The fact of the matter is Microsoft pushed the release of 8.1 forward as a way to appease angry customers… Windows 8 was a massive pr disaster because of the “start button” removal but it also is a very stable and FAST system--- regardless, it was officially launched and Microsoft was already (legally) committed to supporting it. They can’t turn around and say sorry but we don’t want to keep it --- I agree most people will find the extras in 8.1 suits them better.
Side topic;
The so called 8.1.1 patch is what causes most of this confusion… after upgrading to the (optional) 8.1 the customer has a limited time to install this patch or their machine can no longer have updates from the Microsoft server.
To be clear, the 8.1.1 patch has vendor drivers and for the most part is worth installing.