Microsoft drops 'Metro' name for Windows 8

[KnightWRX]

For those that care about Windows 8 :

Microsoft drops 'Metro' name for Windows 8

Instead of Metro, Microsoft has told developers to simply refer to the blocky display as a "Windows 8 style UI" for the time being.

In a statement, Microsoft said: "We have used Metro style as a code name during the product development cycle across many of our product lines.

Trademark dispute it seems with a Europeen partner (though that remains to confirm, they use "The Verge" as their source...).

 

[calb]

Metro was nice, but the clunky one is just an interim measure.

The Windows team is "working on a replacement term" according to the memo, "and plans to land on that by the end of this week."

 

[fat jez]

So Metro was a codename but MS don't have a suitable actual name? OK, MS, I believe you

 

[roadbloc]

I liked the name Metro. Shame they're unable to use it. I was hoping they'd do what they did to Apple over the 'App Store' name and just name it Metro regardless.

 

[Reach9]

like when they interviewed Ryan Seacrest and he was like "i'm known to be Metro too!"

 

[Berlepsch]

Too bad for the name change, now I'll have to throw all my 'They called it Metro because it would be best to keep it under the ground' jokes out of the window.

Maybe MS should name it Diarrhea, as in 'fast and fluid'.

 

[smoledman]

Maybe they'll call it Modern UI.

 

[BSben]

According to german news reports the name change is because of a large german retail group (Metro) who happen to own several chains of stores that sell consumer electronics.
They only use the name Metro for their wholesale outlets and as a company name though, all consumer focused shops run under different names.
It seems Microsoft has not been ordered to drop the name, but have agreed to do so to avoid any legal problems in the future.
Anyway, that is what the german media has to say about it at the moment.