement: it was "85% IBM compatable." Huh? Who would make a "sorta compatible PC"? What software would it run reliably?
Well, it would run all this great new software for a new environment called "Windows." The slight differences in hardware would be hidden by "drivers." Cool, huh?
Except Microsoft didn't ship Windows 1.0 in time. When it did, it sucked. Worse yet, Microsoft decided to put Windows on the backburner in order to produce a new operating system with IBM called "OS/2."
The net result is that Tandy ended up with a warehouse full of Tandy 2000's they couldn't sell. It put them out of the computer business pretty much permanently.
The IBM PC didn't kill the TRS-80, Microsoft did.
When I was a kid, one of my friends bought a 12V 3A transformer from Radio Shack. To test it, we put a 10K Ohm resistor across the secondaries, and watched the wee beastie boil its waxy guts out.
Microsoft sort of provides the same users experience in software.
Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
Hmm...so...Microsoft has
1) the desktop client
2) the server
3) the proprietary protocols
4) the physical stores
that doesn't sound a like a recipe for choice to me...
It's 10 PM. Do you know if you're un-American?
Y'know, Radio Shack has had so many chances to be a really good, useful store, and they have screwed it up horribly every time. They could have been a great parts repository for people into electronics, a/v, and radio, but the substandard quality of the parts and their blockheaded sales staff truly makes the Rat Shack a last resort for even the smallest purchases (yeah, I'll grit my teeth and go in there for the RCA Y-cable, coz its faster than mail order...)
Likewise, Radio Shack has been around since the very beginning of the personal computer revolution - I wrote my very first program around 1980 on a TRS-80 Model III - but they've just never seemed to "get it". They could've made a killing if they'd jumped the gun selling good quality PC accessories rather than overpriced "Tandy" brand (aka Tandy crashtastic floppies for $30+ a box).
And I just can't resist adding yet another rant about their policy of polling customers for name and address. My last Rat Shack experience was as follows: I needed a pair of mid-range headphones in a hurry, and RS was conviently located. Bought a pair of headphones for ~$40 US, took them home, and one channel didn't work. Went back the next day for an exchange - this time I tested them in the store. ANOTHER defective pair! At this point, I wanted my money back, but had to argue with the salesbeing for a while because it wouldn't give me a refund until I divulged my name & address. When I finally revealed my identity as "Zarathustra Rosenthorpe", the salesbeing finally relented.
As far as the Microsoft partnership is concerned, the deal may get them a little more exposure with Random P. Consumer, almost certainly at the expense of a further tarnished reputation. I expect to see MS displays popping up in McDonalds and 7-11 any minute now...