Windows Server '03 beats 2k 3 to 1

In its first 90 days of availability, Windows Server 2003 has outsold Windows 2000 three to one, when compared to that product's first 90 days.

Microsoft will tout this fact today at an analyst meeting where it will also announce a change in the way the company's executives account for costs in various departments at the software giant. It's unclear whether the dramatically increased sales pace, however, was brought on by Microsoft's Licensing 6.0 program, which essentially provides free product upgrades to companies that purchase a multi-year agreement.

"This product is really going out the door," said Bob O'Brien, group product manager for the Windows Server division at Microsoft. "Triple the sales of Windows 2000 is ... great, ... especially in this economy." Not coincidentally, server sales at the software giant were up significantly in the quarter, generating revenues of $1.93 billion; in the same quarter last year, the server division made $1.64 billion.

View: Windows Server 2003 Off to a Fast Start