Delays Limit Robust Sales at Microsoft - New York Times

Impressive... 

Sales rose 6 percent in the quarter ended in December, to $12.5 billion. But the company said that showing would have been much stronger if it had not deferred $1.64 billion in revenue as a result of delays in the latest versions of its mainstay products, Windows Vista and Office 2007. They will be introduced next week.

Without the one-time move, sales would have been 20 percent higher than in the quarter a year earlier, the chief financial officer, Christopher P. Liddell, said.

The quarterly results “exceeded our expectations across the board,” including healthy sales of PC software, Mr. Liddell said.

Source: Delays Limit Robust Sales at Microsoft - New York Times