Corporation

S. Gazlan Pallie DIBM Reg No. 1273

INTRODUCTION
The year was 1975, nobody knew then that personal computers would rule the market and would be an important and essential tool in mans everyday business life. Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems (MITS) announced the first computer, MITS Altair 8800. This milestone inspired pioneer computer enthusiasts namely Bill Gates and Paul Allen to develop a computer program for the MITS Altair 8800 using the published specifications released by MITS in the magazine Popular Electronics. Working day and night Gates and Allen succeeded in creating the first version of Microsoft BASIC for the Altair machine. Allen then went to Albuquerque, New Mexico to do a demonstration of their software to the MITS president, Ed Roberts. The program ran perfectly in the first try impressing the MITS executive. Allen and Gates were then licensed to produce and distribute the computer program. In March 1, 1975, Paul Allen and Bill Gates joined MITS as Directors of Software. They called their partnership Micro-soft. The succeeding years saw great improvements and advancements in the fields of computers and the steady progress and development of Microsoft Corporation as a significant player in the world of computer software. IBM approached Microsoft to design computer software for the computers they are making. Microsoft agreed and it released the highly sensational MS-DOS for the IBM platform. The popularity of MS-DOS enabled Microsoft Corp. to get the biggest shares in the. It also assured that Microsoft would monopolize the software and computer industry in the years to come. Microsoft duplicated its success in MS-DOS by releasing ground breaking software named Windows. Windows features a window management capability that allows a user to view unrelated application programs simultaneously. It also provides the capability to transfer data from one application program to another. Aside from these advantages, Windows was also easy to use and has pleasing and uncomplicated interface for its users. Windows also has a graphic user interface and it has popularized computer terms such as toolbars, icons and mouse. Microsoft released other versions of Windows like Windows 95 and 98 that featured more improvements and enhancement.

FINDINGS
While Microsoft is growing financially today, the company is also faced with numerous problems and challenges nowadays. Alongside this apparent success is a different aspect of the company. Microsoft has been frequently sued by numerous competitors, U.S. Department of Justice and 50 states in the U.S. with regards to antitrust violations.

The plaintiffs argued that Microsoft abused its monopoly power in selling operating system and web browsers when it bundled its Internet Explorer with the Microsoft Windows operating system. This move enabled Microsoft to dominate the web browser wars and elbowed its competitors since consumers now have a free version of Internet Explorer. The U.S. Department of Justice also alleged that Internet Explorer will only work with Windows and not with other software made by Microsofts competitors . Aside from the antitrust suit that Microsoft eventually lost, a formidable challenge faced by the company is the problem of computer and software piracy. Microsoft software and products are being pirated and copied illegally then sold to the consumers at half the price with no revenue going to the firm. This is appalling since even products and software not yet ready for release to the global market are copied and sold. Aside from software piracy there are also notions, reports and allegations that Microsoft and its programs are very vulnerable to hackers and computer viruses proliferating in the cyber world. These viruses cause the computer to act sluggishly losing important data and files. Viruses and other problems inherent in the programs made by Microsoft creates costumer dissatisfaction, negative publicity and loss of sales . Another huge challenge against Microsoft today is the shift of the world market to an open source program. Open Source programs like Linux are softwares much like the ones made by Microsoft but with a fundamental difference. The difference lies in that Linux is a stable program, its source code are open and can be modified, it has the best technical support, it runs on a wide range of hardware and most of all it is free. Since the main advantage of the Linux is that it is free and can be modified freely, Microsoft and its subsidiary companies and softwares are put in an unpleasant position. The market would now gradually shift to Linux and other open source program gobbling up the huge market share and monopoly enjoyed by the company. Linux and other open source program will also force Microsoft to open up the source codes and basic programming codes of its softwares to the public since the current trend now in software programming is open sourcing . Greater competition and struggle in the software business is also a challenge to the growth of the company. The organization is being threatened by other competitors and other business enterprises that aim to get a big market share that is solely dominated by Microsoft. Aside from competition from other companies, there has also been a trend towards liberalization of the market and the software industry. Liberalization means the gradual decrease of control on the part of Microsoft with regards to source codes and other computer programs because of the recent anti trust rulings made by the U.S. Supreme court. Source codes and computer programs that is unique and the vital in building computers softwares will be gradually distributed to open source programmers and other independent software companies making these source codes available to the public and breaking Microsofts monopoly on software designing. This liberalization would in turn strengthen other software companies in challenging Microsoft and providing alternative products to the consumers. This move would also decrease the dependency of the market to the products offered by the company since the consumers will have a clear and distinct choice when buying. To combat these negatives external factors, a clear cut policy must be implemented by the company. First, the company must diversify its products. Because of recent government actions and other factors such as new competitors, Microsoft must diversify the products that it offers to the market. Product diversification would

mean the modification of products that would have an edge over other competitors in terms of performance, ease of use and compatibility. Diversification would also mean the production of new and unique products that would be bought by the market following the example made by Apple Corporation and their portable music players. Microsoft must also venture producing products and not concentrating all its resources and manpower on a specific area which is software development and design. It must increase its focus on game design, software publishing and home entertainment system to to ease the pressure of competition. Diversification would also mean entering new markets such as China to relieve competition from market rich regions of the world. Microsoft would benefit greatly if it totally enters the Chinese market because of the huge consumer base and the cheap labor cost being offered by China.

SWOT Analysis of Microsoft

Applications and operations capacity forth with afresh created online account arrangement capacity (MSN) Flexible workforce through accidental workers for seasonal/cyclical projects Loyal, hardworking, and assorted workforce (20% minority, 26% women) who, in accession to acceptable compensation, accept an befalling to do able-bodied financially through banal purchases Multinational association operating through bounded subsidiaries to abbreviate cultural differences in added than 60 countries New product, Neptune , is a Window's interface and is an archetype of acute software Relatively accelerated artefact development processes that acquiesce for appropriate afterlight and absolution of new products Revenues and profits ascent at 30% a year with merger/acquisition or investment in 92 companies over accomplished 5 years Software articles accept top name recognition, broad-based accumulated and customer accepting (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access), and abundant able appearance that are in use worldwide, thereby announcement acclimation and aggressive advantage through their affluence of affiliation and cost-effectiveness Top appraisement from Fortune for best aggregation to plan at and a lot of admired company

Windows 95, 98, 2000 series, and Windows NT are globally accepted as the PC desktop operating arrangement with a bazaar allotment of about 88% World's better software aggregation with all-around name accepting and able acceptability for avant-garde products

Weaknesses

Between 1990-1995, Microsoft administration bootless to accurately ahead the advance or acceptance of the Internet Bill Gates has become Microsoft's arch software artist but has not yet developed a essentially new band of products Dependency on accouterments manufacturers to pre-install Microsoft's PC operating system Downside of artefact launches and deadlines contributes essentially to agent burnout Agent about-face has added from 6% for a ten year aeon to 7.4% Falling sales in the operating systems and server software sectors Frequent reorganization, red tape, and absolute atmosphere bedew agent adroitness arch to a accident of key cadre and air-conditioned of advice and innovation; 5-layers of management IRS audits in 1989 and 1990 appear appliance cachet of accidental workers for whom Microsoft did not abstain taxes nor acquiesce to participate in Microsoft's Savings Plus Plan or Agent Banal Purchase Plan, arch to a award of tax accountability for Microsoft in the "permatemps" Vizcaino litigation Little or no cogent attendance in the wireless bazaar and Windows CE has been disappointing Not a key amateur in the Internet amplitude and few articles for Internet applications Perceived by abounding as a cut-throat adversary that uses its ascendant bazaar position to marginalize antagonism by stealing/destroying the competition's products, airless artefact innovation, and abbreviating the availability of adversary products Articles accept a individual appliance focus and do not plan able-bodied with or on-top of added products Acceptability has suffered because of affair in antitrust and "permatemps" Vizcaino litigation

Opportunities

Cheaper all-around telecommunication costs accessible new markets as humans affix to the Internet Federal balloon Judge Thomas P. Jackson's aperture of administrative acumen and conduct in the Microsoft antitrust case atramentous the affairs in Microsoft's favor Adaptable buzz applications and corruption of claimed agenda administration represent a advance industry so that cardinal alliances could accommodate Microsoft with befalling in a bazaar area it currently has little or no cogent presence Acceptance a part of humans for Internet access The address for claimed computers in American and all-around markets charcoal able admitting the advance and accretion acceptance of claimed handheld devices

Threats

Apple and Linux abuse Microsoft's 88% bazaar allotment of the desktop operating market Between 1993-95, Sun Microsystems, Netscape, Oracle, IBM, AOL, and added companies confused into the Internet amplitude and authentic it while Microsoft bootless to ahead its advance or popularity Currency barter ante affect address for application/operation software and hardware, and clashing currencies can abnormally appulse revenues in the all-around marketplace Department of Justice antitrust action and accepted address creates ambiguity a part of advisers back its aftereffect is not known Accouterments manufacturers (Sun Microsystems, Oracle, IBM) accept collaborated on new belvedere technologies that carbon abundant of the amount of Windows Accouterments manufacturers (Sun Microsystems, Oracle, IBM, AOL, and Apple) are arising their own pre-bundled programs on their own hardware Linux admission growing from 7% in 1998 to 17% in 1999 Claimed computers, mobile-phones, claimed chiffre assistants, entertainment-oriented handheld computers, and agnate wireless articles for Internet admission do not crave Window operating arrangement products Accelerated development of adaptable accessories that will displace/replace claimed computers Recession or bread-and-butter arrest in the U.S. or all-around bazaar impacts claimed computer accessories sales and their charge for an operating systems Software piracy of bartering and customer applications software on a all-around calibration threatens acquirement streams Technology activity aeon is beneath and shorter Unix dominates high-end mission-critical applications and its barter do not accept Windows can handle these operations

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