Kevin Turner, Microsoft’s COO, told partners that “Microsoft is planning to open the first of its planned retail stores next to existing Apple stores this fall,” during his WPC keynote on July 15. A number of attendees tweeted Turner’s words immediately. According to partners attending the conference, Turner said Microsoft wouldn’t be imitating Apple; it would be innovating with the new stores, and the knowledge Microsoft gained from running the stores would be “shared with partners.” Later, a Microsoft spokesperson said: “As we progress on our retail strategy there will be scenarios where we have stores in proximity to Apple.  We are on track to open stores in the Fall timeframe. Beyond that we have no additional details to share.”