E-commerce has been a buzzword in the industry for more than a decade. I have come across some interesting data points that paint a new picture of the e-commerce marketplace than one that has previously existed. Not surprisingly, this shift in e-commerce trends is being driven by mobile devices. The implications of mobile on e-commerce … Continue reading Report: Smart Devices and E-Commerce
Back in 2012, Microsoft’s then CEO Steve Ballmer started talking about Microsoft as a Devices and Services company rather than as a software company. This was a major strategic shift, and it was behind major moves like the launch of the Surface and the acquisition of Nokia’s Devices and Services business. This is a signal … Continue reading How to make Devices and Services work for Microsoft
Business is a combination of war and sport. ~ André Maurois The Long Summer Of The Microsoft Monopoly Olympics Computing was pretty simple for the last 15 years: PC plus a browser. Both are splintering now. ~ Benedict Evans (@BenedictEvans) Once upon a time — long, long ago in 2006 — the Personal Computing Olympics … Continue reading Who Won The Mobile Tech Olympics?
Today at Mobile World Congress, Nokia announced a new family of affordable smartphones called the Nokia X. What is notable is that these devices are not coming from Nokia’s Smart Devices group which creates the Lumia and ships Windows Phone as their smart devices OS. This group within Nokia is the group that sells feature … Continue reading Nokia’s Bold Move Supporting Android
There was plenty going on this week, but it didn’t take long for Mark Zuckerberg to spend $19 billion for Facebook’s acquisition of WhatsApp to become the week’s dominant news. Fortunately, a number of writers who have been paying attention to the explosive use of messaging services outside the U.S. have offered us plenty of … Continue reading ICYMI: Facebook’s Move on WhatsApp Changes the Week
The CEO succession at Microsoft and the approaching Build conference have made Windows 8 a hot topic again, raising lots of questions about where the OS goes from here. While there are lots of theories, few people seem to be going back to where Windows 8 came from in the first place, which is really … Continue reading The Windows 8 Mistake
On September 13, 2011, Zach Epstein, explained to us us why Windows 8 was the dawning of a new age. And on February 9, 2014, Paul Thurrott explained to us why the sun was prematurely setting on that age. [pullquote]Calling Windows 8 a “software design” is like calling bald a hair color.[/pullquote] Between those two … Continue reading Windows 8 In Hindsight
What is happening with messaging apps is a big deal. In fact it is probably the biggest thing that is happening that is underestimated and has implications on many. Facebook just announced that they have acquired WhatsApp for what is looking like $19 billion dollars. To put that into perspective that is more than Google … Continue reading Facebook, WhatsApp, and the New Era of Platforms
Last week, after a painfully long 6 month search, Microsoft made the transition from Steve Ballmer to Satya Nadella at CEO. As of late, Ballmer had become the master of making nothing happen, very slowly. Microsoft is still cash rich, but their strategic position has been deteriorating rapidly. Microsoft dominates sales of Operating Systems sold … Continue reading Microsoft’s Puppet CEO
In a recent column I wrote what I called my Blueprint for the future of Microsoft. In it, I proposed that Microsoft be broken into three separate companies or divisions – one focusing on IT, Enterprise and Business; one focusing specifically on mobile; and another aimed squarely at entertainment and the connected home. Many of … Continue reading My Blueprint for the Future of Microsoft-Part 2
Facebook and Twitter are at different points in their histories: Facebook just celebrated its 10th anniversary, generates profits each quarter, and has become a dominant force in global social networking, while Twitter has a fraction of Facebook’s users, loses money and seems to suffer from a crisis of identity about its role in the world. … Continue reading Facebook and Twitter’s growth challenge
It’s no secret that Microsoft has been hard at work at a true touch-based version of its Office suite, not only for Windows’ Metro interface, but for iPad and Android tablets as well. But little has been revealed about its timing or its content. I’ve decided to let my imagination run free to create a … Continue reading Imagining Office for the iPad
Yukari Iwatani Kane is a former Apple beat reporter for the Wall Street Journal. Her book, “Haunted Empire: Apple After Steve Jobs,” is due out in March. I respect everyone. I even respect journalists. ~ Alexander Popov From an article in the New Yorker, Ms. Kane opines on the present state of the post-Steve Jobs … Continue reading Apple Is Doomed…Yet Again
As Apple looks about for ways to extend the iPhone-iPad ecosystem, personal health care seems like a natural. The iOS devices are already extremely popular with health care professionals, and apps that supply health information to doctors are among the most expensive products in the App Store. In a Tech.pinions Insider article, John Kirk figures … Continue reading Why Health Care Is Not the Future for Apple
According to this report Microsoft is pulling in healthy revenue from Android. We knew that Microsoft was holding on to patents which many Android OEMs are using and now paying Microsoft a fee. Microsoft may very well be making nearly as much and in some cases more than Google off Android. Microsoft makes money off … Continue reading Microsoft and Android
[pullquote]Some smartwatches are dumber than the sundial. ~ chetansharma (@chetansharma)[/pullquote] Until recently, wearable computing devices have been fairly uninteresting to me. I’ve read the various articles concerning wearables, but I consider wearables to be in a terribly primitive state — niche, at best, gimmicks at worst. And Apple wearables? I’ve ruefully nicknamed the rumored Apple … Continue reading A “Healthy” Strategy For Apple’s Wearables
The worldwide market for smart connected devices continues to be a battleground not only for device makers, but for the companies that create the operating systems and ecosystems that power those devices: most notably, Google, Apple and Microsoft. Each of the companies currently offers two major OS choices: Android and Chrome for Google, MacOS and … Continue reading The Multi OS Conundrum
As an analyst I have covered Microsoft close up and personal since 1981. When I first went to visit Microsoft in 1982 they were in their red brick buildings in Bellevue, WA and had less than 100 employees if my memory serves me right. I remember being able to walk down the halls and see … Continue reading My Blueprint for the Future of Microsoft
[pullquote]Making fun of Microsoft Ads is like hunting dairy cows with a high-powered rifle and scope[/pullquote] Microsoft and Apple have been competing against one another in computing for some thirty odd years. Both companies have evolved over the years but, in many ways, their personalities remain the same. Nowhere is this better reflected than in … Continue reading Microsoft’s “Super” Ad
Well, that was a heckuva week. Google sells Motorola for billions less than they paid for it. Apple sells millions fewer iPhones than nearly everyone expected, then directs guidance lower. Facebook becomes a mobile first company, for real this time. Amazon investors prove they don’t quite have unlimited patience. Yahoo remains last decade’s news. Microsoft … Continue reading The Death Of iPhone. The Death Of Android. The Rebirth Of Facebook.
You may not know it yet but Lenovo has grand ambitions to become one of the most powerful tech companies on the planet. Their original move to buy IBM’s PC business set this goal in motion and has become the cornerstone of their tech reach into enterprise and consumer computing markets world wide. With that … Continue reading Lenovo’s Goal of Tech World Domination
Last week, Phil Schiller, Craig Federighi and Bud Tribble were interviewed as part of the Mac’s 30th anniversary. They — in no uncertain terms — slammed the door shut on the idea that Apple was planning on merging iOS (the operating system for their phones and tablets) with OS X (the operating system for their … Continue reading Unified OS Advocates Are Out Of “Touch” With Reality
As part of my Photo 365 project, in which I take a photo every day of the year, I snapped this the other day: I won’t mention the expletive I used in the photo’s caption, but suffice it to say that seeing this ad immediately struck a nerve with me. The snarky “just a toy” … Continue reading Just A Toy
When Apple executives speak to the press, pay attention. They may dodge. They may fail to disclose some facts, overemphasize others. But, and this is critical, Apple executives who speak on the record always reveal what they are thinking. Surprise. Apple executives think a great deal about Microsoft. Mostly, they think Microsoft has got it … Continue reading Surprise! Apple Execs Use The Mac Anniversary To Dis Microsoft.
Ever since Marissa Mayer took hold of Yahoo, she and her team have been updgrading the company’s online offerings to better compete in a rapidly changing arena. First came Flickr and the Yahoo Weather App, and now the former search giant is upping its news presence. Yahoo recently partnered with former New York Times tech … Continue reading In Defense of Yahoo Tech
