“Microsoft is scrambling to preserve what’s left of its kingdom,” Michael Liedtke reports for The Associated Press.
“Since the company released its Windows operating system in 1985, most of the sequels have been variations on the same theme,” Liedtke reports. “Not that it mattered much. Regardless of the software’s quality, Microsoft managed to remain at the center of the personal computing universe.”
Liedtke reports, “The stakes are much different as Microsoft Corp. puts the finishing touches on Windows 8… Microsoft designed Windows 8 to help it perform a difficult balancing act. The company hopes to keep milking revenue from a PC market that appears to be past its prime, while trying to gain a stronger foothold in the more fertile field of mobile devices. It’s a booming market that, so far, has been defined and dominated by Apple Inc.’s trend-setting iPhone and iPad.”
“Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, known for his zealous faith in Microsoft, hails Windows 8 as the catalyst for an exciting — and lucrative — new era at the 37-year-old software maker.. The system also is expected to enable users to easily back up their pictures, movies, music and other files on a Microsoft storage service called SkyDrive, which will compete against Apple’s iCloud,” Liedtke reports. “Microsoft still relies on the PC industry for about 55 percent of its revenue, according to Nomura Equity Research analyst Rick Sherlund. ‘The launch of Windows 8 should provide a few years of robust growth and opportunity for Microsoft to reposition itself to better defend its position against challengers,’ Sherlund wrote in a note after Microsoft reported the latest erosion in its Windows division.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Lots of hopes and dreams that make zero sense when people know that Macs can slum it with Windows natively or via fast virtualization whenever necessary (never, for us), that iPad is unmatched and poised to surge even further ahead, that only iPhone has Siri, the developers’ foremost attention, and, alone, generate more revenue than all of Microsoft, and that all of Apple’s devices work seamlessly with Apple’s iCloud.
Microsoft is now (finally) going to ask their sufferers to “learn a new OS.” Instead, why not just send them an invitation to switch to the Macs they always wanted? If you’re going to have to (finally) “learn a new OS,” you might as well learn the world’s most advanced one.
Microsoft has nothing of value to offer, but half-assed knockoffs of Apple innovations. As usual. The world has finally woken up and is in the process of moving on.
Related articles:
Needham: Apple Mac growth to continue six-year run of outpacing Windows PCs – February 28, 2012
Tim Cook: Apple the only company innovating in personal computers, and have been for some time – February 24, 2012
More good news for Apple: Microsoft previews Windows 8 (with video) – June 1, 2011
