Do you remember Oldsmobile? The BusinessInsider documented what I have sensed for a while. Windows is playing less of a role at Microsoft (MSFT). When was the last time something came out of the Windows camp that fired us up? BI notes that for a long time, Microsoft was a company whose success or failure was built around Windows. While Windows is still the heart and soul of Microsoft, it’s becoming a smaller part of its earnings.
This chart from BI shows Windows operating income as a percentage of its overall operating income versus its overall operating income. The total operating income is slowly growing, while the Windows percentage of the total is slowly decreasing.
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I have covered the angst over MSFT’s profitability for a while here and here. There are those that think Redmond is a long-term play as a leader in the cloud market. I don’t see it. Calling MSFT a good play in the cloud is like asking General Motors to make money on building roads and not cars. MSFT’s latest products (Vista, Win8) are as memorable as the Olds Calias or the Achieva.
Ralph Bach has been in IT long enough to know better and has blogged from his Bach Seat about IT, careers, and anything else that catches his attention since 2005. You can follow him on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. Email the Bach Seat here.