Everyday that we get closer to the official release date of Windows 7, we hear something new about how Windows 7 will change the netbook industry. Just recently, Microsoft announced that there will be no restrictions on which Windows 7 versions can be used by manufacturers in new netbook bundles. But Windows 7 is a pricey piece of software, and it would be naive to think that the prices will stay the same if manufacturers decide to ship Windows 7 with their netbooks. Considering that Microsoft used to charge PC makers $15 per Windows copy and is now planning to increase that to $50 per Windows 7 license, that could only mean higher prices for Windows 7 netbooks.

If netbook prices do go up in the near future, the consumers are left with three options. They can either pick up those expensive Windows 7 netbooks. They can spend the extra money to get a ULV laptop, or they can invest in a Linux based netbook. ARM-based netbooks and smart-books are expected to make a splash in the U.S. in the near future, so it’d be interesting to see how consumers treat these energy-efficient and cheaper netbooks. You can’t blame Microsoft for trying to up-sell its customers to those more expensive Windows 7 editions to make more profits in the long run. And while I don’t expect netbook prices to go up by too much, we are probably going to see more $400+ netbooks in the future. Considering that ULV laptops only cost a couple of hundred more, are more powerful, and almost as energy efficient as netbooks, one has to wonder if netbook manufacturers are willing to shoot themselves in the foot by adopting Windows 7 on netbooks. Of course, one has to consider the fact that CULVs have higher margins for manufacturers. Maybe forcing customers to drop netbooks and buy those CULV notebooks is not a bad decision after all.