Intel CEO Otellini: Windows 8 Needs Improvements

According to a Bloomberg article, Intel CEO Paul Otellini, "told employees in Taiwan that Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system is being released before its fully ready." Bloomberg cited a person who attended the company event for the report. At an Intel INTC company meeting in Taipei, Otellini reportedly told employees that Microsoft's MSFT software needs improvements. The timing of the release of Windows 8 is critical as the company wants to get the software, which is designed for tablets, out prior to the 2012 holiday selling season in order to compete with Apple's AAPL iPad. While the news may be concerning to consumers, Otellini said that rushing Windows 8 to market was the right move by Microsoft and the company will me able to improve the product after it ships. Otellini's comments would appear to confirm the criticisms of other Microsoft watchers. Bloomberg cites a note by JMP Securities analyst Alex Gauna where he writes that "We are concerned at the level of bugs and fine tuning that appears necessary to get the beta systems we demoed ready for prime time." The note was specific to a version of Windows 8 that was shown at Intel's recent developer forum. For its part, Microsoft is putting on a show of confidence, at least in public. “With over 16 million active preview participants, Windows 8 is the most tested, reviewed and ready operating system in Microsoft's history,” said Mark Martin, a spokesman for Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft. The reports appear to be effecting trading in Microsoft stock on Wednesday, although not significantly. Shares are underperforming the broader Nasdaq which was trading down around 0.80 percent around mid-day. MSFT had lost a little less than one percent, with most of the losses coming shortly after the opening bell. Year-to-date, MSFT has risen around 16 percent, which is actually around 8 percent less than the PowerShares QQQ Trust ETF QQQ, which tracks the performance of the Nasdaq 100.