Microsoft Gets Desperate - Free Vista Business, Office Pro 2007

I don't care about Vista... but I wouldn't mind a copy of office. Problem is, the site seems to be down...

I "participated" in one of these things this past Spring. It was some online business presentation thingy. By "participated" I mean signed on and minimized the browser. :) They sent out a free full licensed version of MS Office Business Edition 2006 for the first X number of people -- I got it within 6-8 weeks. No complaints.

Is anyone positive that this offer is from Microsoft? The domain's whois info doesnt seem to show that.

The post makes almost no sense-- MS must be desperate, you don't see this kind of thing normally, but oh, they've done it before.

It sounds more like this is something MS does fairly regularly, and generally if it were anyone but Microsoft giving something away, the word 'cool' would be in the post.

Looks like a good deal to learn about Vista and Office and then get a copy. Unfortunately, I can't get to the Webinars and when I login to my Live.com account, it shows me as "Guest". Maybe there's a problem with the site...

A copy of office would be great, I wonder which version you get, does anyone know?

I find this HIGHLY dubious. The whois comes back as Philip Colebrook in London with a tech contact in Sweden. The nameservers are msft.net which was registered via Tucows. This does not feel real or trustworthy.

I tried completing this but ran into trouble after signing in (would not complete, said my session expired every time).

If you have signed in via passport to this site I suggest you change your password asap.

free??? first they have to get the site working correctly and then ask to view the stupid webcasts.

i'm going to stay with office12 beta for now and vista can wait a year or more

aww, it's asking for business title/name/address....should i just make up something?

That site is driving me nuts. I choose three webcasts and then it keeps telling me, your session has expired.

But the funniest thing is, when exploring that site, the phishing filter on IE7 filtered something on that site.

Maybe I will wait and see if anyone here completes this.


Its office pro to answer my own question

Not exactly confidence-inspiring. No matter how fast I click my selections, I get a "We’re sorry, your session may have expired. To start over click here. " message.

I'm getting the "We’re sorry, your session may have expired. To start over click here. "

I'm a huge whore and would love to get Vista for free, so I will try again.

If anyone gets through, let us know.

Yeah, the whois info does NOT look like the same place that Dan did got his software earlier. This domain was not registered until October 2006, so I would be VERY !!!! cautious. It DOES switch to the "live.com" site for the passport login, but that's as far as I got. It may well be a contract arrangement with this group.

The IP address does come back to Bellevue, WA, and I sent an email to Brad Shaw (bradsh@microsoft.com) whose email was shown in the source for the home page to see what he says. I ASSuME that someone with a "microsoft.com" email address HAS to be for real, huh?

The site does have the same registrar (Tucows) and nameserver (nsx.msft.net) as microsoft.com - so maybe it is real - regardless of where the registrant is??

reasons of why this may be a scam...

The whois comes back as Philip Colebrook in London.
The nameservers are msft.net
Apparently no one can view the webcasts or register.
when you sign in you appear as guest.
Page design is poor and it does not resemble any other microsoft pages.
Sometimes page layout is left sometimes is centered.
microsoft logo has been resized.(with bad proportions by the way)
and last but not least it's asking for your live sign in, which in microsoft real website does not ask you once for it

Make sure to post here if you hear from Brad Shaw (bradsh@microsoft.com)..... thanks

@Robert

Good point, didn't expect Microsoft to use Tucows as their registrar.. but I guess we all gotta use someone.

Okay I take back my accusal of it being a phish site, but it still feels shady, especially since it doesn't at this time even work.

"These offers expire on February 28, 2007, or while supplies last, and are not redeemable for cash. Taxes, if any, are the sole responsibility of the recipient. If you are eligible for and register to receive both gifts, you must complete a W-9 (Request for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification) form prior to receipt of the second gift. Any gift returned as non-deliverable will not be re-sent. Please allow 6 - 8 weeks for shipment of your gift(s)."

They need a W-9 form? Sounds like a scam to me.

Also note that if you want both items, they require you to provide your SSN for the W-9 since the "value of your gift exceeds $600" I'll give them my disposable email address and work phone number, but I'm not giving them my SSN and paying taxes just to get both.