Based on the lifecycle chart (link), Windows XP licensing and availability will continue for at least 12 months after the release of Vista for average users. If one is unable to purchase an XP Pro license, a Vista Business license may be purchased instead and is considered valid for legally installing ("downgrading" to) XP Pro. One would continue to use the volume licensing key provided on the XP Pro install media for installation, but keep record of their Vista Business license to satisfy license requirements. This is legal as long as only one or the other is installed, not both. (FYI, Vista Ultimate also qualifies - No other versions of Vista are eligible; only Business/Enterprise and Ultimate.) This is also true for those who have purchased a system with Vista (Business or Ultimate) installed but would like to downgrade to XP Pro. One would install, over Vista Business/Ultimate, XP Pro from the end user install media and using the end user license key, but one would keep their Vista license that came with their machine to prove their legality. The user can at any time move back to the version of Vista which came on the machine (as long as only one or the other is installed, not both). For more information you can refer to this Microsoft PDF document.
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