Apple's kind of the exception here, really; most consumer electronics vendors won't offer international support.

Eh, is it really? How many customers does this really affect? If you're from a European country and buying in the US, odds are you're trying to avoid VAT.

I'm a so-called digital nomad and travel to a lot of different countries a year. The fact that Apple offers worldwide warranty means that I'm more likely to buy from them (even though OSX is becoming more and more buggy over the years).

I'd love to buy a surface pro but not having world wide warranty would stop me from buying it.

ah yes, let's assume the customer was just trying to dodge taxes, even better!

it's crazy, even if common, to treat your customers like shit.

it's not MS's problem of people are dodging taxes, and it should be (if they want customers) their aim to help their customers.

Or perhaps purchase a device like the studio or the book before their EU debut.