Windows 7 to Let Fresh Air Into Tech Sector

REDMOND, Wash. (TheStreet) -- Microsoft's(MSFT Quote) new Windows 7 operating system will make its debut in a frenzy of marketing hype Thursday, although the upside potential extends well beyond the Pacific Northwest.

The successor to the widely criticized, difficult-to-deploy Vista operating system, Windows 7 has been touted by Microsoft as its best PC operating system ever.

Hyperbole aside, the OS is set to make its presence felt right across the tech sector as Microsoft partners and rivals weigh opportunities and a fresh competitive challenge.

"It's good for anyone in the PC food chain, particularly hardware vendors, and manufacturers of memory, chips and drives," Katherine Egbert, software analyst at Jefferies & Company, told TheStreet. Other beneficiaries include software companies with close links to Microsoft such as Citrix(CTXS Quote) and anti-virus companies like Symantec(SYMC Quote) and McAfee(MFE Quote), she added.

Windows 7 clearly presents great opportunities for Microsoft and its buddies. With many companies steering clear of Vista, Egbert says that some 75% of corporate users are still running Windows XP, which is now 8 years old. Cue a major Windows 7 upgrade.

"The enterprise upgrade cycle will start in mid- to late 2010," she said, explaining that Microsoft will only support XP until April 2014. "Typically, companies will wait for the first [Windows 7] service pack to be released."

This could spell good news for PC makers like Hewlett-Packard(HPQ Quote) and Dell(DELL Quote), as well as component manufacturers such as Intel, Samsung and Seagate(STX Quote). During Intel's third-quarter results last week, CEO Paul Otellini said that many companies are already laying the foundations for a Windows 7 deployment.