February 26, 1999 Web posted at: 10:56 a.m. EST (1556 GMT) by Bob Trott

From...

(IDG) -- Microsoft this week quietly opened up a preliminary version of its new online consumer shopping site, formerly code-named Nitro.

The Web store, shop.microsoft.com, will be a highlight of the company's I-commerce strategy day, which will hosted by Chairman and CEO Bill Gates and President Steve Ballmer next week in San Francisco.

Nitro -- or New Interactive Technology for Resellers Online -- features Microsoft home and business software, such as Office 97 and Encarta Africana, a multimedia encyclopedia. It also offers hardware from Microsoft and books from Microsoft Press.

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"The objective for the online store is to make sure our customers can acquire Microsoft products when, where, and how they want them," said Steve Schiro, vice president of Microsoft's consumer customer unit. "Shop.microsoft.com also provides a unique opportunity for the channel by enabling participating resellers to build buying relationships with the more than 2 million customers that visit microsoft.com every day."

The Web store, which went into development a year ago, was due to go online last fall, but technological problems delayed its opening until now. Microsoft also has had to walk a fine line with its reseller partners.

"They have to be careful not to drive anyone out of business or look like they're muscling in on [retailers'] territory," said one observer, who requested anonymity.

To that end, Microsoft plans to offer products on its site at prices 10 percent to 25 percent higher than retailers, according to company officials.

Once a product with Microsoft's "estimated retail price" is selected, a customer is guided to a Web page that features a list of online reseller partners, such as Beyond.com or CompUSA, that may offer the products at lower prices.

Bob Trott is InfoWorld's Seattle bureau chief.