Microsoft Tackles Tough Times
Microsoft's earnings reports have followed the same path for decades. The company announces revenue and profit growth, then does the same thing three months later...and on and on it goes.
That is, until this beauty of a quarter.
To get the bad news out of the way fast, Microsoft pre-announced its numbers. Profits are down 11 percent, but total sales are up 2 percent. For Microsoft, this is dismal, and is leading the company to lay off some 5,000 people. But for anyone else, this would be cause for celebration.
I expect a few more rough quarters, but I also believe that Microsoft has the best technical lineup in its history. Azure and Mesh are looking great, Windows 7 appears to be the killer operating system that Vista should have been, and the company's server tools are solid and respected.
Should I take off my rose-colored glasses? Where do you see Microsoft heading in '09? Prognostications welcome at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on January 23, 2009