The Microsoft Corporation was founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen (two friends talented in computer programming).
The company quickly flourished and ended up dominating the personal computer operating system market with its MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows operating systems – becoming one of the most successful startup companies in history.
The company, based in Washington, USA, now focuses on developing, manufacturing, and selling computer software, computer services, and consumer electronics. Microsoft is also active in the video game industry (with the Xbox brand of video game consoles) internet search (Bing), and mobile phone industry.
Microsoft Corporation – A Brief History of The Company
In 1975 Paul Allen stumbled across an article in Popular Electronics that featured Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems’s (MITS) Altair 8800 microcomputer. Allen and Bill Gates programmed a BASIC interpreter for the device and in March 1975 MITS were impressed with what the two computer programmers had developed and marketed it as Altair BASIC.
Microsoft was officially established in 1975 and Bill Gates was appointed as the CEO of the company. After signing a deal with IBM (with their MS-DOS operating system) the company became the leading PC software programming company in the world.
In 1985 Microsoft released “Windows” OS, the company’s first graphical operating system which made personal computing more intuitive. In addition, the company’s software package called “Microsoft Office” would establish them as the leader in word processing and spreadsheet operation.
Allegations of engaging in monopolistic behavior – the company has been subject to a number of lawsuits over the years, claiming that the policies that Microsoft has enforced made it hard for competition to succeed in the personal computer market with complex licensing agreements that let the company benefit from hardware sales.
Microsoft Corporation – Products and Services
Microsoft claims that they are a “worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.”
The products that Microsoft provides are: Apps, Bing, Cloud Computing,Consumer Products, Developer Products, Hardware, Internet Explorer, MSN, OEM, Office & Office Servers, OneDrive, Outlook.com, Security & Privacy Services, Skype, Servers & Infrastructure, Surface, Windows, Windows Embedded, Windows Phone, and Xbox & Kinect.
Microsoft Corporation – Company Overview
- Chairman: John W. Thompson
- CEO: Satya Nadella
- Type: Public
- Headquarters: Microsoft Redmond Campus, Redmond, Washington, U.S.
- Employees: 100,932 (December 2013)
- Traded as: NASDAQ: MSFT
- S&P 500 Component
Microsoft Corporation – Financial Results
| Key figures (in millions USD) | 2013 | 2012 |
| Revenue (GAAP) | $77,849 | $73,723 |
| Gross profit | $57,600 | $56,193 |
| Operating income | $26,764 | $21,763 |
| Net income | $21,863 | $16,978 |
| Comprehensive income | $22,184 | $16,537 |
| Total assets | $142,431 | $121,271 |
| Total liabilities | $63,487 | $54,908 |
| Total stockholders’ equity | $78,944 | $66,363 |
| Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity | $142,431 | $121,271 |
| Cash and cash equivalents | $3,804 | $6,938 |
| (USD) | 2013 | 2012 |
| Earnings per share (basic) | $2.61 | $2.02 |
| Earnings per share (diluted) | $2.58 | $2.00 |
Source: Microsoft Earnings Release FY13 Q4
News about Microsoft Corp. reported by Market Business News:
July 23, 2014: Nokia’s losses pushed down Microsoft’s profit by 7% in Q4 2014 to $4.6 billion, compared with $4.97 billion in the same quarter last year. Cloud computing is doing well, having doubled revenues in 12 months, while mobile is not. CEO, Satya Nadella, surprised analysts and investors when he said Bing will start making a profit in fiscal year 2016.
July 17, 2014: Microsoft announces a massive job cutting program involving 18,000 employees, mostly in the recently acquired Finnish phone company Nokia. The cuts exceed the 5,900 layoffs in 2009 following the global financial crisis.
April 25th, 2014: Microsoft reported slightly lower profits for Q3 2014 (its fiscal year is from July to June). The company’s new CEO, Satya Nadella, who started in Feb 2014, impressed Wall Street analysts. Microsoft and Nokia announced the completion of the mobile phone maker’s acquisition.