Has there been any response or explanation from Microsoft yet with this situation?
What kind of response do you expect from them?
The phoning home isn't new, is it? Licensing validation was done every few months on Windows 7.
The only thing Microsoft is guilty of SO FAR that I'm aware of, is providing slightly better transparency over the data it sends to its' and third parties' servers, and now they're getting called out for it.
http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2015/08/even-w...
If there's enough pressure for MS to respond, they'll spew some bullshit to placate the masses. What they won't do is change their spying ways.
Besides, it's probably not even all Microsoft's fault. I bet governments are pressuring them to spy on us on their behalf.