'Vista rip-off': UK customers cry foul over US prices

The UK pricing for Microsoft Windows Vista has been attacked this week by silicon.com readers.

Consumers cried foul over the price difference between buying Microsoft's latest operating system in the UK and buying it in the US.

Anger over the issue even prompted an e-petition on the Number 10 website which claims the premium Vista Ultimate version costs £350 in the UK but can be bought for £150 ($298) in the US.

silicon.com reader Nick Cole wrote: "It's all part of rip-off Britain. Don't charge what it costs to produce or develop, with a reasonable overhead, but charge as much as possible. Swapping a dollar sign for a pound sign is the easiest way of achieving that."

Many other readers echoed this sentiment.

However, readers have also been quick to point out this is not just a problem with Microsoft but one with many products sold in the UK. silicon.com reader Malcolm Wilson pointed out "Apple is just as bad" with its Tiger operating system that retails at £65.50 ($129) in the US and £89 in the UK – representing a 35 per cent mark-up.

He added: "Mac users also get a less than fair deal and it seems that nobody is prepared to do much about it."

How much?... A quick comparison of registered retail UK vs US software prices

♦  Adobe Photoshop Elements 5.0 Premiere Elements 3.0 Bundle: £23.33 more, UK price £99.99, US price £76.66 ($149.99):
♦  Apple iWork 06: £14.22 more, UK price £55.00, US price £40.38 ($79.00)
♦  Windows XP home edition with SP2 (upgrade): £44.39 more, UK price £94.99, US price £50.60 ($99.00)

silicon.com has scouted around other software prices and found UK recommended retail prices are higher than their US counterparts in almost all instances. Adobe's popular Photoshop software for example is 30 per cent more expensive in the UK than the US, while Apple's iWork 06 is 35 per cent more and an upgrade to Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2 is nearly double the US price.

It isn't just software that silicon.com readers are feeling fleeced over. Another reader claimed that during his hunt for a digital camera all the major makes retailed at around 25 per cent higher in the UK than in the US.

So will signing 10 Downing Street's e-petition help? The majority of readers seem sceptical and one reader said: "All the petitions are a waste of time and just something else for our spin machine to ignore."

But, while we're on the subject of petitions, here's one you really shouldn't ignore - sign up for silicon.com's 'Fair Wi-fi' petition and support our campaign against rip-off charges for wireless internet access in hotels.