News


WPC 2012: Microsoft Buys Touchscreen Technology Company Perceptive Pixel

Microsoft is acquiring Perceptive Pixel Inc., a provider of large-scale, multi-touch technology, for an undisclosed amount.

WPC 2012: Office 365 Partners To Get Direct Billing

Microsoft for the first time will allow its broad base of partners to handle customer billing for the Office 365 suite, addressing what has been the single biggest controversy in the Microsoft channel for the last few years.

Microsoft Reveals Windows Server 2012 Editions, Axes SBS and WHS

Microsoft on Thursday revealed that Windows Server 2012, currently available as a release candidate, will have only four editions: Datacenter, Standard, Essentials and Foundation.

Windows 8 Upgrades To Cost $40, Include Windows Media Player (UPDATED)

Those running Windows XP, Windows Vista or Windows 7 will be able to upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for $39.99, Microsoft said on Monday in a blog post.

Dell Wins Bid To Acquire Quest Software for $2.4 Billion

Putting to rest months of back-and-forth bidding against private equity vendors, Dell Inc. on Monday entered an agreement to acquire Quest Software Inc. for $2.4 billion.

Guggenheimer Steps Down as Microsoft OEM Chief

Steven Guggenheimer, who has served as corporate vice president of Microsoft's original equipment manufacturing (OEM) division for four years, is leaving his position for a new role within the company, Bloomberg reported on Saturday.

PC Makers Lift Lid on Windows 8 Machines

A number of Windows 8-dedicated devices made their debut at the huge Asian computer show, Computex, in June.

Analysis: Breaking Down Microsoft's BYOD Licensing

Windows shops may find licensing for bring-your-own-device (BYOD) scenarios somewhat perplexing due to the architecture used to access Microsoft's servers, according to Rob Horwitz, research chair at Directions on Microsoft.

Microsoft Launches Office 365 for Education, Readies Live@edu Migrations

Office 365 hit its one-year anniversary on Wednesday, an occasion Microsoft marked by launching a free Education edition as well as announcing a schedule for Live@edu migrations starting this summer.

Windows Phone 'Tango' Arrives for Nokia Lumia Devices

The Windows Phone update code-named "Tango" began rolling out to Nokia Lumia 800 and 710 devices on Wednesday, according to a blog post on Nokia's Conversations blog.

European Court Orders Microsoft To Pay $1 Billion in Sun Antitrust Case

The General Court of the European Union on Wednesday denied Microsoft's appeal over an €899 ($1.3 billion) penalty imposed by the European Commission (EC) because of past anti-competitive practices.

Tech-Ed Europe: Microsoft Demos Cloud-Based App Management

Microsoft on Tuesday gave Tech-Ed Europe attendees a preview of how application management works using the Windows Intune and Windows Azure Active Directory services.

Study: Microsoft System Center Lags Symantec, CA in Client Management

Symantec and CA Technologies are the top "leaders" in enterprise client management offerings, while Microsoft was deemed a "strong performer," a recent Forrester study found.

Microsoft Buys Social Networking Site Yammer for $1.2 Billion

Microsoft is acquiring enterprise social networking company Yammer Inc. for $1.2 billion in cash, Redmond officials said on Monday.

Microsoft Denies Rumored Plans To Produce Windows Phone Hardware (UPDATED)

Microsoft executive Greg Sullivan has refuted rumors that Microsoft plans to manufacture its own Windows Phone hardware in an interview with InformationWeek on Friday.

Windows Phone 8 Coming in Fall with 'Shared Windows Core'

Microsoft gave the first preview of its next-generation smartphone operating system, Windows Phone 8 (previously code-named "Apollo"), on Wednesday at the Windows Phone Summit in San Francisco.

Quest Software Accepts $2 Billion Buyout from Private Equity Firms

Microsoft partner and major software tools provider Quest Software Inc. will remain independent after months of speculation.

System Center 2012 SP1 Gets Windows Server 2012 Support in CTP2

Microsoft released the second community test preview (CTP2) of System Center 2012 Service Pack 1 last week. A beta of SP1 is expected to be released in the second half of this year.

Microsoft Announces New VDI Brand 'RemoteFX'

Microsoft announced at TechEd last week that it is using the brand name RemoteFX to cover a collection of its virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) technologies.

Microsoft Releases MDOP Betas, Kills MED-V

Microsoft released new betas for its Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP) this week, as well as announced that it "will not invest" in its Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization (MED-V) solution for Windows 8.