Microsoft is a devices and services company based in Redmond, Washington – a city about 16 miles east of Seattle. Microsoft was founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Traditionally a software company at heart, Microsoft dabbled in hardware with computing peripherals like mice and keyboards before going all in with the Surface line of tablets. The pending acquisition of Nokia’s handset unit will further add to Microsoft’s future plan to be a devices and services company.

Microsoft has many products in both the consumer and enterprise space. Most consumers are familiar with Microsoft through their operating system Windows, their office software suite Microsoft Office, their home entertainment consoles Xbox, and their mobile operating system Windows Phone.

Microsoft rose to power in the 90’s thanks to its operating system Windows and its office software suite called Microsoft Office. In the early 00’s Microsoft cracked the living room by launching the original Xbox. The Xbox has now seen three generational entries, with the Xbox One being Microsoft’s answer to the eight generation of gaming consoles.

Windows and Office continue to be a large part of revenue for Microsoft, but their future plans have shifted from a “computer on every desk” to “mobile first, cloud first”. Microsoft is investing heavily in their Azure, their cloud computing platform that will be the backbone of what they do for the next generation of computing.

Windows, Windows Phone, Office, Azure, Azure, Surface, and Cortana are all at the heart of what Microsoft’s future will focus on. 

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