Microsoft won't (can't) turn Windows 12 into a paid operating system

The technology world has just had a week of heated discussion with rumors about the possibility that Microsoft will position Windows 12 as the first paid operating system version. References to a subscription model have been found in the codebase of some new Windows previews, suggesting that Microsoft will force users to pay a monthly subscription fee to use Windows 12.

However, this may be a hasty judgment and of course wrong. These references are almost certainly tied to the newly discovered IoT Enterprise Subscription version of Windows 11, not the Windows vNext client version.

According to experts, the prospect that the next version of Windows will operate as a paid operating system, tied to the user's Microsoft account and services, is not high. In fact, the company is building deeper Windows 365 support into the next version of Windows, for which it already charges a monthly subscription fee to access Windows 11 in the cloud.

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Currently, Windows 365 is an enterprise service, but that won't stay that way forever. Microsoft is planning to launch Windows 365 for consumers in the future, which will allow people to subscribe to Windows PCs in the cloud to meet all their computing needs.

When this happens, Microsoft will want that service to integrate tightly with the local Windows experience. Hybrid computing experiences are a key focus of the next versions of Windows, with the ability for users to install apps locally or in the cloud, which can then be streamed to any PC where you sign in with your Microsoft account.

It's likely that some of these hybrid cloud-based experiences will be based on paid subscriptions rather than entire operating systems. In fact, the local operating system you run at home will never require a fee to use. The reason is simple: Loss of universality, a particularly essential aspect of any operating system.

Apple does not charge for macOS or iPadOS. Google also doesn't charge for Chrome OS or Android. It would be a bad exception if Microsoft tried to charge a monthly fee for Windows. ultimately leading to a user exodus to something more cost-effective.

Microsoft will certainly bring many fundamental changes to Windows 12, some of which may even exceed many people's imagination. For example, a new leak seems to be providing further evidence that Microsoft's next-generation operating system, tentatively called Windows 12, may be a video-based operating system. subscription form, or can be simply understood as paying a fee.

Accordingly, German media outlet Deskmodder discovered a number of subscription-related entries in the INI configuration file of the Canary channel build when compared to the Windows 11 23H2 Release Preview build using WinMerge, as can be seen. in the image below.

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Since the entries are in German, here is an English-translated version of the registration-related entries on the Canary side:

1. Subscription Edition – (L_MsgSubscriptionEdition)

2. Subscription Type – L_MsgSubscriptionType (as 'Device-Based Subscription' or 'User-Based Subscription')

3. And the subscription status – L_MsgSubscriptionStatus (Active, Inactive, Deactivated, Expired

Back in January this year, when Microsoft first introduced the next generation of Windows 11 and Windows 12 (codenamed Next Valley), the company talked about how AI would shape the future of Windows. Some features like Copliot are currently available in preview, and so far it's fair to say it's an imperfect user experience, but the potential for future improvements is clear. clear.

In addition to AI, Microsoft is also gradually revealing its ambition to bring Windows, or at least part of this operating system experience, to the web. In March this year, Cloud PC options started appearing inside Windows 11. After that, many leaked information related to Cloud PC started appearing.

Other reports say Microsoft is working on something called "CorePC" for the next version of Windows. According to experts, this is most likely a "modular and customizable variant of Windows" designed to work with many different types of devices and configuration frameworks.

As mentioned, Microsoft is expected to return to a three-year release cycle for the Windows operating system. That means Windows 12 (expected to be codenamed Next Valley) will most likely be released to the public around the second half of the second quarter of 2024. Let's wait and see.

Isabella Humphrey

Update 20 October 2023