http://www.news.com.au/technology/st...014239,00.html
MICROSOFT is blaming retailers for the fact Australians are paying almost $200 more for the same version of Windows 7 as their overseas counterparts.
The price of Windows 7 in the US and UK is consistently cheaper than in Australia based on the latest currency conversion rates.
For example, an upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate costs $429 in Australia but only $US219.99 ($236) in the US – a difference of $193 for the same product.
Windows 7 Professional outright will cost Australians $449, but the US gets it for $128 less, with the retail price of $US299.99 ($322).
Elise Davidson of consumer group Choice said it wasn't the first time Australians had been slugged extra for Microsoft products.
"It was the same with Vista and what we expect will happen is that most people won't fork out for the upgrade. They'll simply wait until they get a new computer," she said.
"Australians generally don’t mind paying a little more. Most people accept we have a smaller market and a larger land mass.
"But with the Aussie dollar as strong as it is now and an identical product being shipped, there is no justifiable reason for Microsoft to be charging Australian consumers almost double."
While Microsoft normally doesn't comment on price, one spokesperson told news.com.au the difference was due to retailers, not the software maker.
"We don't talk a whole lot about pricing because we don't set it, we can't set pricing, the channel sets the pricing," said Microsoft's general manager of Windows consumer marketing James DeBragga, referring to major retailers.
"Beyond just the exchange rates of the currency, it depends on the channel model... in terms of the margins that they charge and how the retailers need to make money.
"They're going to set their prices, we don't set their prices so essentially you're going to be in a pure competition model where the market will set the price and the retailers will compete against each other."
European prices are the only ones that – in some cases – exceed those in Australia.
European antitrust laws require Microsoft to offer users a choice of web browsers, meaning that the version of Windows 7 released there will be slightly different.
However Microsoft says there are no major changes.
"Aside from language nuance and localisation, it will be the exact same product," Mr DeBragga says.
Windows 7 is available to buy as a physical product or a download.
Last year, news.com.au revealed that Australians pay up to five times more for software sold as a download.
At the time, one software maker – Adobe – said local retailers set the price of its products in Australia and that its online store had been priced to support those retailers.
However Choice's Ms Davidson said that excuse – the same offered by Microsoft – wasn't good enough.
"We've been told by Microsoft that their prices vary by region based on market specific factors including the exchange rate, local taxes and duties and retailer pricing decisions," she said.
"We don't think those justifications really fly."
Ms Davidson said tougher restrictions were needed to stop regional price discrimination.
"Companies like Microsoft use technological methods to prevent Australian consumers from buying the product overseas, such as banning international IP addresses and credit card numbers," she said.
"We don't think that Microsoft, or any other company, should be allowed to use these methods to price discriminate against Australians."
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