I’m sometimes criticized for writing tabloid headlines to get attention, but I’d like to think that they all accurately reflect the contents of my articles. At the same time, I realize some of you will fight me tooth and nail over this one, because you can’t imagine that the world’s largest software company — which has its operating system on over 90% of the world’s PCs — is unable to compete.

But the facts demonstrate that I’m right on the money here. So let me explain.

Exactly where does Microsoft own markets? Well, as most of you know, they dominate in operating systems and applications. Both Windows and Office overwhelm their competition by huge margins, and they contribute to the largest percentage of Microsoft’s revenue and profits.

However, when Microsoft strays outside of its core business, it runs into trouble, even though they can be a fearsome competitor. Or at least that’s the usual perception.

Continue Reading...

Related Articles:

• Newsletter #469 Preview: Announcing the Night Owl’s Microsoft Death Watch
• Is Microsoft Preparing the Going Out of Business Sign?
• Why Microsoft Wants to Return to the 1990s
• Microsoft Resorts to Desperate Measures to Boost Vista
• Newsletter #404 Preview: The Windows Genuine Disadvantage

Consider that Microsoft has billions and billions of dollars in the bank, ready to fight to the death to gain ascendancy in the digital music player arena. As a practical matter, you have to expect that Apple ought to fear that sort of clout. Also consider how Microsoft has been able to dominate the operating system, office suite and browser arenas and you can surely bet it’s a force to be reckoned with.

At the same time, Microsoft hasn’t done so well when it strays beyond its core business. Yes, the Xbox has been fairly successful when it comes to sales, but at what cost? Every single unit is sold at a loss, with the hope that enough Microsoft games will be sold to make up the difference. Or perhaps they’ll come to dominate the market someday and be able to raise prices yet still retain market share.

Of course, if I had some Microsoft stock, I’d be seriously considered about this kind of business plan. I’m in it for the money, and that’s not a way to make money. On the other hand, I’m not a stockholder in Microsoft or any other company.

Continue Reading...

Related Articles:

• Why Apple Isn’t Microsoft
• The Apple Music Report: Debunking the Conventional Wisdom
• More Uncritical Media Assumptions
• Can Apple Learn Something from the Google Nexus One?
• The iPhone Report: No, It’s Not the Map!

When Bill Gates said Microsoft had spent between $8 billion and $9 billion to develop Windows Vista and Office 2007, my mind clouded briefly before I stared at the screen in disbelief. Consider how often it took Apple two years or more to accumulate that much money, and you’ll get the picture. Even now, thousands and thousands of Microsoft developers are toiling in their code mines struggling to move this wasteful venture to the starting gate.

As you recall, Gates says there’s an 80% chance Vista will be released to consumers in January 2007, as if PC box vendors could care, once the holiday season has passed. Or maybe they hope that those Zune media players will somehow compensate for the lost sales.

But the larger problem here is that Microsoft comes across as a directionless company, a firm that has been singularly unable to succeed beyond its core business of operating systems and office suites. Of course, that was enough to allow it to dominate the PC industry. Apple, despite getting so many things right, still remains an afterthought to many businesses.

Continue Reading...

Related Articles:

• Safari 4: 150 Ways to Have Fun?
• Newsletter #452 Preview: The Windows World Still Doesn’t Get It!
• The Leopard Report: I Bet You Haven’t Heard Everything!
• The Fear-Factor Revisited: Time for a Microsoft Death Watch?
• Newsletter #380 Preview: Is Bill Gates Sane and Putting Us On or What?