There is a lot of whoopla regarding the recent unveiling of a virtual appliance designed to work around the new KMS server activation scheme, by simply replacing it with a cracked version. I'm not going enter the whole pirates vs Microsoft debate, nor touch the heated discussion about Windows activation and licenses, but as far as I can see it this is the definitive proof that virtualization technologies have matured to a new level.
It might not be a good thing for virtualization as a whole, at least not in mainstream media, but this still means that people are utilizing virtualization for their own benefits and needs. Virtualization is becoming mainstream, and a household item and as a result this will probably be the best known virtual appliance to date.
While I don't condone the actions done by the people behind this, this proves that virtual appliances will find new usage scenarios even if they are unintentional. After all, we can't blame the technology itself if someone uses it in new ways.