Windows Vista well received: Gates

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates listens to a question while speaking with journalists on Parliament Hill in Ottawa February 20, 2007.

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp. (MSFT.O) founder Bill Gates said on Tuesday the company's Windows Vista operating system had been incredibly well received.

"People who sell PCs have seen a very nice lift in their sales. People have come in and wanted to buy Vista," Gates told reporters at an Ottawa news conference.

Gates made the comments when asked to clarify last week's comments by Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer that analysts' forecasts for fiscal 2008 revenue for the Windows Vista operating system were "overly aggressive".

Microsoft, the world's largest software maker, released Vista, the upgrade to its ubiquitous Windows operating system, nearly three weeks ago and predicted that consumers would move to Vista faster than they did to past Windows upgrades.

The Windows franchise is the centerpiece of Microsoft's business because the company makes more than 75 cents in operating profit for every dollar of sales.

Investor optimism about Windows Vista has helped push the company's shares up 30 percent since last June, although the stock has dipped in recent weeks.

Asked by Reuters if there was anything that would make Microsoft cautious about the outlook for Vista, Gates replied: "I don't know what you mean. Vista's had an incredible reception.

"The reviews have been fantastic. This is a big, big advance in the Windows platform. It's the world's most used piece of software... Overall, the reliability feedback has been well better than we expected."

Microsoft shares closed 9 cents higher, at $28.83, on Nasdaq.

Gates was speaking at a news conference after announcing a C$139 million ($118 million) funding initiative by his Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Canadian government to search for an HIV/AIDS vaccine.

($1=$1.17 Canadian)

(Additional reporting by Louise Egan)