Microsoft is reportedly planning to hold a series of special events geared towards its various offerings such as the cloud, gaming, Windows, and security. The Verge reports that the events are expected to be held over the next few months, with the first one slated to take place this week that focuses on Microsoft 365 and the “employee experience”, guessing from a tweet posted by the Microsoft 365 Twitter account.
While the Redmond giant shares information about its products as part of large conferences such as Build and Ignite, these events are supposedly more specific, product-related ones. It is possible that the company will use these events to share specific roadmaps, launch new products, or just showcase new capabilities added to its products in the various categories.
With a major Windows 10 redesign – codenamed Sun Valley – expected to begin being tested with Insiders, it will not be surprising to see the Windows event possibly aimed at sharing more information on that front. Windows 10X, the firm’s modern, lightweight OS, is also expected to be launched sometime in the next few months. While rumors suggest that the OS launch will be one without much fanfare, it will be interesting to see if the company leverages a special event to talk about its newest OS offering.
The firm might also choose to share its plans for first-party games and its xCloud game streaming platform via the events aimed at gaming. Microsoft is also expected to bring Xbox game streaming to Windows sometime this spring, so an event to announce the expansion of that service might make sense.
The pandemic has forced companies into moving to a virtual setup for its events and product launches, and Microsoft is no exception. It will be interesting to see if these events are a one-time thing, or if the company is experimenting with a pattern for the years to come.