Is it quality concerns that have pushed back the consumer release of Microsoft’s new operating system, or are the marketers the real strategists?

It would make a lot of sense, if Microsoft is able to get the business version of the new OS out in November, what are they going to do in the weeks over Christmas to prep the consumer version of Vista for release. Surely with CD production taking some time in the equation it makes sense to ask the question.

That’s what Mary Jo Foley of Microsoft Watch did and the answer she came back with was that marketers were as much behind the delay as anyone.

Jim Allchin, co-president of Microsoft’s Platforms & Services Division, announced this week that the upgrade code required for Vista would be available to volume licensers on time, but that the full consumer version for OEMs was going to take a little longer.

It seems odd because you can bet tomorrow’s lunch that there isn’t a huge number of IT managers eager to line up at midnight in November to get their hands on the new operating system. Most business users are likely to wait six months to a year before considering a platform change of that magnitude.

Foley confirms that the code will be released to manufacturing this year, but the release to market won’t happen till some time in 2007. That remains to be seen.

“Volume licensing customers can cycle in (Vista) in a couple of weeks,” explained Brad Goldberg, general manger with Microsoft’s Windows Client Product Management team. But it typically takes PC makers longer to take the final RTM bits, test them and preload them on new machines, Goldberg told Foley – yeah right!

Dig a little deeper and you get a fuller picture. Allchin reportedly acknowledged that some of Microsoft’s partners were not happy about the delay while others felt that a November or December rollout “might have less impact” due to the holiday distractions.

Or take this comment: “We decided it would be better if you could have a big launch where we’re clearly the focus for the whole industry,” said Goldberg.

Both Goldberg and Allchin have tried to downplay the impact this will have on pre-Christmas PC sales, with Goldberg saying January is the new Christmas thanks to the big sales most retailers indulge in during the month.

“January has emerged as almost a second Christmas, with gift cards, sales, etc. It’s a new trend,” Goldberg said.