Microsoft WPC: Day 1 - It's not just talk. It's real. It's happening.

Steve Ballmer opened his keynote by saying, “It’s not just talk. It’s real. It’s happening. It’s here.” Over 16,000 attendees from over 156 different countriesacross the globe to joined us for the largest Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference ever and to hear what Microsoft has in store for us in the following year.

Steve Ballmer explained about how Microsoft’s preparing for the New Era and how partners are at the very core of this story. He says ‘this is the year for all of us’. Firebrand is there to find out about new technologies and competencies Microsoft is planning to release.

Kurt DelBene shared his thoughts and insight about being partners in productivity and announced Office 365 Open. Tami Reller then talked about Windows 8 and showcased how it adapts to the user experience.

The big announcements from the day were:

Office 365 Open: A new way for partners to provide Office 365 Open through a pre-paid offer which enables partners to deliver packaged services with a single invoice and manage the customer relationship.

Office 365 Advisor Program: Starting today, changes to the program let the most active partners sell and earn more from Office 365.

Windows 8 RTM/GA: Windows 8 is on track for release to manufacturers (RTM) during the first week of August, and the product will reach general availability (GA) at the end of October. Enterprise customers can get Windows 8 as early as August, and the product will be available in 109 languages in 231 markets.

Office 2010 / Windows 7 momentum: There are now 1 billion people using Office worldwide, and licenses for Windows 7 have reached 630 million worldwide.

Microsoft acquires Perceptive Pixel: “The acquisition of PPI allows us to draw on our complementary strengths, and we’re excited to accelerate this market evolution,” said Kurt DelBene, president, Office Division for Microsoft. “PPI’s large touch displays, when combined with hardware from our OEMs, will become powerful Windows 8-based PCs and open new possibilities for productivity and collaboration.”

To watch it live, or catch up on the day’s talks, visit: DigitalWPC