The annual Consumer Electronics Show keynote by Bill Gates has become an annual tradition, but his 11th CES opening keynote yesterday may well be his last. During the keynote, Gates - who is due to become a part-time-only Microsoft employee later this year - talked about the ongoing transformation of the personal computer and he shared sales figures for Windows Vista: Microsoft has sold more than 100 million Windows Vista licenses to date.


Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates delivers his keynote
address to the 2008 CES in Las Vegas - Jan. 6, 2008

In his keynote, Gates looked at the sweeping changes since 2001:

“Since I first started talking about the Digital Decade in 2001, the speed with which digital technology has become central to the way we work, learn and play has been amazing. But in many ways, we are at the very beginning of the transformation that software will enable. During the next Digital Decade, technology will make our lives richer, more connected, more productive and more fulfilling in profound and exciting ways.”

He went on to outline his vision for the next Digital Decade - an era in which dramatic advances in hardware and software will make the power of computing a ubiquitous part of day-to-day life.

Gates referenced how natural user interfaces will more closely reflect the way people interact with each other. High-definition experiences will be nearly everywhere. Services-connected devices running on the Web and huge amounts of storage accessible via the Internet will mean that information and capabilities people want will be available instantly and seamlessly, no matter where they are.

During the keynote, Gates talked about the ongoing transformation of the personal computer and he shared sales figures for Windows Vista that indicate that the PC and the Windows platform remains a central catalyst for the advances of the Digital Decade. According to Gates, the company has sold more than 100 million Windows Vista licenses to date.

“For more than 25 years, Windows has unlocked the power of personal computing,” Gates said. “Now we are expanding Windows to go where you want to go and do what you want to do on PCs, the Web and mobile devices. The result is connected experiences that extend across people’s lives, interests and communities, at home and at work.”