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It seemed for a while that Media Center was to live as an integral part of Windows 8 as a feature but now there are rumors that it will have a separate version.

Windows 8 Professional Media Center Version?

Windows Media Center has been through a lot of evolution and it was finally settled that it will live on as a major feature inside Windows 8. However, industry whistle blower Winunleaked has offered a different perspective in the case. According to a post, there’s a Pro Pack edition that is called the ProfessionalWMC. There’s no telling what this is for though. It could just be a separate SKU for Windows 8 Professional but then that separate mention of Windows Media Center does look suspicious.

There are reasons for Microsoft to leave out the Windows Media Center from the main builds of Widnwos 8 though. One the main being the licensing costs. There codecs used inside the Media Center that are licensed from Dolby Digital and the likes. These codecs must be paid for by the buyer with every copy of Media Center that is sold. That is how it works. But then that also means it will raise the price of any OS that it is part of. Higher costs will mean slower adaptation and that is not something that Microsoft should want to risk right now.

Windows 8 is banking on the fact that there will be quick user adaptation followed by the enterprise. This is the only way Microsoft can pave way for a rapid development that will usher in the new era of touch first that this new OS is so very emphatic about.

As of now, there’s nothing really to go by on, so we will just have to be satisfied with speculations. There are rumors that the launch of the new OS will happen in the fall this year but nothing’s final so far.