Microsoft's new Windows 10 licensing twist - OEMs must pay MORE for better laptops

Is there actually a plan behind Microsoft's Windows 10 licensing or are they just making it up as they go along?

Makers of computer hardware in the Far East are up in arms over new proposals from Microsoft to charge more for a Windows 10 licence for laptops with better specifications.

The "idea" from Microsoft would mean what while tablet computers with screen sizes of eight-inches or less will be able to use Windows 10 free-of-charge - in a bid to make them competitive with low-end Android devices - buyers of laptops with graphics cards, bigger screens and more power CPUs will pay even more to have Windows pre-installed.

Microsoft's latest change in licensing strategy comes out of talks with laptop OEMs in the Far East. The region's electronics industry newspaper Digitimes claims that vendors including Acer, Asus, Dell, HP and Lenovo will be affected.

Manufacturers are opposing the plan as it will eat into their profit margins on high-end models, which help to make up for the wafer-thin margins on low-end and mass market tablet computers and laptops. However, if implemented this year, they will probably be forced to take the hit. "Since demand for notebooks are unlikely to see any major improvement in 2015, the vendors are likely to absorb the extra costs to maintain their products' end prices," suggests Digitimes.

The news comes in a week in which Microsoft has twisted and turned over its Windows 10 upgrade plans, first suggesting that anyone running a preview version of Windows 10 will be able to upgrade free-of-charge to the new operating system, but then backtracking when the implications of such a pledge became clear.

Microsoft's decision to make its operating system available for free to consumer users of Windows 7 and 8 has caused some head-scratching among analysts and observers. However, corporate users and people buying new PCs will still be forced to pay for a Windows 10 licence.