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- Microsoft by the numbers and what they meanJune 26
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There was an interesting post earlier today from the Official Microsoft Blog on some facts about Microsoft. Here were some of the interesting numbers that were posted:
7.1 million
Projected iPad sales for 2010. [source]58 million
Projected netbook sales in 2010. [source]355 million
Projected PC sales in 2010. [source]Translation: Despite the iPad being an alleged “magical” device, it’s not going to supplant the other traditional PC form factors anytime soon. All of us living and breathing in the tech industry may belong in a class of people that can afford to pay $500 for a consumption device. However, we are different from the majority of the rest of the world.
8.8 million
Global iPhone sales in Q1 2010. [source]21.5 million
Nokia smartphone sales in Q1 2010. [ - Bing and the iPhone – Backroom Shenanigans or Just Business as Usual?January 20
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While I was browsing Techmeme today, I came across Louis Gray’s opinion piece about the recent report in BusinessWeek that Apple and Microsoft are in discussions to make Bing the default search engine on the iPhone (and possibly even the Mac).
Louis writes:
Even with the increased competition, Google never flipped the switch that Microsoft once did, turning “evil”. Whether it’s assumed Apple and Google are best friends at this point is not as important as the two companies making the right choices for consumers.
Going back to the BusinessWeek article, the main focus is that Apple is looking to make Bing the default search engine on the iPhone, which would reduce, only mildly, some exposure to Google Search, and would help Microsoft more as their improving search engine is in the hands of iPhone fans everywhere. But this could be a humungous case of sour grapes, poised to no doubt leave a bad taste in our mouths. And we’ve seen it play out before.
<snip>
In 2010, moving to Bing would be perceived in the same light. While Bing has its fans, and I know some great people who work on the engine, the assumption from users is that Google is the gold standard in search. If Apple sells its customers short in what is perceived as a second c
- Clash of the Tech TitansOctober 27 2009
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Note: This article was originally published on The Digital Movement. I have made some slight grammatical edits in this version.Microsoft. Google. Apple.
Whenever someone starts a conversation about Silicon Valley, computers or even just technology in general, you won’t get very deep in the conversation until someone mentions one of these three companies.
That’s expected. Just like Exxon Mobil is the flag bearer for the energy industry (remember, I said energy, not clean energy) when one thinks about the poster child of the technology industry, most people will think no further than one of this triumvirate of companies.
(Perhaps a certain bookseller will join the three in the near future, but for now, it’s only these three.)
Collectively, Microsoft, Google and Apple made over USD 28.7 billion in revenues this past quarter (12.9, 5.9 and 9.9 billion respectively). More impressively though, all three companies managed to handily beat earnings expectations in a down economy, and managed to turn in a healthy 24% net profit margin on average between them (28%, 28% and 17%).
For the average consumer or b
- Can Common Sense Spoil Apple’s Day?October 15 2009
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I read with amusement today this BusinessWeek article titled, “Can Apple Spoil Microsoft’s Day.”
According to BusinessWeek, Apple is banking on the Windows 7 launch as its “best chance in years to win over longtime PC users.”
BusinessWeek describes the Apple strategy here:
In the coming weeks, Apple is expected to hit those computer buyers with advertising aimed at luring them to its Macs. It will likely make the case that Macs are less susceptible to viruses and are best suited to its popular iPods and iPhones. And look for it to poke fun at Microsoft for making XP owners go through an arduous process to upgrade to Windows 7—one that includes backing up all their files to an external drive, reformatting their PC, and then reinstalling all of their old programs, assuming they still have the CDs. “Any user that reads all those steps is probably going to freak out. If you have to go through all that, why not just buy a Mac?” says Schiller.
Now, perhaps I am not the sharpest tool in the shed, but I really don’t follow Apple’s thinking here.
I’m not even talking about the fact that Apple is dusting off the decade-old “Macs are more secure than Windows” message which has already been debunked
- Anime Festival Asia: A Case Study in Social Media Done RightSeptember 18 2009
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I had the opportunity to attend the press conference for Anime Festival Asia 2009 a couple weeks ago (photos here).
Now, I’m not normally the type of blogger that attends (or gets invited to) media briefings for consumer events like AFA, but I was pretty stokked to attend this one since I am a huge anime fan. The press conference was more or less as I expected, and frankly, I’m pretty excited about AFA this year.
But I’m not here today to write about how AFA09 will have double the number of musical artistes compared to last year, with Yoshiki Fukuyama and Shoko Nakagawa joining AFA incumbents May’n and Ichirou Mizuki in concert.
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