That could have painted an even darker picture of Windows revenue, maybe one that would have bothered skittish short-term investors enough to impact the stock. The difference for Microsoft? If it said Windows 10 was an upgrade, not part of a marketing campaign, the company would have had to adjust Windows revenue to account for the deferrals - and set aside money from sales of the OS starting in January when it announced the no-cost upgrade - reducing Windows' earnings for at least the first half of this year, perhaps longer.
That meant sales of Windows 8.1 licenses to OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) will be recorded immediately and in full, not in fragments with some deferred until Windows 10 launches and the free upgrade is available to customers. 'As this is a marketing and promotional activity, revenue recognition of new sales of Windows 8 will continue to be recognized as delivered,' the company said.