Reports circulated a while back claiming that the Windows Media Center was no longer going to be included in Microsoft’s upcoming Windows 8 operating system. Today, in an official Building Windows 8 blog post, we learn that Media Center will indeed be part of Windows 8, just not right away.
“While not a central topic of feedback, I received about 50 emails about Media Center. I want to reassure customers that Media Center will definitely be part of Windows 8. No doubt about it. Knowing how strong the support for Media Center is among pre-release testers, we still have work to do to make sure the quality and compatibility with add-ins is what you would expect even in pre-release,” Steven Sinofsky states. “..we’re completely committed to delivering Media Center in Windows 8.”
When Media Center fans learned that Media Center was reportedly not going to be in Windows 8, many of them contacted Sinofsky directly. “Interestingly, the feedback about Media Center was predominantly “we will pay extra, just include it” based on the input directly to me,” Sinofsky adds.
Microsoft states that the Media Center will not be a part of the first pre-release builds of Windows 8. Other features like Windows 7 Games, DVD Creator, upgrade setup, and DOTNET 3.5 will also not be a part of the first pre-release builds.
Microsoft also reiterated that based upon its stats, Media Center was only launched by 6% of Windows 7 users globally. Microsoft attributes that percentage to those who were just looking around to see what Media Center was. TV was the most commonly used item in Media Center and DVD/CD playback was the least commonly used item.
Sinofsky even mentioned that “premium and streaming content” were becoming popular at an increasing rate. Who knows, this might just become a new feature of Media Center.
