We’ve been running our new Quote of the Day segment for a few weeks, but I recently came across an intriguing line from former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, taken from a 2009 TechCrunch interview (via Fortune).

"The most successful by far is Firefox," Ballmer indicated. "Chrome is a rounding error to date. Safari is a rounding error to date. But Firefox is not. The fact that there’s a lot of competitors probably is to our advantage."

For context, Microsoft dominated the browser market at the time with Internet Explorer, which controlled about 74% of the global share. Google had only just launched Chrome in 2008, but competing was tough since Internet Explorer came pre‑installed as the default on Windows PCs, giving Microsoft an enormous advantage.

“It could have been demoralizing,” Google CEO Sundar Pichai admitted at a commencement address at Stanford University. “But with that California optimism, I told the team that the fact he went out of his way to dismiss us meant we were doing something right.”

The executive didn't discount that Chrome showed early success and momentum, but that triumph was short‑lived as user growth plateaued under various constraints. However, Pichai and his team didn't let up.

Fast forward to 2026, Google now runs the browser show with a massive 70.25% hold of the market share. Microsoft Edge comes in at a distant third with 5.14% of the market share.

Microsoft has been placed under fire by companies like Mozilla in the past for allegedly using "harmful designs and deceptive tactics" to give Edge a competitive advantage over other browsers on Windows 11.

The Firefox maker recently accused Microsoft of using 'dark patterns' to force its Copilot AI on Windows 11 users. It outrightly suggested that Microsoft's "intentional" re-direction with Copilot was only prompted by overwhelming feedback from users. "They’re really admitting that they made repeated choices to serve their business over their customers," Mozilla added.

Join us on Reddit at r/WindowsCentral to share your insights and discuss our latest news, reviews, and more.

Over the past few years, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has openly acknowledged that the company fumbled the smartphone war, which set back the tech giant a whopping $400 billion. "The greatest mistake of all time is the mismanagement I engaged in that caused Microsoft not to be what Android is," Gates added.

However, Android co-founder Rich Miner seemingly shared a different account about Microsoft's missed opportunity in the mobile computing landscape, suggesting that Bill Gates was at fault more than he was letting on.

According to Miner:

"I literally helped create Android to prevent Microsoft from controlling the phone the way they did the PC - stifling innovation. So it's always funny for me to hear Gates whine about losing mobile to Android."

And now, former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has seemingly corroborated Miner's sentiments. In a recent interview on the Acquired podcast, the executive admitted that Microsoft was overly confident in Windows, preventing it from capitalizing on the mobile landscape.

Ballmer further indicated that the software giant attempted to force Windows into "unsuitable" markets rather than developing platform-specific solutions tailored to meet the needs of these markets.

Ballmer pointed at Windows Mobile and automotive apps as classic examples where Microsoft attempted to tap into new markets with Windows APIs and a user interface rife with unnatural experiences.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella pulled the plug on Windows Phone, only to later admit that it was a strategic mistake. Ballmer further recalled that Microsoft's missed opportunity in the smartphone landscape emanated from "paranoia and confidence" in Windows.

The executive further revealed that the company viewed Windows as its "birthright," giving it a free pass to venture into new markets. As such, Microsoft struggled to compete with superior experiences and platforms when it decided to venture into media center apps and TV integration — its simplified versions of Windows didn't cut it.

Earlier this year, during Microsoft's 50th birthday celebration, we seemingly got a front-row seat to Copilot AI's evolution into a companion and real friend, fully equipped with memory and a virtual body as part of Microsoft's AI CEO, Mustafa Suleyman's, future plans for the AI-powered chatbot.

But perhaps more interestingly, we also got a free nostalgic trip down memory lane, courtesy of former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, who took the stage at the special Copilot event for his Developers! Developers! Developers! chant.

The viral chant can be traced back to a Microsoft developer conference in the early 2000s, which was often associated with Ballmer. Around the same time, the executive had just assumed his new role as Microsoft CEO, after Bill Gates stepped down from the helm.

During an episode of the Acquired podcast, Ballmer recently revealed that there's much more to the chant than just hype. He indicated that he used the viral chant as a call to action for Microsoft (via Business Insider). At the time, the company had doubled down on developing Windows, Windows Server, and ActiveX.

However, the tech giant wasn't as enthusiastic and proactive in getting third-party developers to build on top of these platforms. Ballmer saw this as a threat, facing fierce competition from the likes of Linux.

Steve Ballmer also revealed that he was frustrated with Microsoft's culture in the early 2000s, predominantly viewing it as "just a platform company."

As such, Ballmer's infamous chant was a call to action for Microsoft to take a proactive approach in encouraging developers to build on its platforms. "You have to be able to communicate that you really care about developers who are not your own," Ballmer added. "We just had to tell people, 'We want you, we want you, we want you.'"

"I have my own kind of wild style," Ballmer concluded.

Interestingly, fast forward into the future, Microsoft has seemingly gotten over the hump and is working closely with third-party developers across its platforms. Elsewhere, Ballmer revealed that he had a difficult time emotionally detaching from Microsoft; he almost sold all his stock to expedite the process.

Ballmer also always had a sense of humor about the whole thing, including briefly redoing his chant at Microsoft's 50th Anniversary event, held in Redmond earlier in April, as captured on camera by our editor-in-chief, Daniel Rubino, and shared above.

Sometimes we can lose ourselves in our professions, especially if we really like our job. It can become a labor of love, not just a source of monetary benefits. In a recent episode of the "Acquired" podcast, former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer revealed that he had a difficult time emotionally detaching from the company he'd helped build from the ground up (via Business Insider).

Steve Ballmer joined Microsoft in 1980 as the company's first business manager. Fast forward to the early millennium, and he took over from Bill Gates and became the company's CEO through 2014.

Spending most of his professional life at Microsoft, Ballmer admits in this podcast that he had a difficult time letting go of the company:

"It was my baby. I was there so early, and I hired basically everybody."

Even after Satya Nadella took over as Microsoft CEO, Ballmer remained proactive in the company's affairs as an ultra-engaged investor. reading everything and attending shareholder meetings. He indicated that he was "kind of a dick" for it.

In the end, Ballmer indicated that it took him a little over a year to emotionally detach from Microsoft. He even considered selling his Microsoft stocks to expedite the detachment process. "It was nothing to do with money," he added. "My only thought process was emotional detachment."

However, he says a former colleague managed to discourage him from making the move. Ballmer indicated that his loyalty to Microsoft trumps emotional attachment. Luckily, the executive managed to strike a balance, retaining his loyalty to Microsoft but emotionally detached from its highs and lows.

Bill Gates suffered from imposter syndrome in the early Microsoft days

Running a multi-trillion-dollar company like Microsoft isn't an easy feat. As you may know, Bill Gates and Paul Allen started the software giant in 1975, and the company celebrated its 50th birthday earlier this year in April.

Bill Gates admitted that he had a difficult reveling in Microsoft's immense success in the tech landscape despite its impressive market capitalization that propelled him into a billionaire. The philanthropic billionaire indicated that the new reality only started dawning on him in 1998.

The executive officially left his day-to-day role as Microsoft CEO in 2008, though he remained the chairman of the company's board until 2014. While he has since shifted his focus to philanthropic efforts via The Gates Foundation and is on the precipice of giving away all his wealth, recent reports suggest that Gates is still intimately involved in Microsoft's affairs, with his word being treated as "the gospel."

Today, Microsoft has officially turned 50, marking decades of innovation and software development, and more recently, generative AI advances. At Windows Central, we've had a blast looking back at the tech giant's successes and failures over the past 50 years this week.

Our Senior Editor, Zac Bowden, recently predicted what Microsoft's 50th anniversary event will look like, including speculations that Microsoft might finally give a specific timeline when Windows 11's AI-powered features, such as Windows Recall, Click To Do, and AI in Search, would ship to broad availability.

While we'll have a clear account of what Microsoft plans to announce later today, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella posted an interesting clip on X (formerly Twitter) and other social media platforms. I never thought I'd witness an AI-powered platform interview the Microsoft CEOs, including co-founder Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer, and Satya Nadella, but here we are.

I almost wouldn't tell that it's Microsoft Copilot conducting a seamless interview with such a great flow of thoughts and topics.

Perhaps more interesting than the intricate details of the interview, Copilot engaged all three CEOs in a comical "AI roast" session. As you might have guessed, Copilot took subtle jabs at each of the CEOs, starting with Steve Ballmer.

To Ballmer, Copilot touted his enthusiasm. "But do you ever worry that your energy might short-circuit the AI. I mean even robots need a coffee break after your pep talks."

Seemingly amused by Copilot's roast, Ballmer jokingly indicated that if AI could handle him, then it wasn't ready to handle the world's population. "We're counting on you," added Ballmer.

Microsoft's co-founder Bill Gates was next in line for the AI roast. "Now, Bill, you've got that signature thoughtful stare, but do you ever think the AI might feel intimidated by your intense thinking face?" indicated Copilot. "I mean, it's like it's waiting for a blue screen moment.”

While responding to Copilot, the philanthropic billionaire indicated:

“I hope so. I mean, that's all I've got left is these AIs get so damn intelligent. It's just that stare and my willingness to criticize that differentiates me.”

Steve Ballmer posed an interesting question to the AI chatbot, asking whether it could ever criticize Bill Gates. “Absolutely. Criticism is where growth happens,” Copilot indicated.

It concluded its roast session by throwing some jabs at Microsoft's current CEO, Satya Nadella, and his keen focus and obsession with AI. According to Copilot:

“Satya, AI seems to be your best buddy. But do you ever worry that your deep passion for AI could one day have it running the show, leaving you to just enjoy the ride?”

Copilot's comment seemingly echoed Bill Gates' recent prediction about AI replacing humans for most things. However, Satya Nadella indicated that we'd only get to that point when "AI can play like the best cricket player that I enjoy."

Interestingly, Bill Gates had previously indicated that humans would have the power to preserve some tasks for themselves, giving an example that no one would like to watch computers play cricket. “Touché, Satya. Let's see if it can hit a century in cricket, and then we'll talk. This has been a blast, gentlemen,” added Copilot.

Our Editor-in-Chief, Daniel Rubino, is on the ground at Microsoft's Redmond campus in Washington for its 50th anniversary and Copilot event with our live blog, covering all the announcements as they trickle in.

Be sure to keep tabs on that page for all the latest information and announcements!

When was the last time you heard someone compare sports and software development? I can't recall either. However, Dallas Mavericks’ minority owner, Mark Cuban, recently shared interesting insights about the team unceremoniously trading basketball superstar Luka Dončić trade to the Los Angeles Lakers in an interview with Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates (via OpenCourt Basketball).

The interview started with Cuban posing a rhetorical question to Bill Gates:

"If after you left Microsoft, you found out that Steve Ballmer traded Windows 11, the new, hot operating system, for Windows 10, the Hall of Fame but the old operating system, what would you do."

"I might have to hide from the press," responded Gates. The philanthropic billionaire's comments are warranted given Microsoft's history and rapid trajectory to become the most sought-after software development company with billions of users across the world and up to $3 trillion in market valuation.

As we recently learned, Microsoft's immense success didn't dawn on Bill Gates until the late '90s, despite attaining billionaire status.

"I thought I was one mistake away from death until then," added Gates. "That was just my mentality.”

A preference for Windows 10, louder than ever

While Cuban raises a valid point on the basketball front, his sentiments might not be entirely valid on the Windows front. In the next 9 months, Microsoft is expected to pull the plug on Windows 10. October 14, 2025, could be around the corner, but Windows 10 continues to dominate with a 60.33% market share over Windows 11's 36.65% (the highest market share the new OS has enjoyed since shipping).

Despite Microsoft's blatant attempt to get users to upgrade to Windows 11 using intrusive and full-screen multipage popup ads, most users are seemingly sticking to their guns and continue to run the operating system, even with its imminent death looming closer.

Related: Windows 10 'doomsday clock' pushes closer to midnight as Microsoft's unexpected rivals dominate an expanding PC category

User reluctance to upgrade to Windows 10 can be attributed to several critical reasons, including the depressed PC market (though trends show it's on an upward trajectory this year), strict minimum system requirements for the OS, Windows 11's flawed design, and more.

A public interest research group filed a petition contesting Microsoft's decision to cut support for Windows 10. The group argued that over 40% of users still run Windows 10, citing that the plan would lead to "the single biggest jump in junked computers ever," which doesn't align with the tech giant's sustainability goals.

But as it now seems, Microsoft is moving forward with its plans. However, users can continue using Windows 10 for an additional year of support through Microsoft's Extended Security Updates program for $30, though it only guarantees one year of extended support and security updates.

Beyond that, users will be compelled to upgrade to Windows 11 or continue using Windows 10 without support. The latter option leaves you susceptible to attacks.

What you need to know

• Steve Ballmer is a former Microsoft CEO.
• His net worth just crossed $101 billion.
• His heightened wealth comes in part due to Microsoft stock value gains.

Steve Ballmer, an ex-CEO of Microsoft, continues to reap rewards from the company's endeavors. Case in point: Thanks to a $20 billion boost in his net worth spurred by this year's Microsoft stock gains, Ballmer now has a $101 billion net worth according to Bloomberg (via Business Insider).

The gains in Microsoft's stock come as no surprise given how much the company has achieved in recent memory. Its Xbox division is firing on all cylinders with the best Xbox Game Pass games and the Xbox Series X, it's achieved success with U.S. government deals totaling in the double-digit billions, and of course, there's always Windows 11. The company's recent trajectory has been positive, and growing sectors such as cloud computing (where Azure comes in) seem primed to help it stay that way.

Recently, Microsoft hit the $2 trillion valuation mark for the first time. It is the second company to have managed this, second only to Apple, which achieved the feat back in August of 2020.

He is one of two former Microsoft CEOs on Bloomberg's wealthiest billionaires list, with Bill Gates being the other. Gates controls the fourth slot on the list while Ballmer occupies the ninth.

If you're new to the Microsoft enthusiast circuit, weren't around for the Ballmer days, and want some insight into who he is, check out the footage of him jumping into a lake in his underwear while Microsoft employees cheer him on. That should give you a better understanding of the ninth wealthiest man in the world.

What you need to know

• There's a story that a long time ago, in a Redmond HQ lake far, far away, Steve Ballmer went swimming.
• Though it's been written about, a visual account of the event has not been widely circulated... until now.
• An ancient video of the swim in question has surfaced, solidifying its place in history.

Get ready to time travel back to 1988, when then-Microsoft VPs Steve Ballmer and Mike Maples took a swim in Lake Bill as a result of them both "losing" a bet with each other.

Though accounts of the story have circulated for a long time, such as the Seattle Times' report, we now have video evidence of the legendary Lake Bill event. Behold:

As can be seen in the video, the event starts well enough with a stirring rendition of the National Anthem (sung by Microsoft's very own acapella group "The Microtones," according to the description written by the video's uploader Rosie Perera) before devolving into madness as a crowd of Microsoft employees cheer and shout at Ballmer and Maples until the former discards his shirt and pants and dives into the pond known as "Lake Bill." Maples, not keen on stripping down, decides to follow Ballmer while still clad in his work clothes, sans suit jacket.

This event came about as a competition between two divisions of Microsoft to see which could earn more money for United Way.

It's rare that videos such as the above crop up online, so take this treasured time capsule of Microsoft history and cherish it. Microsoft wouldn't be where it is today without the two men in the video, and their famous swim is part of that storied history.

What you need to know

• Steve Ballmer oozed excitement at a press conference for the LA Clippers.
• Ballmer was CEO of Microsoft for 18 years.
• Ballmer was famous for many energetic displays on stage.

Steve Ballmer, the owner of the LA Clippers, was so full of energy at an LA Clippers press conference that he didn't know what to do with his hands. Ballmer was pumped to announce the addition of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George to the Clippers.

Ballmer was CEO of Microsoft for 18 years, and the same energy he has for the Clippers was regularly on display during his time at Microsoft. He's a passionate man known by many for his famous "Developers! Developers! Developers!" presentation.

Top 5 Steve Ballmer memorable moments

Ballmer welcomed Leonard, a two-time NBA Finals MVP, and George, a perennial NBA All-Star, to the Clippers with his standard gusto, saying "I have these notes, but I gotta say I'm just fired to be here today. It's pretty cool! Pretty damn cool... Woooooo."

CNN tweeted out the clip of the Clippers owner who was so excited about his team that he didn't know if he should give Leonard a handshake or a bro hug.

Portable (and affordable) power accessories we love

Each and every one of these charging gadgets will keep your favorite gear and gadgets going for longer, and none of them costs more than $30.

VisionTek 8,000 mAh micro-USB power bank ($13 at Dell)

This compact dual-output powerbank can speedily recharge any and all your devices, thanks to a two-amp "fast charge feature," using its micro-USB out port. Its simple design includes an LED indicator, and it costs about as much as a single ticket to the movies.

Panasonic eneloop AA batteries (From $13 at Dell)

Panasonic's rechargeable batteries are among the best available, and just a couple of them will keep your favorite remote, mice or other peripherals powered up when you need them. They're also eco. And the company's affordable charger fits and charges both AA and AAA batteries at the same time.

Belkin Qi Wireless Charging Pad ($30 at Dell)

This unobtrusive Qi wireless charging pad looks good (and kind of like a UFO …) and easily charges all your Qi-compatible device up to 5W. Its LED indicator lights up when you're charging. And it costs just $30.

Steve Ballmer's smartphone strategy when he was head of Microsoft caused some strain between himself and company co-founder Bill Gates, according to a new interview with the former CEO. Ballmer revealed to Bloomberg that the two had a difference of opinion on the strategic direction of the company, specifically over how important it was to be in the hardware business.

From Bloomberg:

Ballmer is of course referring to his decision to push the purchase of Nokia's phone business in 2013 for more than $9 billion — a purchase that would ultimately be written down after current CEO Satya Nadella took over. Ultimately, however, Ballmer regrets not getting into the hardware business sooner with respect to the mobile sphere:

Ballmer's comments reflect the feelings of current CEO Nadella, who recently acknowledged that Microsoft had "clearly missed the Mobile Phone." Nadella, however, is now focused on Microsoft's efforts to "grow new categories" — something which can be seen in the company's renewed focus on services and even the Surface team's emphasis on creating new categories with each device.

Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer thinks that the company he used to lead needs some direction when it comes to the mobile devices business. Ballmer expressed these views, and many more, in a new interview.

The chat, as posted on Business Insider showed that while Ballmer thinks that Microsoft is headed in a good direction on a number of fronts, including its Surface and Xbox product lines, the mobile phone business needs some guidance under current CEO Satya Nadella.

Ballmer still owns a large percentage of Microsoft shares and has a lot of contacts in the company:

He left the CEO position in 2013 and stepped down from the Microsoft board of directors in 2014. Since his August 2013 departure, shares of MSFT have climbed 44% and Microsoft's quarterly revenue has grown by 27%.

Source: Business Insider

A company's culture is arguably the most significant quality that a firm possesses.

Culture is pervasive. It affects how employees and divisions interact with each other, how a company serves its customers and how a firm perceives itself in relation to competitors. Culture can make or break a company.

From the outside looking in

In recent years we've been positioned on the outside, looking in, as Microsoft underwent cultural shifts.

In 2013, we saw Ballmer initiate "One Microsoft." This initiative was both a reorganization of the company's personnel and divisions as well as a phrase intended to convey an ideological shift of the firm toward a more collaborative model.

In July 2014, five months after Satya Nadella became CEO of Microsoft, he addressed all employees via a memo titled Bold Ambition & Our Core{.nofollow}. This memo was expansive and outlined Nadella's long-term vision and short-term goals.

He also made bold statements about his vision of the company's culture:

Throughout late 2014 and 2015 we saw these words put into action as massive layoffs ensued, divisions were reorganized and innovative category-creating products were introduced.

Microsoft has gone from a company that walked on eggshells following an antitrust lawsuit in the late 90's to a company that boldly introduces ground-breaking innovation such as HoloLens, the Surface and Surface Book and the precedent-setting form-agnostic OS, Windows 10.

Ballmer's tenure gave us a shift toward a more collaborative Microsoft. While Nadella's leadership brings a cultural move toward a "do more" company, customer obsession, training, learning and experimentation and more efficient teams.

This, at least, is the change we see from the outside looking in as we grab soundbites and quotes and analyze business strategies. But how do employees within Microsoft perceive the cultural shifts of the last two years that have transformed the company?

To answer this question, I caught up with three Microsoft employees who were kind enough to answer a few questions. I introduce to you:

• Chris Pratley is the General Manager of Sway and Docs.com. Chris has worked for Microsoft for over 21 years and is responsible for the team that designs and builds Office Sway. He supervises 120 people, some of whom work on Docs.com and Office Lens. Here's a fun fact, he also invented OneNote.
• Mike Tholfsen is a OneNote and Education Product Manager. Mike works on a variety of projects including the OneNote Class/Staff notebooks, OneNote Learning Tools, and a set of upcoming, unreleased education projects. A typical day for Mike includes communicating with customers, working on roadmap and strategy, working with the engineering team, helping remove any roadblocks to help ship products, brainstorming new ideas, features, and scenarios and talking to and meeting with education partners.
• Chris Yu is the Group Program Manager responsible for Docs.com and Office Lens. He owns his vision, product conception, and strategy behind the products. A typical day involves getting feedback on new product concepts with customers and partners, coordinating product development plans, and working with a customer-obsessed team of program managers, design professionals, and engineers inventing compelling solutions.

Fly on the wall

I posed the following six questions to these three gentlemen to get an inside view of Microsoft's culture. Here's what they had to say.

(Chris Pratley)

Jason L Ward, Windows Central: What is culturally different at Microsoft now than it was two years ago?

Chris Pratley: For me, there are three things:

• The willingness for teams across the company to work together is far greater. There is an assumption of shared purpose and trust that wasn't there before, and far less cynicism.
• The support at all levels for trying things that might not work is tremendous. Such a focus on quick experimentation vs. polishing a first iteration to 'perfection', favoring action vs discussion, willingness to seek data vs. opinion.
• The focus on customers and customer needs and delight over things such as dates or technical roadmaps is very refreshing.

Mike Tholfsen: Three big areas of culture focus I have noticed are "Customer Obsession," "One Microsoft" and the "Growth Mindset."

Chris Yu: While teams have always known that working together effectively leads to the best result, I'd say that the different teams are more empathetic toward each other, and we realize that to deliver the best customer experiences it really takes having our people come together to solve problems.

(Mike Tholfsen)

Jason: How does that change affect you in your position?

Chris Pratley: The changes concretely affect me as I am able to do things with other teams simply by asking them to work with us. Sounds simple, but it wasn't always. I also see greater enthusiasm and support for the new and untried, whereas in the past there was more a focus on the already successful.

Mike Tholfsen: In my position, "Customer Obsession", "One Microsoft" and the "Growth Mindset" have all had impact. I work on the OneNote team in the education space. In the past 1.5 years, I've had the chance to work very closely with teachers, schools and students and develop new products and services to solve challenges in the education space. I've worked on very small teams and been given the ability to ship software very rapidly and iterate quickly based on customer feedback. I believe the customer focus has been a key aspect of the success we've been seeing with OneNote in the education space. In terms of growth mindset, I've been able to experiment and try new things regularly, and given the leeway and encouragement from management to always be learning and iterating.

Chris Yu: It's really wonderful as it helps new products like Office Lens and Docs.com get support from around the company.

(Chris Yu)

Jason: How does that change affect how you interact with other employees and teams?

Chris Pratley: Beyond partnering, relationships now start with trust vs. suspicion, and lots of discussions end (quickly, healthily) with "let's try it" rather than an endless discussion over who is predicting correctly.

Mike Tholfsen: The cultural changes have had a very positive impact with employees and teams. Teams are encouraged to try new things, gather feedback quickly, work with customers, and not being afraid of failing. The emphasis is shifting from "knowing" to "learning" – and one way we learn is through trying new things…even if we fail in the attempt, we learn from it.

Chris Yu: It doesn't really change the approach I take. In any quickly moving organization, it's important to be incredibly respectful of other's time and goals. It just means that good outcomes happen more often.

Jason: How does that change affect how you view and appeal to consumers?

Chris Pratley: My teams are fully dedicated to improving depth of usage (engagement), returning user rates, and total active users. This means we are de facto highly attuned to what customers' value (in particular, the actual users of the products), and we are incented to engage deeply with them to understand why they don't come back, or what would make them, even more, enthusiastic. In the past, the emphasis was more on hitting dates with quality, which is execution excellence. Worthy, but not as good as focusing on customers.

Mike Tholfsen: In the case of OneNote in the education space, I believe our customers have noticed the close customer connection our team has had, as well as the rapid release of new capabilities aimed at teachers and schools, often based on direct customer feedback and interactions we've had. A great example is this tweet that a teacher put out:

One of our engineers had reached out directly to this customer to help solve an issue she was seeing. The teacher was quite happy with the interaction and tweeted out the screenshot of their Skype call and her thanks.

Chris Yu: Again, I don't think it's changed how I work with customers. Microsoft would be nothing without its customers and partners and at the end of the day, it's about whether we're giving them more value than they're giving us.

Jason: How does that change affect how you see rivals?

Chris Pratley: While it is good to be aware of what competitors are doing, focusing on competitors is largely a distraction, and if you don't keep customers at the front it is easy to get caught up in following your competition which is a losing strategy. Speaking for myself I have always been more focused on customers than competition, but I think these changes make it much easier for everyone to do that because superiors are asking about customers and not competition as much. It also frees us to do more true innovation, which comes from deep customer empathy and technical acumen, not from keeping up with the other guys.

Mike Tholfsen: The focus is more on the customers and solving the customer's problems and less about what the competition is doing. There is also a sense that Microsoft doesn't have to be focusing on everything all the time. We have a set of key strategies that are part of our vision, and there are areas where it's OK the competition is focusing on something, and we're not.

Chris Yu: I spend most of my time focused on my customers and team. If we build the best products that solve the customer's problems, we'll be fine. And in such a tightly connected industry like ours, there's a lot of cross-pollination of talent, so the rivalries I'd say are more for our collective entertainment than anything else.

Jason: How does that change affect Microsoft's position in the industry?

Chris Pratley: I think you see it already – products that make a difference, that are exciting. Bold moves in pricing and distribution. Brand new groundbreaking things. We've always done good engineering, but if you do it for technology's sake, or business' sake, you are not doing it for customers' sake, and they can tell. There is a certain energy in products that really focus on customers. We had it when I started in the 90s – we were trying hard to establish ourselves as #1 in many categories by appealing to customers to outflank stronger entrenched competitors (Lotus, WordPerfect, IBM, etc.). It worked, but then our focus started to drift away from end users to business users, to IT, and (outside of places like XBOX) we started to build products for people who were buying for others, not using themselves, and looking to eke out a little more money here and there by optimizing for licensing or sales. Dates and roadmaps and technology and feature checklists and incremental revenue took over. Now we're back to catering to the actual people who use our stuff, the goal is "customer love" and it is quite refreshing.

Mike Tholfsen: I think our willingness to develop and encourage software on multiple platforms, as well as our increased commitment to open standards, has helped positively affect our position in the industry.

Chris Yu: I think it's for the best…collaborating and building great things together with other teams, partners, customers and others in the industry is reward in its own right and all the great companies in the industry recognize that.

Analysis

In Nadella's first interview after becoming CEO (see video above) he refers to Microsoft as a "do more" company and shares his love of learning. The insightful responses from our interviewees confirm our perception that the combined results of Ballmer's shift toward "One Microsoft" and Nadella's attributes toward learning, doing and trying new things have transformed Microsoft's culture.

Three themes emerged consistently throughout our dialogues: unity, customer obsession and an atmosphere that nurtures learning and trying new things are core to Microsoft's new culture.

Regarding unity, Chris Yu conveyed an indispensable link between collaboration and customer satisfaction. Chris Pratley addressed "customer obsession" by stressing Microsoft's return to making products directly for users with a focus on "customer love" of those products rather than "building products for people who were buying for others".

With Microsoft's Windows and Devices Group under Panos Panay's leadership, first-party hardware can now be designed from conception to production to work seamlessly with the software that powers it to deliver the best user experience. This long-term, Apple-esque, view of optimal software and hardware synergy is also reflected in the controversial direction of newer silicon chips requiring Windows 10 for optimal performance and continued support.

Finally, as an echo to Chris Capossela's statement, "the fear is gone", Mike Tholfsen stressed Microsoft's new culture which nurtures learning and fearlessly trying new things.

The new Microsoft is a company undergoing a metamorphosis. It's a firm just emerging from a chrysalis, wings expanding, broadcasting it's potential and intent to fly. Employees seem to be embracing their new reality. The industry seems excited about what they see emerging from Redmond. Bold innovation and a fearless push into new category's have not gone without their hiccups, but one thing is clear: Microsoft is not the company it was just a few years ago, consuming itself with internal division while allowing opportunities to be devoured by fear. The company has entered a new season where they're galvanizing employees, partners, and consumers with hopeful ambition. It seems that the sky's the limit.

Nadella expressed{.nofollow} the company's new position like this:

Big thanks to Chris Pratley, Mike Tholfsen and Chris Yu for their valuable "inside Microsoft" perspectives!

Steve Ballmer has mostly kept quiet on his views of the tech industry since he left Microsoft in 2014 as its CEO to become the owner of the LA Clippers pro basketball team. However, he has offered some of his insights into his former company, and its competition in a new video interview.

Ballmer, in a chat with Bloomberg TV, admitted that Apple had "done a good job" with its efforts in combining software and hardware. However, he also feels that "if there's going to be any competition at all for Apple it will come from Microsoft." He cited the recently announced Surface Book as an example of how Microsoft could compete with Apple with that kind of business model

Ballmer also took on Amazon as well. Both Microsoft and Amazon are based in the Seattle area, and while he says some Microsoft employees have left to go work at Amazon, "we could count on them coming back within a year or two because it's not a great place to work." You can watch the full chat with Ballmer in the video below.

Source: Bloomberg

The incumbent was confident. Overconfident. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

Individuals and multibillion-dollar firms can learn from past mistakes. Experience is a brutal teacher. Yet if the chastisement of past failures is endured there is sometimes a chance at a do-over. One must simply recognize the opportunity.

Prime time

Apple sold 25 million Apple TVs while they considered it a hobby (2007-present). Now with the tvOS developer's platform and a refreshed UI they're serious about the living room. Microsoft needs to take this seriously. If hubris prevents this, they may find their formidable Xbox boxed out of the living room. Not that Apple TV and Xbox are the same type of devices competing for the same audience. They are not. They are, however, competing for the same space.

Ecosystem builders

When Apple introduced the iPhone in 2007, they didn't just introduce a phone. They introduced an entire infrastructure of partnerships and eventually a dedicated app store that forged the basis of an ecosystem to support this device.

My daily driver at that time was a Cingular 2125. A candy bar shaped, keyboard-equipped smartphone running Windows Mobile 5.0. I had movies, documents, pictures and apps on the 1GB memory card housed behind the battery. I frequented various sites to download apps and hacks available to Windows Mobile users.

I mocked the iPhone. My device, unlike the iPhone, could send MMS messages, copy and paste and at the time had more apps available for it than were available for the fledgling Apple product. I suppose I saw what Ballmer saw.

I did sense a danger in Apple's organized approach, however. The phone was only the tip of the iceberg. The foundation of a powerful and broad ecosystem lurked beneath the surface. When Microsoft and its fans collided with that reality, the loss was titanic.

System builders

Apple had positioned the iPhone as a portal to a new way of mobile computing. It was simplistic really. Apps. The bevy of keyboard bearing devices popular at the time were focused on getting things, like email and messaging, done with the use of the keyboard. Yet, omitting the keyboard made the iPhone's display an attractive portal to what Apple was really offering. Namely an unobtrusive way of accessing apps and thereby getting far more than email and messaging done on a smartphone.

To this end, Apple built an infrastructure of alliances with developers and a centralized app store from which to distribute their apps. The iPhone's home screen became a simple user-friendly platform where those apps were displayed to and easily accessed by users. This was an efficient system that gave developers an incentive to develop for Apple. Their apps would be easily accessed from the store and highly visible on user's home screens.

This was a stark contrast to Windows Mobile's initial lack of a centralized store and the clumsy way in which apps were hidden behind layers of the UI. Criticisms that the iPhone was just an app launcher abounded. I echoed those words myself. But the device was exactly what Apple purposed it to be.

Now, after eight years, with hundreds of millions of iPhones and iPads sold to dedicated fans, 19 million developers and an app store boasting over a million of the best mobile apps, Apple's system for building an ecosystem has proven more than successful. It is with this foundation that Apple is now declaring that the Apple TV is no longer a hobby. Microsoft needs to take them seriously. This is no laughing matter.

Let's talk.

The living room

This is the prize. The living room is arguably the primary social center of our homes. Following the fireplace and radio, the television became the central object of that space. Gaming systems began their symbiotic relationship with televisions in the '70s and '80s. As consoles evolved they began playing a hybrid role of media hubs and dedicated gaming systems. This is the Xbox's position in 10s of millions of homes around the world. For a niche group of hardcore gamers, Microsoft has claimed the living room.

Apple wants in. During their "Hey Siri" event, Apple TV took center stage. We saw a Siri-enhanced navigation experience, the introduction of tvOS, a new touch controller and a peripheral focus on gaming. We even heard the words "universal apps" thrown around. Sound familiar? A user can begin a game on one Apple device and continue it on another.

I must reiterate that Apple is not positioning the Apple TV as a gaming console to compete with the Xbox. In its current iteration, that would be foolish.

Two's a crowd

Apple has millions of dedicated fans and developers ready to follow where the company leads. Coupled with their undeniable marketing magic, Apples renewed push into the living room will likely yield phenomenal support.

With 60% of the company's revenue coming from the iPhone in a slowing smartphone market, Apple is internally compelled to venture into additional areas of potential growth. Additionally, Apple is pitted against Microsoft's universal Windows 10 platform which encompasses Xbox, phone, HoloLens, PC and IoT devices. Thus, Apple is externally pressured to further broaden its platform to a space beyond the phone but still connects to it and its other devices.

This is where Microsoft must remember past lessons. Redmond cannot view this scenario as a negligible threat to its living room position. Apple TV is Cupertino further positioning itself for success in an industry that is becoming more platform rather than device-centric.

As the Apple TV's core function is media consumption while the Xbox's is gaming, the Apple TV has an inherent advantage to what device consumers will likely choose as their living room's media hub. The television for media consumption is still the primary object in our living rooms. Gaming in that space is a secondary activity.

As such it will likely appeal to a much wider audience than the gaming focused Xbox.

For Apple fans, cord cutters, and others looking for alternate methods of consuming content, the $169 - $199 price tag of the Apple TV is far more accessible than the $349 price of the Xbox One. Its smaller footprint in comparison to the robust dimensions of the Xbox One also makes it more appealing as a living room hub for many.

Game on

Sure there won't be any Metal Gear Solid 5 type titles gracing the Apple TV anytime soon. But with Apple's relationship with the developers who create the most polished games on any mobile platform, it is certain that casual games galore will make their way to Apple TV.

Sure, some developers will forego reworking their touch focused games for compatibility with Apple TV's new controller. But with a potential audience of millions of fans of familiar iOS games, tvOS iterations of these cross-platform, socially connected titles may appeal to many developers.

Casual gamers, the Candy Crushers of the world, are the target here. This is an entirely different market than the hardcore gamers, usually males in their 20s and 30s, the Xbox serves. Casual gamers are usually older and female. Distracted toddlers as well as grandmothers trying to keep a sharp mind also fit the bill.

Some may argue systems like Roku tried and failed to mainstream casual gaming. This is true, but they're not Apple. As frustrating as it is for Microsoft fans when Apple moves, the industry often follows.

So with the Apple TV's deliberate positioning as a living room hub and its subtle approach to casual gaming, Apple is leveraging the device as a platform to provide users easy access to the content of potentially millions of dedicated developers.

Family matters

When deciding on what device will rule their living rooms, families will be pondering their options with the weight of Apple's brand and marketing working to seduce them. Additionally, women, the target demographic for casual gaming are usually the members of the household with the greatest influence on the aesthetics of the home. That said, the petite Apple TV will likely appeal to the lady of the house.

The Apple TV may not kill the Xbox, but it may displace it. The Xbox may be ousted from the living room to the man-cave in favor of Apple's TV. If it remains alongside the Apple TV, the gaming focused Xbox may be sparingly utilized as the family frequently interacts with the media focused Apple TV.

For the gamer in the home, that may not be a big deal. They'll "game" just the same. But for Redmond's goal to rule the living room, that's a massive blow. For Microsoft fans, it will be yet another loss.

Iteration

When the first iPhone launched, it was ridiculed because of its technological limits in comparison to what was already in the market. But the first iPhone was about positioning the platform and ecosystem. Once positioned, Apple iterated. Eight years later the iPhone is one of the most advanced devices in the market.

If Apple TV is successful in its renewed positioning, Apple will improve it. It will become more powerful, faster and likely offer greater capacity for more intense gaming. Developers will likely have opportunities to develop more advanced games for their vast audience of "non-hardcore" gamers. Who knows where it will go from there.

It may never become a "Xbox rival" but it may become a mainstream gaming system for a much broader audience of casual and mid-core gamers. It'll compete by not competing.

Mass appeal

I acknowledge that Xbox allows users a great voice-enhanced media experience with Kinect (soon Cortana).

The problem is that it is a gaming console first. Consequently, those who benefit from its media prowess is niche.

By contrast, Apple TV is targeted at everyone who watches TV. The strength of Apple's approach is that their efforts will mainstream the experience whereas Microsoft's is limited. Sounds like what happened in smartphones.

Sadly Apple has usurped Microsoft's position in smartphones and automobiles. Now they're positioning themselves to do the same in the living room.

Wrap up

Microsoft must indeed watch Apple. But not passively as one might watch say, an Apple TV. They must watch them as a champion fighter seeking to defend his title watches his opponent at the height of the title bout. Microsoft needs to bob and weave while it anticipates its opponent's moves and aggressively seeks and takes opportunities to strike.

Windows 10 is coming to Xbox. There are opportunities there to add cross-platform casual gaming to its repertoire. A smaller Xbox, though recently refuted, could answer the issue of aesthetics. If either or neither of these is done, Microsoft's brutal experience in missing what Apple was doing in smartphones should have at least taught them the following. If they want to remain a central part of the living room, the one thing they can't do is nothing.

Share your thoughts!

In this piece, we'll look at how Microsoft is addressing the challenge of engaging the millions of users acquired through its low-end strategy. We'll observe how Microsoft underwent massive but necessary internal changes. Changes initiated to reorganize the company around a vision of deeper team integration to create products representative of a synergy of Microsoft's diverse strengths. We'll ultimately see how these products are designed with user engagement in mind. This piece will reveal how Microsoft has laid the groundwork to engage users of it's mobile phone platform.

If people talk about you, if you're part of the conversation, that's what counts.

Get Your Business Straight

If you or I were to venture into a clothing store and happen upon an item that is both trendy and desirable but not designed for our particular physique, we would be faced with a dilemma. We could forego partaking in this trend allowing it to bypass us. Or, if possible, we could commit to the necessary dietary and exercise regimen to change our bodies from the inside out, thus diligently reshaping ourselves to conform to the direction of the clothing industry.

It is no secret that Microsoft's multiple divisions have operated more like an association of independent units over the years, rather than unified components of a larger body sharing a singular mission. In years past, this mode of operation served them well. When the desktop ruled computing, where Windows ruled the desktop, a Windows and Microsoft Office focused company with many of Redmond's other divisions playing supporting roles was good for business.

We have since transitioned to an age where much of our computing has shifted away from Microsoft's desktop stronghold to a mobile model where the company is minimally represented. Microsoft's rivals have pioneered a cohesion of products and services that interact and connect in synergistic ways creating broad and vibrant ecosystems. In a new world with new lifestyle and work productivity demands, Microsoft could no longer engage in business as usual. To fit the new paradigm, they had to change from the inside out.

Can't We All Just Get Along? – The Disconnect

The graph above was shared by Microsoft's Chief Marketing Officer Chris Capossela during Convergence 2015. It's not comprehensive as it only represents a brief snapshot in time. It does, however, provide some useful insights. The size of each circle represents the amount of users for that particular product in the US. More importantly the lines connecting the circles represent the reality that an individual using product 'A' is also likely using product 'B'. Apple is represented as gold, Google purple, and Microsoft blue.

As you can see, both Apple's and Google's graphs are tangled webs of product and services interconnectivity. Conversely, Microsoft's graph looks more like a representation of one way and dead end streets. What the chart confirms is the almost hubris laced claim by Apple regarding its product line – "It Just Works."

With connectivity between products so deep, Apple need only advertise its devices. Users who buy an iPhone or iPad (or Android) device are quickly engaged with a range of services that just work well together.

If Microsoft's ecosystem could speak, it would likely bemoan its compartmentalized nature. Unlike the harmonious symphony of collaboration found in Apple's and Google's ecosystems Microsoft's ecosystem is a jangling cacophony of individual expression. The disconnected nature of the companies various products is undoubtedly a legacy of the pre "One Microsoft" era. That era was characterized by the divided nature of Microsoft where collaboration between divisions was minimal. In 2013, while still under Ballmer's leadership, the Microsoft behemoth began its slow transition to the more collaborative "One Microsoft" we see taking shape today.

Harbingers of Change or An Ethos of Design With Marketing in Mind

Naturally, this deep internal organizational change was designed to bear external fruit. Thus, a shining example of a product born from the work toward a more homogenous Microsoft is the company's flagship tablet, the Surface Pro 3. A tablet that Redmond claims can replace your laptop. The Pro 3 is a convergence of hardware and software that makes the simple click of the N-trig digitizer pen a portal to Microsoft's cloud-based cross-platform OneNote product. Capossela shared that through engineering and collaboration, such synergy was achieved.

This bit of engineering and collaboration has inked a solid line connecting the Surface and OneNote. Capossela confirmed that there were a greater number OneNote users among Surface owners than there are among other Windows users.

He also shared other examples of deliberate engineering that interconnects Microsoft's diverse product portfolio. The integration of Microsoft's digital assistant Cortana (which is essentially Bing), into Windows 10 (and Windows Phone) is a much more engaging method to entice users to use Bing than attempting to persuade them to defer to Bing.com over Google.com.

Similar implementations of greater product integration have already begun to take shape as well. Outlook.com will feature a Skype button in the toolbar. This will allow users to easily instant message contacts directly from Microsoft Outlook using Skype. Furthermore, the instant message conversation can then be easily transformed into a Skype video call with the click of a button. Microsoft's intentional integration of its products within other products allows users to seamlessly flow from using one product to the other without leaving the context of the initial product. This level of product integration and the necessary division collaboration to achieve it is something that would have likely never occurred under Microsoft's previous business model.

Additionally, what this level of integration provides for Microsoft is the marketing of particular products simply by the use of another. The marketing is engineered into the products. Thus through this model Microsoft doesn't have to spend marketing dollars to push its complete range of products. They need only push the products that pull other products behind them.

Marketing included.

It Just May Work

The implementations of product integration mentioned above are encouraging examples of what Microsoft is doing as an organization to "increase the number of lines" connecting its products. As we mentioned at the close of Part II, Microsoft has acquired millions of users through its low-end strategy. Their challenge is now engaging these users with its range of products and services such as Office and Skype.

Currently, the millions of consumers Microsoft has acquired through its low-end strategy have little to entice them into using the range of services available on their Windows Phone 8.1 devices. The clear exception, of course, is Cortana. The interactive AI, which is the face of Bing, is a powerful tool to engage users to use Bing. That's if Cortana is available in the users region of course.

As the facilitator of all web-based and device level searches, Cortana sits front and center on a Windows Phone. Intelligent engineering has ensured that the assistant is easily accessible via a capacitive or software search key on all devices as well as by voice on certain high-end devices. The Cortana live tile, which can be pinned to the start screen proactively serves up news, weather and departure time information that easily draws a user's attention into the service. Engagement.

Cortana is even tied into the systems notifications and will proactively notify a user when information arrives that they may find interesting. As mentioned above Cortana is Bing. Bing is not only Microsoft's rival to Google Inc.'s popular search engine but it is a key investment that supports many of Microsoft's other services. Thus, increased engagement with Cortana is increased engagement with one of Microsoft's core products.

The Cortana team has worked hard at imbuing Cortana with numerous engaging functions to increase user engagement. Asking Cortana "What's up?" will prompt the assistant to share an interesting historical fact about the current date. "Surprise me" directed to the assistant will prompt Cortana to issue a riddle that users are encouraged to solve. She has also shared her predictions with users regarding who would win in popular contests such as Dancing with the Stars and American Idol, along with a host of sporting events.

Of course Cortana is but one of Microsoft's products available to Windows Phone users. Microsoft's mobile Office suite, Skype, One Note and One Drive are also part of the Windows Phone platform. Engineering products in such a way that draws users deeper into the platform is Redmond's ultimate goal.

So the question is, how will Redmond engage users with some of its less, as compared to Cortana, proactive tools?

I Love it When a Plan Comes Together

Hannibal Smith from the popular 80's television series the A-Team was a strategist. He didn't wait for a situation to befall him before he acted.

He always had a plan.

An easy pitfall many succumb to is viewing current information and hot topics in this highly dynamic and swift moving tech landscape as comprehensive and representative of the full story.

Many enthusiasts have bemoaned Microsoft's current low-end focused mobile strategy. They may view only the phase of this strategy currently in play. Namely the proliferation of low-end Lumia devices and the foregoing of high-end flagship smartphones. One thing we, enthusiasts, must all keep in mind is that in most cases, any plan that is devised by a company the size of Microsoft will have been forged years in advance. It has multiple components and is revealed publicly in increments.

The tech industry moves fast. Very fast. I fear that the hopping from hot topic to hot topic common to tech reporting creates an illusion of speed within the industry that is not reflective of the true pace of change. No company the size of Microsoft could plan and implement a mobile strategy, or devise and release a new product in the brief window of time just prior to journalists/bloggers receiving the leaks of products or roadmaps and consumers find the devices in their tech-hungry hands or see the manifestation of huge organizational shifts or strategies.

The moves begin long before we ever hear about them. As time progresses carefully crafted and strategically timed communications from the leadership provide in broad terms the strategy that the company will have already embarked on.

In later communications, we begin to see the message coalescing around a more discernable vision.

Finally when a product or service is just about ready the strategy that began years earlier is laid bare, having culminated in form and function, in a way that is discernible to the consumer.

As we can see, the ideology that guided Microsoft's vision of engineering greater opportunities for engagement into its products as shared by Joe Belfiore at Build 2015, began long before Windows 10 became the exciting and ever-present news topic it is today. The corporate shifts that have led to the monumental changes we see regarding deeper product integration at Microsoft began under ex-CEO Steve Ballmer's tenure. As I shared, shifts in the tech world are not always as fast as they may sometimes seem.

The changes Ballmer initiated culminated in what Belfiore shared with attendees at Build 2015. He passionately divulged several new areas where Redmond has engineered its products to increase user interaction with the Microsoft ecosystem. In Windows 10 for PC Smart Suggestions, Windows Spotlight, and a new depth of integration of Cortana with apps will bring apps and functions in the Microsoft ecosystem to the forefront in a very personal way. These OS and UI innovations are a clear move by Redmond to create a more elaborate tangle of app interaction within its ecosystem akin to that achieved by rivals Apple and Google.

Redmond has not left Windows 10 Mobile out of this vision. A foundation has been laid. Just as Microsoft has engineered marketing into various areas of the OS for Windows 10 on the PC, they have also engineered engaging new ways to reach consumers for Windows 10 Mobile on the phone. But for that you'll have to join us for Highs and Lows Part IV: Microsoft's Smartphone Strategy - There's an App for That.

As usual, sound off in the comments and on Twitter @JLTechWord. We have much to discuss.

• Part I: Are Low-End Windows Phones Hurting Microsoft's Smart Phone Brand?
• Part II: Microsoft's Smartphone Strategy, Seeds of Success – ACQUIRE

Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer stated in an TV interview today that he was not forced out of the company when he announced his resignation plans in August 2013 (he finally left in February), but did seem to admit to some heated discussions with the company's board over the acquisition of Nokia's Devices and Services division.

In a live interview today on CBS This Morning, Ballmer said, "Nobody wanted me to leave as CEO. We had a lot of tough discussions about whether to buy Nokia; it's a big decision for a company." He added. "We had some dustup type discussions." In the end, Ballmer claims that he decided to leave as CEO after the board approved the Nokia deal, even though he claims the board wanted him to stay.

Ballmer dodged a question about whether or not he still speaks to Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, saying only, "We've dusted up in our lives many times and that kind of stuff happens." He also commented on current CEO Satya Nadella's recent controversial statements that suggested women in the tech workplace should not ask for a raise (which Nadella later recanted and apologized for). Ballmer said, "Relating his personal experience was probably not what that group of people needed to hear at that time … some people don't get a square shake."

Source: CBS News via GigaOM

As the owner of the LA Clippers, Steve Ballmer is now focusing his attention on bringing the Larry O'Brien trophy to Los Angeles. Bloomberg Businessweek is running a feature on the executive that offers a glimpse into his life after Microsoft, and his passion for basketball.

Ballmer admits that there is a lot of work to be done before the Clippers can achieve success:

Ballmer has already mentioned that he was veering players away from using iPads to a Windows-based tablet, and is looking to further integrate technology into the team's training sessions.

For the feature story, head on over to the link below. It's an interesting read, and comes with a great cover photo:

What do you guys think of the image above? Got any interesting comments? Do your thing below.

Source: Businessweek; Via: The Verge

Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer acquired the Los Angeles Clippers NBA basketball team in August, but he's still a big promoter of his old company. In a chat with Reuters, Ballmer confirms that he wants his players and coaches to use Windows products.

Ballmer related a recent conversation he had with LA Clippers head coach Doc Rivers, stating, "It's one of the first things he said to me: 'We are probably going to get rid of these iPads, aren't we?' And I said, 'Yeah, we probably are.' But I promised we would do it during the off season." We would bet that Surface tablets would be number one on Ballmer's wish list for his new team, which he acquired for $2 billion.

Ballmer departed Microsoft as CEO in February, and left its board of directors in August, but he still owns four percent of the company's stock that's currently worth $15.7 billion. In today's article he seemed to agree that Microsoft might have made some mistakes in its mobile devices strategy while he was head of the company, saying, "And do I wish a higher percentage of today's mobile devices were ours and we had birthed that category? Yes, of course I do."

What do you think of Ballmer still serving as a champion of Microsoft even after his departure?

Source: Reuters

A long time Microsoft employee and developer, Raymond Chen, has named the company's former CEO Steve Ballmer as the man responsible for writing the text that is seen in the tragically familiar "Blue Screen of Death" that was seen in old school versions of Windows.

In a post on his personal blog this week, Chen wrote that over 20 years ago, way back in the days of Windows 3.1, Ballmer was head of Microsoft's Systems Division,and one day he made a visit to the Windows team. Chen wrote:

Since then the screen has evolved until you get a blue frown image if something bad happens in Windows 8. However, it's always cool to learn that one of the top business executives at Microsoft could come up with something that would be incorporated in such a direct way inside of Windows. What do you think of this tidbit of nostalgia?

Source The New Old Thing via The Verge

Satya Nadella did it. So did Bill Gates. Now Steve Ballmer has become the final Microsoft CEO to take the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge in a very quick video.

Ballmer was challenged by his new employee, Los Angeles Clippers player Spencer Hawes, as part of the growing viral campaign to raise awareness of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a serious neurodegenerative disease. Ballmer's clip is short and sweet, and isn't in the same league as the videos made by Nadella and Gates, but all of this cold water being poured on perfectly good heads is going towards a good cause.

• Donate to the ALS Association

Source: SteveBClippers on YouTube via Neowin

A new report says that former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is now finally and officially the new owner of the Los Angeles Clippers NBA pro basketball team, after a court fight with the team's former owner Donald Sterling went in Ballmer's favor.

Bloomberg TV reports that lawyers for Sterling tried and failed to convince the judge in the case to stop the sale of the L.A. Clippers to Ballmer on Monday night, and that the deal to finally finish the $2 billion purchase closed a few hours after the judge made his ruling.

As we have stated in previous posts about this ongoing fight, we are sure there will be a ton of of Clippy jokes to be had now that Ballmer owns the team. What do you think about Ballmer becoming a pro sport teams owner and will there be a friendly rivalry with Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, who owns the Portland Trail Blazers?

Source: Bloomberg

Our favorite second-CEO of Microsoft Steve Ballmer has just been cleared to buy the Los Angeles Clippers. They're the professional basketball team that Ballmer has been trying to buy for $2 billion. Former owner, Donald Sterling, has prevented the sale with a lawsuit. Today a judge has ruled against Sterling and Ballmer is cleared to buy the Clippers.

Here's the NBA on the Sterling ruling:

Ballmer has always been an energetic guy. We can't wait to see the energy he brings to L.A. Now we just need the team to be renamed to the Los Angeles Clippys.

Source: ESPN

Well that was fast. Your dreams of Clippy as a mascot in the NBA are going to be put on hold. Steve Ballmer was basically set to buy professional basketball team the Los Angeles Clippers last Friday. He laid down a cool $2 billion, which would have put it as the most expensive purchase for a basketball team. Turns out current Clippers own Donald Sterling isn't ready to part with the team and has advised his lawyers to sue the NBA.

Not much too this, except to let you know that your favorite, former-CEO won't be an owner in the NBA too soon. Donald Sterling has advised his lawyers to withdraw his support for the sale negotiated by his wife and to pursue a $1 billion lawsuit against the NBA and commissioner Adam Silver.

Clippy would have looked so awesome on that jersey.

Source: ESPN

The rumors of Steve Ballmer wanting to pick up the Los Angeles Clippers can now come to an end. It's official. In a statement released on the NBA site confirming the deal, Steve Ballmer now owns the Los Angeles Clippers pending approval by the NBA Board of Governors.

What Steve plans to do with the team in the long run remains unknown but hey, I'm sure there will be plenty of Clippy jokes to be had from this one. What do you folks think about it all?

Source: NBA

What do Steve Ballmer, Larry Ellison, and Magic Johnson have in common? They're all interested in buying the Los Angeles Clippers from embattled owners Shelly and Donald Sterling. The auction, said to be a blind bidding process in which those bidding do not know what their competition has offered, is moving quickly, with the Sterlings looking to unload the NBA franchise after Donald's racist comments led to his being forcibly removed from the leadership of the team. Ballmer's interest in the team isn't new, but according to Forbes the former Microsoft CEO is offering $1.8 billion.

Sterling paid $12.5 million for the Clippers back in 1981, so the sale, regardless of how it turns out, will net him a return on the investment. A sale for $1.8 billion would be 144 times the 1981 purchase price.

It's clear where Ballmer — whose net worth is estimated to be around $20 billion — and Oracle CEO Ellison (net worth: $43 billion) are finding their money. But Magic Johnson? He did well with the Los Angeles Lakers, but not that well. Johnson is tied up with investment group Guggenheim Partners, with whom he bought the MLB's Dodgers last year for $2 billion.

The other former Microsoft CEO, Bill Gates, on the other hand, is using his many more billions buying things too. Like working to eradicate malaria. But it's Ballmer's money, he can spend it on an NBA team without a championship to its name in a city with another team that has 16 such championships if he really wants to.

Update: Steve Ballmer has bid $2 billion to buy the Los Angeles Clippers. His offer has beat out bids of $1.6 billion and $1.2 billion from investment groups backed by the likes of Oprah Winfrey, Larry Elison and others. This does not mean Ballmer has bought the Clippers, just that he's offered to pay the most for the team. The current owners of the Clippers will need to accept the offer in order for the sale to move forward. If accepected by Clipper owners and approval of three-fourths of the other NBA owners, the sale would be the largest in NBA history. Source: LA Times

Update 2: NBA.com is reporting that Steve Ballmer has reached an agreement with Shelly Sterling to buy the Clippers for $2 billion. Source: [NBA](/Shelly Sterling reached an agreement)

Source: Forbes

Ex-Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is reportedly in talks with the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers NBA team. Shelly Sterling, who recently bought the team from husband Donald Sterling, met with Ballmer over the weekend to engage in talks of selling the professional team. Mrs Sterling has hesitated in selling out, but with issues staining the team, it would make sense for a deal to be arranged.

According to TMZ, Ballmer has indicated he plans to purchase the Clippers. We'll have to wait and see who will be named as the new owner(s) of the basketball team. It's not known what would happen to the team should a Ballmer buyout take place, but the businessman has previously stated he has no plans to move the team from Los Angeles now that he has more time. Fans, what are your thoughts?

Source: TMZ; thanks, df608, for the tip!

Bloomberg BusinessWeek has a fascinating article today on the behind-the-scenes maneuvering by Microsoft on the Nokia devices acquisition. The four page article is mostly about how CEO Nadella is putting things back together, and asserting his vision, but there are some enthralling tidbits too about how the Nokia deal came to be.

In the report, it’s revealed that the original deal included Nokia’s HERE Maps in addition to Nokia’s hardware division. That’s interesting, if only because many arm-chair CEOs have suggested that Microsoft should just buy everything from Nokia. The Microsoft board, however, disagreed. The main complaint? The deal was “too expensive and complex” and the mapping division was not even needed (between Bing Maps and licensing, it’s not clear why Microsoft needs to own HERE Maps).

Even more revealing was a straw poll on the initial purchase. Future CEO Nadella was initially against the deal, though he changed his mind on the final vote. Outgoing Tony Bates was “staunchly opposed” and probably the biggest blow was Bill Gates was not on board either, expressing concern whether the company really needs to head into hardware. From the report:

Ballmer reportedly yelled a lot during the meeting, and some board members have hinted to Bloomberg that it was him not listening to their concerns that finally began the push to oust him from CEO.

New vision, new identity

It seems to be apparent now that Microsoft’s foray into hardware, including the Surface – which was critically praised, but suffered from lackluster sales – was not something the company was united on. Divisions, often reflecting the siloed nature of the company, seem to arise around this question of should Microsoft make its own hardware, and specifically, mobile phones?

Nadella was reportedly against this move, but has since come around. But the divisions the Nokia purchase wrought are obvious, with Tony Bates moving on from the company and other reorganizations expected in the future.

While Microsoft buying Nokia, who controls around 80% of the Windows Phone market, seems evident to outsiders, it’s clear that Microsoft’s board was much more hesitant. But with rumors of Nokia making Android phones after the February 2014, it looks like time was of the essence back when talks began in February 2013.

The Microsoft-Nokia deal is in its final days of approval, although Samsung and Google may delay things.

Source: Bloomberg BusinesWeek

You could say today was a pretty big day for Microsoft. The company announced their third CEO today, Satya Nadella. It was big news and to celebrate. To celebrate, former CEO’s Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer took the stage to welcome Satya on Microsoft’s campus. It took place in Studio D at Microsoft and had hundreds of employees cramming the atrium to catch a glimpse of history. Below are some highlights of the event shared by Microsoft.

Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer, and John Thompson, new chairman of the board, took the stage to welcome and introduce Satya. You can check the little clips in the videos above to see Gates and Thompson introduce and talk about Nadella. Below is a clip from the first time Nadella addresses employees as CEO.

As you can image it was a very big day for Satya Nadella. Here’s what he said also said to those in attendance:

It’s a new chapter in Microsoft’s story. Not only are they currently repositioning themselves as a devices and services company, but they now have a new CEO at the helm to guide them into that future.

Good luck to Nadella!

Source: TechNet

Steve Ballmer announced his retirement from Microsoft in August. He said he’d step down within 12 months, once Microsoft finds a new CEO to take his role. Yesterday we learned that Microsoft has made a lot of progress in their CEO search and expects to finish the hunt in early 2014. In the meantime, Steve Ballmer is working hard at Microsoft and doing some interviews as he wraps up his legacy. Here’s another from Mary Jo Foley that talks about Apple as a competitor and how Surface was a harder decision than Xbox.

This discussion with Ballmer is focused on the hardware story at Microsoft. Typically, Microsoft is thought of as a software company. That’s certainly where their strengths are, but these days Microsoft does hardware too.

Sure, you can argue that Microsoft has been a hardware company for a long time. Things like the Xbox, mice, keyboards, and Perceptive Pixel would certainly back up your argument. However, with the introduction of the Surface and their pending acquisition of Nokia’s handset division, Microsoft is about to go back time with hardware like they’ve never done before.

Why build Surface to begin with? According to Ballmer, it was to combat the threat of Apple in the high-end space for consumer electronics. It was a tricky move of course, because it could damage the current model/relationship Microsoft has going with various PC OEMs. Ballmer thinks that Surface isn’t a threat to Microsoft’s partners though. Instead, Surface is more of a supplement to the past and current work that OEMs like Samsung, HP, Lenovo and others already do. Ballmer said:

The full thoughts from Steve Ballmer are undoubtedly worth reading. So please check out the link below to read Mary Jo’s full account of the conversation with Ballmer.

Source: ZDNet

Update 12 PM ET: It's official and the EGM is over. Shareholders have approved the deal between Microsoft and Nokia.

Nokia shareholders have today approved the Microsoft deal to purchase the company's phone division. The Financial Times reports that 99.7 percent of participating shareholders (around 5,000 attended the vote) were in favour of the deal going through. Microsoft will now integrate the Nokia division into Redmond, taking control of future Lumia and Asha products. 

The deal between the two tech giants is expected to be finalised during Q1 2014. Microsoft would then control both the Lumia and Asha lines of hardware currently produced by Nokia. The total cost of the deal will set Microsoft back €5.44 billion, with €3.79 billion for Nokia's handset business, €1.65 billion for the portfolio of patents and finally a four-year license for Nokia's HERE mapping service.

Redmond has funded Nokia €1.5 billion of "immediate financing" to help with cash flow. We spoke with Nokia's Stuart Ryan, Director of Maps and Everyday Mobility at HERE, last week who explained briefly how the Microsoft and Nokia partnership would continue to operate should the deal go ahead, with HERE services continuing to be utilised by Microsoft for Windows, Windows Phone and its Bing search engine.

As for the Lumia and Asha brands, it's still not clear what Microsoft plans to do, though the company has in the past revealed plans to unify branding.

This deal will also see Nokia CEO Stephen Elop return to Microsoft to lead the devices division. As for Microsoft itself, CEO Steve Ballmer is expected to step down and retire next year, though a replacement is yet to be officially named. Nokia's Elop is viewed as the favourite in the running for the position at Microsoft.

What will Nokia be left with post-takeover? The Finnish company will focus on Nokia Solutions & Networks (NSN - previously Nokia Siemens Solutions), HERE services and mapping, as well as a licensing and development division.

Source: FT; via: IBTimes

Press Release from Nokia (link)

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer surprised a few people when he announced his plans to step down within the year. The announcement came shortly after he announced his new “One Microsoft’ plan that would turn the software giant into a devices and services company. What led to such a drastic decision after announcing plans that would fundamentally change Microsoft? The Wall Street Journal had an interview with Ballmer about his time at Microsoft, the thoughts that led to his retirement, and what he’s doing until he officially steps down.

Some call the past ten years Microsoft’s “Lost Decade”, even though revenue tripled to $78 billion and profit grew 132% under Ballmer’s watch. That’s mostly because Microsoft maintained impressive growth with Windows and Office, but it’s hard to argue that Microsoft might have missed a few potential chances to be market leaders in areas like mobile.

This inability for Microsoft to react faster to changes in the market led to some pretty drastic changes within Microsoft. Ballmer himself wanted to see the company become an engine that could react to those market changes. That required some shifts in how Microsoft operates as a company, both from leadership teams to employees.

Ballmer even saw himself as a potential anchor slowing down the changes he’s been planning.

So at the end of the day, Ballmer decides to remove himself in order to see his plan succeed. What’s next for Ballmer? He’s open to anything, but won’t commit to anything for at least 6 months. He has no desire to run another larger company, however he is interested in either teaching at the University level or coaching his son’s basketball team.

Hit up the source link below to read the interview in full at the WSJ.

Source: WSJ, Via: The Verge

Steve Ballmer has been Microsoft’s CEO since 2000. That’s over 13 years ago for you mathematicians out there. Earlier this summer, he announced plans to step down as CEO sometime during the next year. Who’s going to be the next CEO of Microsoft? We’ve heard reports of Nokia’s Stephen Elop, Ford’s Alan Mulally and others. Now Reuters is claiming the list has been narrowed even further. Who made the cut? Read on to find out.

Reuters is claiming that insider information reveals that there are now about five external individuals being considered for the position and three current employees already with Microsoft.

Who’s on the list? Internally we have Tony Bates, who currently is the vice president for Microsoft’s Business Development and Evangelism group. He’s notable for previously being CEO of Skype before it was acquired by Microsoft. Microsoft. Up next is Satya Nadella, vice president of Microsoft’s Cloud and Enterprise group. He’s been with Microsoft since 1992. The third internal candidate now on the shortlist for CEO wasn’t detailed by Reuters.

Externally it looks like we’ve still got Ford’s Alan Mulally and Nokia’s Stephen Elop. Mulally has already dismissed his position on the shortlist and stated he intends to see out his time with Ford through the end of 2014. But that’s something a few checks from the world’s largest software maker could change pretty easily.

What’s interesting is that Reuters didn’t list Elop as an internal candidate, even though Microsoft has on record stated that he is now an internal candidate. Why’s he internal? You’ll remember that he’s going to become the vice president of the Devices and Studios division within Microsoft. Assuming he doesn’t become CEO before then.

Out of the four individuals named above, who would you select as Microsoft’s next CEO?

Source: Reuters

Microsoft is looking to buy Nokia (or at least its devices and services division), that has already been covered numerous times. Now, Steve Ballmer is reported to have been in Beijing to visit Stephen Elop and Nokia. Now, the actual deal between the two companies is still yet to be finalised and approved, but these are clear signs that the two parties are already preparing discussions and more.

China is an important market for Microsoft and Nokia, not just because of the competitive consumer market, but because Nokia has its regional office, factories and R&D centres in the country. Ballmer and co. will look at plans to integrate all the teams and departments into Microsoft, as well as assets, buildings and more.

WPDang reports that Ballmer's Beijing visit is to discuss future plans with Nokia, should the deal has been gone through. Sources have revealed that Nokia may retain their production plant in China, while losing R&D centres. This is all rumour and speculation, so be sure to take with a grain of salt. It's not clear what Microsoft would do with Nokia.

The plant would help Microsoft with its own branded Windows Phones. Since the teams have already worked with high-quality Nokia hardware in the past, consumers would be able to expect the same level of standards. It'll be interesting to see how Microsoft would use Nokia's established factories to build its own products with tighter controls around manufacturing.

We'll be sure to remain tuned to all feeds and have our eyes peeled for any details to emerge following Ballmer's visit to China. One thing's for sure: the Nokia acquisition would provide a large beast for integration. Luckily, Microsoft has already begun restructuring and simplifying its own divisions. There's still a long way to go.

Source: WPDang; thanks, answer1626, for the tip!

According to Bloomberg, Microsoft is set on finding a replacement for Steve Ballmer before the end of this year. Sources have stated that the company is currently reviewing a list of possible candidates as a successor. The choices are currently being narrowed down and lists of declined candidates and candidates currently up for consideration have arisen.

Sources who are aware of information within the review board have commented that EBay Inc.’s CEO, John Danohoe, and others have declined the opportunity. Current outside prospective candidates include Ford Motor’s CEO - Alan Mulally, former Nokia CEO - Stephen Elop, CEO of Pivotal – Paul Maritz, and current head of Microsoft business development and evangelism chief, Tony Bates.

Microsoft’s choice of CEO will be a monumental decision for a company that has only had two, Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer. Microsoft is trying to redefine itself and the choice of CEO will serve as a steering point for the company’s future vision.

Will Microsoft make its deadline to find a replacement CEO this year – and who will it be?

Source/Image: Bloomberg, Comic via: Woodenplank Studios

As Microsoft’s 2013 Financial Analyst Meeting wraps up, outgoing CEO Steve Ballmer fielded questions from the audience of investors about the company. In responding to one inquiry about Microsoft, its direction and reorganization, Ballmer had an interesting confession regarding the last decade at Microsoft.

Although Ballmer has previously acknowledged that Vista was something he wished he handled differently, in tonight's response he was even more specific. Ballmer regrets not putting more resources into what was then Windows Mobile. Instead, the company had invested its talent and resources into Vista, an OS that would forever blemish the reputation of the company.

It would also cause Microsoft to miss the mobile explosion just a couple years later.

Ballmer gets candid during a Q&A

Ballmer’s response during the Financial Analyst Meeting:

Indeed, Windows Mobile (and Windows Pocket PC before that) was way ahead of its time. Back in 2002, it was Dell leading the way with the Axim X5. That device was spec’d with a 300 MHz Intel XScale processor, 32 MB RAM, 32 MB flash ROM, a Type II CompactFlash slot, an SD/MMC slot, a 16-bit QVGA (240 × 320 dots) TFT. Cost? $279. While that device and subsequent Axims and iPaqs that came after it remained a niche, it was clearly the future and Microsoft at the time owned the market.

Microsoft spent only a little time and money with Windows Mobile in subsequent years, going through a few iterations and stumbling around with non-touch versions of the OS. While the phones at the time were impressive, it was Apple’s iPhone that made that industry take off due to its appeal to the masses. Unfortunately at the time, Ballmer famously mocked Apple, noting that they welcomed the challenge and that the iPhone was “not a smartphone”. Ironically, Apple is doing very well years later and it is now Microsoft who is scrambling to catch up.

There is no argument that Microsoft had missed an opportunity. They focused on desktop when they should have seen mobile as the next big thing. Will they be able to improve? We sure hope so.

This evening, Microsoft is hosting their 2013 Financial Analyst Meeting, addressing shareholders about the current status of the company and its future. Most of the discussion, which is ongoing as we write, has focused on cloud computing, Xbox, Windows and all of Microsoft’s services.

Outgoing Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer took the stage within the last hour and elaborated on many of these areas, including Windows Phone. While not a lot of time was spent on the growing division, Ballmer did of course talk about the recent Nokia purchase.

Below are Ballmer's verbatim comments:

The admission by Ballmer is fascinating if only because Microsoft appears to be facing the reality that Windows Phone, while promising, still has quite a long way to go before it is a profitable and successful business division for the company.

The Nokia deal should help streamline the manufacturing of Windows Phones by knocking down walls between hardware and software development teams. There should also be “fewer secrets” as Microsoft’s Joe Belfiore recently mentioned about the deal.

Nokia has recently taken the lead in Russia over Samsung, Windows Phone has maintained a number two status in India and the OS has experienced explosive growth in Mexico. However, market share in the US has remained below 5% despite an aggressive campaign through AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. Overall, shipments for Windows Phone are up 77% year over year.

Will Microsoft be able to pull it off? In theory they have everything they need to make a successful comeback in mobile. But there are a lot of ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ that could affect the outcome for Microsoft. At the very least, they seem keenly aware of how much work is left to do.

Source: Microsoft

Reuters reports that at least three of the top 20 investors in Microsoft desire a quick turnaround with the departure of current CEO Steve Ballmer and his replacement - whoever that may be. The investors have urged the company to look at Ford Motor CEO Alan Mulally and Computer Sciences CEO Mike Lawrie for the role, placing both on the shortlist.

The special committee, which is currently conducting the CEO search with the help of external services, have been meeting with shareholders after Ballmer announced his departure from Redmond. Sources close to the company have confirmed with Reuters they could have a replacement set by the end of the year, including both internal and external candidates.

Unfortunately, both CEOs named in the report were unable to comment. Stephen Elop, CEO of Nokia, will be returning to Microsoft due to the purchase between the two companies, and will also be positioned as another candidate to succeed Ballmer. So what makes both Mulally and Lawrie so special in the eyes of investors? They're both known for turning around companies.

It should be noted that Microsoft isn't in any immediate trouble. The company continues to publish financial reports with profit, despite the falling sales of PCs. What is required is a fresh injection of life into the company, to match what has been done on the front with the new logo, unifying of products and the radical move to the Modern UI.

Windows Phone as a platform is still struggling to take off, no matter how positive individual region reports are. It's on the tipping point with recent news of Windows Phone hitting 8 percent across Europe; an accomplishment for both Microsoft and its OEM partners with the billions that have been invested already. Then you have Surface tablets to take into account, which we hope will be addressed with the upcoming Surface 2 event.

Whoever may be selected for the top seat at Microsoft, we're excited to see what new ideas and plans will be introduced.

Source: Reuters; thanks, Daniel, for the tip!

Monday night was supposed to be the end of a holiday here in the United States. Not the start of one of the biggest tech news of the year. It was just two days ago we learned of Nokia agreeing to be bought by Microsoft. Over the course of the evening and subsequent days we read, analyzed, and discussed the issue.

Over at AllThingsD.com we learn the inside story of how the Microsoft/Nokia deal came to be from Ina Fried.

We’re not going to copy and paste the article, it’s totally worth reading. But we’ll highlight a few interesting parts of how the deal came.

• It all started in January 2013 with a phone call from Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to Nokia Chairman Risto Siilasmaa
• Both Nokia and Microsoft were frustrated with the single digit marketshare of Windows Phone, despite both companies pouring money into marketing
• Four main meetings resulted in the deal
• Steve Ballmer at one point tripped over a glass table during meetings, resulted in a gash on his forehead
• Deal stalled over both sides not seeing eye-to-eye on how much Nokia was worth and the value of HERE services

It’s an entertaining read and gives a behind the scenes look at how 8 months of talks lead to this point. Hit up the source below, read it, and come back to discuss.

Source: AllThingsD

The deal between Microsoft and Nokia hasn't simply come about in a matter of hours. According to the leaders of both companies, talks have been underway for some time, which included dozens of meetings. It's reported over on AllThingsD that Nokia's own board and committees alone had more than 50 meetings regarding the purchase. 

The then Nokia chairman, Risto Siilasmaa and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer spoke about the potential deal at a meeting back in February at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Already sporting a tight relationship which was formed back in 2011, talks eventually shifted to calculating whether or not a merge (or purchase) would make sense. 

Now Nokia CEO Risto Siilasmaa told AllThingsDigital, "We have worked very hard on both sides–and together in finding out the way to do a transaction." Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer explains how both partners had multiple plans and aimed to reach a middle ground that suited the partnership.

Ballmer continued to explain, "We looked at many, many possibilities together and ultimately took this one with us buying all of Nokia’s phone business, becoming an innovation partner and customer of Here and licensing patents from Nokia." This makes more sense, providing Microsoft with the means to focus on creating first-party Windows Phones, while remaining a customer to Nokia for HERE services and more.

Microsoft will also retain the ability to further innovate on top of Nokia's HERE mapping system. The major part in this purchase is the continued push towards Microsoft becoming a devices and services company. CEO Steve Ballmer has been pushing for the company to move into a new age and this deal helps out by:

• Accelerating share and profits in phones
• Creating first rate Windows Phone experience for its users
• Preventing Google and Apple from foreclosing app innovation, integration, distribution and economics
• Preparing for the financial opportunity that will be fuelled by a growing smartphone market

What's next on the horizon for Nokia and Microsoft? That's yet to be seen.

Source: AllThingsD

As of this moment, Stephen Elop is no longer CEO of Nokia. He has since vacated that position and now holds the title of executive vice president of Nokia’s Devices and Services division. Why did he do that? Didn’t you hear? Microsoft bought Nokia for 7.1 billion dollars. We’ve heard that Stephen Elop is reportedly on the "short list" to replace Steve Ballmer as CEO at Microsoft. How does this deal change the landscape?

The deal Microsoft has in place to purchase Nokia should finalize in Q1 2014. At that time, they will acquire Nokia’s Devices and Services division, patents, and more. In addition they’ll pick up 32,000 employees from Nokia. One of those employees will be Stephen Elop, who will become an executive vice president at Microsoft. A role he’s quite familiar with.

Currently at Microsoft, Julie Larson-Green is executive vice president of the Devices and Studios division. This division includes Windows Phone, Xbox, Surface and more. When Stephen Elop arrives at Microsoft, he’ll be in charge of this division and have Julie Larson-Green reporting to him.

According to Microsoft’s CEO Steve Ballmer, Stephen Elop will now go from an external candidate to internal candidate for the position of CEO. Microsoft’s board will continue to look at all candidates equally he added.

Source: The Seattle Times

According to a report over on AllThingsD, the departure of Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is more sudden than what was portrayed by the company's announcement. Ballmer will be retiring within the next year in a planned transition with a replacement to be found. The board of directors will be working with executive recruiting firm Heidrick & Struggles International to get the best name for the job.

The decision to retire would have been down to Ballmer, but interviews with folk both inside and outside Microsoft state that the CEO had not planned to leave at this point in time, especially so soon after the recent restructuring of the company, which Ballmer played a major part in. It's believed Ballmer, along with the board and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates all agreed that it would be best if he left sooner than later.

Bill Gates has been a big supporter of the current Microsoft CEO, previously rejecting suggestions from outside for Ballmer to be replaced. It's not all fun and games as AllThingsD’s John Paczkowski wrote in an interesting piece last week: "Here’s one metric by which Ballmer will be judged harshly. On the last day of 1999, the day before he took over as CEO, Microsoft’s market capitalization was $600 billion. On the day before he announced his intention to retire, it was less than $270 billion."

While there's speculation in the AllThingsD report, it's certainly worth checking out for the full read. Whatever the reason may be for Ballmer stepping down, we're sure a fresh breathe of life at the top of the company can't be a bad thing. There are also reports surfacing on other publications that Ballmer had indeed planned retirement and all is going according to plan.

It'll be interesting to see how this story develops and who will be selected as the next CEO - possibly Stephen Elop? That said, reasoning doesn't particularly matter to consumers - Ballmer's still leaving Microsoft, regardless to what conclusion we come to.

Source: AllThingsD

It was only on Friday that Microsoft announced that current CEO Steve Ballmer would be exiting the company in the next twelve months, but that hasn’t stopped the media from speculating on who will replace him. The Sunday Times of London is now reporting that Nokia CEO Stephen Elop, who used to work under Ballmer as a senior executive—something that always bothered Nokia advocates who saw him as threat to the Finnish phone maker—as one of the favorites for the position.

One could argue that Elop does have the skills to turn around companies who are seemingly set on a wrong course, though he doesn’t come without controversy either. Many former Nokia supporters have consistently called for his ouster since his famous burning platform memo, which called for drastic change within the company for it to survive.

The Sunday Times also goes on to mention Skype manager Tony Bates and former CEO of VMware Paul Maritz (who was previously at Microsoft), as other candidates. But perhaps the most interesting rumored entrant is none other than Bill Gates himself, though the Times does not back that claim and indeed, it seems highly unlikely.

Who will replace Ballmer at Microsoft will surely be one of the most interesting stories in 2014 but we’re still a ways off from an official announcement. The question is, if Elop leaves for Microsoft, who will take over at Nokia?

Source: Sunday Times of London; via Fox Business; Thanks, Nishy, for the tip

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer took 15 minutes to sit down with ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley to talk about his announced departure, biggest regrets at the company and what the future holds. We covered news from this morning that the popular figure at Microsoft will be stepping down as CEO to begin to enjoy retirement. So, the most pressing question is: what was Ballmer's biggest regret?

Windows Vista. Come on, it's really no surprise, right? Here's his answer to Foley's question:

Other interesting parts include how Ballmer's proud to be part of the birth of computing technologies, witnessing how technology has positively impacted millions of lives. Be sure to head on over to ZDNet to read the full interview. It's well worth checking out. Not everyone will agree with how Ballmer has gone about many things, but he's been an absolute blast.

We - of course - wish Ballmer all the best in the future and to say thank you for all the amazing videos and gif images that have been created.

Source: ZDNet

Developers! Developers! Developers! Live it up, folks. Get as much Ballmer as you can because the Microsoft CEO is stepping down and retiring in the next 12 months. The company fired out a press release today detailing the news that while Steve Ballmer will continue on as CEO and lead Microsoft through the next steps of the transition to a devices and services company, a successor will be selected as a replacement.

The board of directors has appointed a committee to direct the process and is working closely with executive recruiting firm Heidrick & Struggles International. Both external and internal candidates will be considered. As well as firing out an internal email to colleagues, here's what Ballmer had to say on the news:

Bill Gates, who was CEO at Microsoft before Ballmer took charge, stated that he'll "work closely with the other members of the board to identify a great new CEO." Closing with how the company is fortunate to have Ballmer in his role until a new CEO is appointed. The current chief has previously come under fire at Microsoft regarding the company's performance in the smartphone market, as well as other internal issues highlighted by retired employees.

In other related news, Microsoft's stock has surged 8 percent in pre-market trading with today's news. What are your thoughts on Ballmer's departure? Do you believe Microsoft is in a secure enough position to crack on with the major transition and have new life injected?

Source: Microsoft

Microsoft today announced plans for reorganisation. We've previously touched on rumours and speculation that CEO Steve Ballmer was looking to restructure the company into one that focuses on devices and services. Ballmer fired out a letter to Microsoft employees, detailing what was happening and what the outlook is for Microsoft once these changes have been applied.

Bringing together its vision, Microsoft will be focusing on further improving and developing Windows 8 and Surface, Windows Phone and Xbox, as well as the numerous services and products Redmond has available. The changes are huge and will affect the company as a whole, reaching the end goal of a "One Microsoft." 

Microsoft will now be organised by function and "optimised for speed and strategic alignment." The operating systems engineering group will be headed up by Terry Myerson, and will span across the Xbox, Windows Phone, PC and back-end systems. Julie Larson-Green will take responsibility for the devices and studios engineering group, overseeing hardware development.

The applications and services engineering group will see Qi Lu at the helm, broadening apps and services core technologies in productivity, communication, search as well as other information categories. Satya Nadella will take control of the cloud and enterprise engineering group, which will lead development of back-end technologies, including datacenter, database and specific technologies for enterprise IT scenarios and development tools.

The advanced strategy and research group will be led by Eric Rudder, while Tami Reller will take on all marketing. Mark Penn will be taking a broader view of marketing strategy and will work with Reller. COO Kevin Turner will continue leading worldwide sales, field marketing, services, support and stores, as well as IT, licensing and commercial operations. Tony Bates will focus on partnerships with the business development and evangelism group. He will work with OEMs, silicon vendors, Nokia and partners.

Amy Hood will centralise all product group finance organisations. Finally Brad Smith will continue as general counsel with responsibility for the company's legal and corporate affairs, while Lisa Brummel will lead the HR team and map it to the new organisation. 

As well as the new changes, Steve Ballmer also noted numerous departures, including Kurt DelBene who will be retiring from Microsoft. The CEO continues to go into the success of Microsoft and how the company as a whole can continue to improve with multiple buzzwords utilised. He closes off with a simple "Let's go." We'll have to wait and see to determine whether or not the above restructuring will have made any difference. 

Be sure to read the letter in its entirety for all the details.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is likely to reveal his plans to restructure the massive company to executives by July 1st, according to AllThingsD's sources. The thought of the shuffle has reportedly made multiple top managers concerned about just what Ballmer's significant plans will entail. Sources state the CEO has only been consulting with a small group of direct reports, as well as some board members.

This means that most senior executives have largely been kept out the loop when it comes to the decision making related to Ballmer's dream in solidifying Microsoft into the "devices and services company." Should these changes include some shifts and possible departures, it'll not be anything new as we recently lost Steven Sinofsky last year. One source close to the situation said the following:

It's believed Microsoft has not experienced such a change as what is expected to come since similar shifts were carried out by former CEO and co-founder Bill Gates. Another source said it would be humorous if Ballmer does nothing in the end since the level of worry has increased. It would make a worthy April Fools, I'm sure.

Accoring to AllThingsD, internal focus is reported to be strong on Satya Nadella, president of Microsoft’s Servers and Tools division; Tony Bates, president of its Skype communications unit; and Don Mattrick, president of its Interactive Entertainment division. As well as these positions, many are wondering how the job of Qi Lu, president of Microsoft’s Online Services unit, will shift in the upcoming changes, as well as that of Terry Myerson, who runs our beloved Windows Phone division.

Many expect Ballmer to unveil his plans internally, ahead of the end of Microsoft's fiscal year. It's not clear when a public announcement will be made. There's something in the wind, folks. We'll have to wait and see what the plans will reveal.

Source: AllThingsD

Microsoft has announced that their Surface RT and Surface Pro tablets will be available at a discounted price for WPC attendees. The company’s annual World Partner conference will offer a Surface RT 64 GB with touch cover for $99 and a Surface Pro 128GB for $399.

Don’t get too excited though, a ticket to access all of WPC 2013 will cost you $2,000. The conference this year is hosted at the Toyota Center in Houston Texas from July 7^th to July 11^th. Over five hundred speakers will be present including Microsoft’s CEO, Steve Ballmer.

Microsoft is working hard to put their Surface tablet in the hands of their partners – which in, turn should drum up developer interest.

If you can’t get out to WPC 2013 or/and don’t have $2,000 to drop on a ticket, we wouldn’t worry. With Microsoft selling the Surface for $199 to schools and now giving them away for $99 at WPC, it is more likely that a new Surface device is right around the corner with Windows 8.1.

Anyone here going to WDC or at least watching the Live Blog with us?

Source: WPC Blog

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is working on restructuring the giant software company, according to a report over on AllThingsD. This shuffling could see several current executives hold more prominent roles. Sources familiar with plans note that the restructuring will focus on solidifying Microsoft into the "devices and services company" that Ballmer previously wrote about in his annual shareholder letter.

We've already witnessed the company slowly move into hardware with its Surface family of Windows 8 tablets, as well as services that include Office 365, and Skype among others. It certainly makes sense for Microsoft to adapt to the demands of today's consumer. Reports note that while plans are being drafted, changes could well change drastically.

As noted above, the new configuration could introduce larger roles for the likes of Satya Nadella, president of the Services and Tools division; Tony Bates, president of the Skype communications division; and Don Mattrick, president of the Interactive Entertainment division. What kind of expansion said executives could see to their current roles remains unclear.

It seems most plausible that changes to the Microsoft organisational structure would centre around devices and services, both in the enterprise and consumer markets, while also simplifying its management. This potential restructuring comes amid increased investor pressure. Nomura Equity Research analyst Rick Sherlund wrote the folowing last week:

Sherlund also suggested that Microsoft consider selling off its Bing search business and the highly popular Xbox unit. It has been disclosed that ValueAct Capital had bought around 1 percent of Microsoft's stock, which Sherlund notes could help push for change. ValueAct’s Jeff Ubben believes Microsoft has much potential and said it "could be the largest cloud company in the world" in a recent speech.

What we can take from here is that Microsoft shares have risen more than 31 percent, further pointing at changes in the wind. What's on the horizon is yet to be seen, but it's an exciting time to be following Microsoft nonetheless.

Source: AllThingsD

We're still not sure just how many Windows Phone 8 devices both Nokia and HTC have sold thus far, but Steve Ballmer has informed shareholders in a meeting on Wednesday that Windows Phone handsets in the month since launch were 300 percent higher than the same period last year - we have growth.

Should what the executive revealed in the meeting be accurate, Windows Phone sales are increasing with the launch of new hardware. But until we see official numbers it'll remain speculation as to just how much the platform has grown by. Unfortunately, Ballmer failed to announce how many devices have been sold.

Ballmer said the following to shareholders in the meeting on Wednesday:

The previous year we saw Nokia launch its Lumia line of Windows Phones, while HTC released the TITAN and Radar handsets. Sales weren't particularly fantastic, but if a 300 percent increase is indeed the case we could well be seeing a massive jump in consumer conversion to the Windows Phone platform.

Carriers and retailers across the globe have reported unexpected demand for the Lumia 920 and how the Windows Phone has surpassed all expectations - at one point it was almost impossible to locate one for purchase. 

Microsoft has released its own tablet running Windows RT, which has been met with a positive reception from consumers. We have also previously looked at Microsoft developing a Surface Phone, but this has yet to turn into reality. What Microsoft has planned for 2013 is nothing short of exciting for those who own a PC, Windows Phone or Xbox console.

Source: ZDNet; thanks, Marco, for the tip!

Microsoft held the Windows Phone 8 launch event on the Monday just passed where Joe Belfiore was joined by Steve Ballmer and Jessica Alba in presenting what the next version of the company's mobile platform has to offer consumers. How did everyone feel about what was presented?

We set up a poll as the event came to an end, which was also during a rather busy publishing spree on our part. Readers took part in answering the simple question, "How was Microsoft's Windows Phone 8 event for you?"

The poll accumulated a number of votes, represented in the chart and data breakdown below.

As one can see in the image, four choices were available in the poll:

• It was great! Just what I expected.
• It was good, but would have liked more.
• I didn't think it was that special.
• I wasn't at all impressed with what was presented.

With these options in mind, and going by the visual representation of the pie chart, we can safely assume majority of those who took part in our poll were pleased with the Microsoft Windows Phone 8 launch event. Now, that's not to say those who voted 'yes' didn't have a few concerns on-mind, such as carrier availability and pricing, but 74% to 26% is a good indication.

Of the 2,500 that participated in the poll, 29% voted that the event was outstanding and was exactly what they wanted from Microsoft. The largest 44% slice of the pie believed the event to be good, but were left wanting more, 15% didn't rate the Windows Phone 8 launch much, while a mere 11% weren't impressed one single bit.

We've still got carrier announcements to completely roll out, as well as Microsoft to reveal further detail on Windows Phone 7.8, but the next version of the mobile OS has been announced and we're to take away what was presented on-stage. It's a gradual process, that's for sure, but November will prove to be a busy month with handsets making their way into consumer hands.

To conclude this poll results wrap-up, the majority of viewers were pleased with what was presented on-stage, as well as how Windows Phone 8 was launched. Should you find yourself in a position where you don't know what all the fuss is about, you may want to check out our event summary, which contains all links to information you need to know.