Rather, it's an awareness and understanding of the marketplace that has proved fertile ground for many of the inventions, however incremental, that Microsoft produces on a regular basis. That awareness is that all software markets, however "unrelated" they may seem, have linkages to each other. When I was scribbling this idea on a scrap of paper towel I am a chronic note-writer, something obvious to anyone who visits my apartment , I described it this way: "Handhelds relate to desktops relate to cell phones relate to music players relate to servers relate to game consoles relate to databases.
Translated, I'm saying that technology across software domains should be consistent. There should be a standard, however de facto, that works everywhere. Skills should be portable across those markets, so that someone with experience in desktop software development has a decent chance of developing for handhelds.
Everything should just work together, and development across all devices should be relatively straightforward to someone with experience in any one of them. Microsoft has been very good at this. In the media realm, they have their DRM solution, their media formats both video and audio , tools for generating that media, server and client software, management tools, etc. It's an integrated end to end solution that simply is not matched by anyone else.
David Berlind talks about the " unstoppable Microsoft Media Juggernaut. Microsoft, of course, has an incentive to maintain consistency. Technology inconsistencies and incompatibilities are costly within Microsoft, and hinder the growth of Microsoft's market. Granted, Microsoft is known to allow multiple teams to run with similar, if not parallel, ideas in a form of internal competition possible in a company as large as Microsoft. In every case, however, ONE solution emerges, either because one team wins outright with the competitor getting harvested for parts or because aspects of each solution get merged into a single solution.
In Microsoft released the Xbox followed by Xbox Live in Both releases were very successful which placed Microsoft second in the video gaming market. The Xbox , released in was a very powerful gaming console while facing strong competition.
Microsoft had to cut the prices of their gaming consoles to gain a higher market share due to competition. This was a successful move; the Xbox was the most used game console in American homes. Microsoft planned to add Skype to its products such as Outlook, Xbox and Windows smartphones. Microsoft has also recently moved into cloud computing with Windows Azure platform which was announced in We undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events, or otherwise.
Microsoft was founded in Our mission is to enable people and businesses throughout the world to realize their full potential by creating technology that transforms the way people work, play, and communicate. We develop and market software, services, and hardware that deliver new opportunities, greater convenience, and enhanced value to people's lives. We do business worldwide and have offices in more than countries. Whereas Microsoft once attempted to dominate the operating system market and the applications running on it, they have accepted that they no longer have the dominant OS.
Microsoft is also leveraging their extensive presence and experience with global datacenters to be a dominant cloud host and service provider. This is yet another departure from their traditional strategy and product offerings. With respect to future technologies, Microsoft is investing heavily in artificial intelligence AI , data management, and quantum computing. Of course, there will be many additional initiatives and most certainly deviations from the plan, but if Microsoft continues to set the bar high enough, they will likely remain a dominant player, even as the technology and market opportunities continue to evolve.
Daryl Ullman has more than 20 years of goal-oriented management, sales and negotiation experience. Here are the latest Insider stories. More Insider Sign Out. Sign In Register. Sign Out Sign In Register. Latest Insider. Check out the latest Insider stories here. More from the IDG Network.
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