Windows Revenue Down 33% Will Windows 8 Save the Day?
With only 7 days until the official launch of Microsoft Windows 8, the new and controversial update to the main stay operating system, the technology company released their earnings with a startling look into a company in decline.
The numbers from the same time last year show a sharp decline in all aspects of the business with the Windows platform showing the sharpest downturn with a whopping 33% loss in revenue. A third of its revenue lost in a single year would be a concern for any company, but should be even more alarming for the company that has lost its top spot in most value companies and has seen Apple far surpass its business.
This may be why Windows 8 is such a big deal to the company. By the look of it, all seems to be riding on this single product launch, but that isn’t quite true. The Office suite continues to be a big seller for Microsoft. As an integral part of most business and consumer’s day to day lives Microsoft has been smart in creating software that spans across multiple platforms and operating systems including Apple OSX.
Microsoft sees big opportunity in its new cloud model though up to this point rather than creating big excitement and opportunity they have alienated many of the resellers and partners that helped build such a strong business, to go after a more direct model.
The mistakes just keep adding up. Windows 8, Microsoft Surface, and Windows 8 Phone have a lot riding on them. They represent a new vision for the company unfortunately that vision doesn’t seem to have any room for opinion. Partners, resellers, and even Microsoft’s own beta program have been tossed aside for a strategy that involves a “we know best attitude.”
This attitude might be ok if they truly knew and did what was best, but the numbers speak for themselves and the list of failed products and projects continues to grow. Let’s hope that Windows 8 is a huge success, we can also hope to end hunger and world peace while we’re at it.
Tales from the Cloud – Episode 67 Tales from the Cloud – Episode 68
