Microsoft Addresses Bitcoin Payments Mix-Up

Microsoft got a little less bitcoin-friendly, but only in a momentary lapse.

Without much of a fuss, Microsoft appeared to have quietly taken away its support for bitcoin payments on the Windows Store, just a year after it added support for the digital currency.

Turns out that was just an error, and Microsoft is working to fix the inaccurate reporting that was released on its site on Monday (March 14).

The notice that appeared on the site for customers read: “You can no longer redeem bitcoin into your Microsoft account. Existing balances in your account will still be available for purchases from Microsoft Store but can’t be refunded.”

That was later cleared up when Microsoft confirmed it still does, in fact, accept bitcoin payments.

“We apologize for inaccurate information that was inadvertently posted to a Microsoft site, which is currently being corrected,” a Microsoft spokesman told CNBC.

Microsoft initially started embracing bitcoin toward the end of 2014 with BitPay, and when that announcement was made, the bitcoin company said that the deal was a way of “giving people options and helping them do more on their devices and in the cloud.”

Interestingly enough, though, this mix-up came during a time of uncertainty for bitcoin amid the conversations in the bitcoin community that have divided it over block size and overhauling its block size infrastructure in order to keep up with growing interest.

Outside of bitcoin for payments reasons, Microsoft has been bullish the past few months — like many companies trying to evaluate the innovative power of the blockchain.

Microsoft announced last November that it has launched a cloud-based blockchain platform with ConsenSys, a startup based out of Brooklyn in New York City. The platform is designed to provide a method for financial institutions to test out the blockchain.

The blockchain is most known for being the technology that underpins bitcoin, but in recent months, blockchain has been the buzzword, leaving bitcoin a bit in the dust. Its technology, of course, is not limited to bitcoin, as companies have been testing how blockchains can be used to secure and transmit multiple types of data in more secure and efficient manners.