Microsoft has switched back to attack mode
Microsoft's strategic stance has shifted from defense back to offense.
The change back to a stronger, more confident, more competitive business is the bigger picture that clearly emerges from a retrospective on recent activity in the technology sector.
- Windows 7 has been radically trimmed down
This streamlining will allow Windows 7 to run on smaller devices while providing better performance on high-powered devices. Microsoft will take some heat for this addition-by-subtraction approach, but it will likely result in happier users and extend the reign of the Windows OS. - Bing has essentially become the Google alternative
The company recently unveiled its new Bing search engine, which drew praise from tech pundits and even stole a little market share away from Google. - Microsoft Office 2010 includes a bold play for the Web
With Office 2010, Microsoft is throwing off the shackles of the past and delivering robust Web versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. - Microsoft’s new PC ads draw complaints from Apple
Microsoft has been running its popular Laptop Hunters series of ads that show average tech buyers going into computer stores with a certain amount of money, comparing PCs and Macs, and then walking out with a PC with more features that costs several hundred dollars less. - Microsoft is planning retail stores next to Apple stores
Not only will Microsoft unveil its retail stores this fall, but the company recently hinted that many of the first stores will be located in close proximity to Apple stores. That’s a surprisingly gutsy move, especially since no one expects the Microsoft stores to be as flashy and successful as the Apple stores. - Microsoft released source code for its Linux drivers
Not every driver for Linux is open source, but Microsoft recently released the source code for three good existing Linux drivers created by its own development teams. Microsoft is now an accepted member of the Linux community, and an official contributor to the development project, with MS authored code expected to be included in the 2.6.32 release of the Linux kernel.
22 July 2009
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Tags: microsoft strategy open source defense offense future technology linux licensing competition competitive intelligence web windows 7 office 2010 gpl licence licencing gplv2 business news analysis
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The astonishing Microsoft renaissance we've witnessed this year was acknowledged in list of the Top 10 technology highlights of 2009: "Microsoft gets its mojo back". How very true. I've been blown away by all the cool things MS has done this year!
Over the past few months, Microsoft has transformed its relationship with users and developers, and launched numerous exciting major new products and services. I've blogged about most of the key examples myself right here on this website, from Azure their new cloud platform, to the Orchard CMS framework, and too many other examples to list here.
I think I must have been among the first commentators to recognise the magnitude and importance of the new trend, in recent blog posts and in my original article above. ;)