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Should Microsoft Sell Windows and Office? This Former Exec Believes So

posted by janrinok on Thursday January 13 2022, @07:12AM   Printer-friendly

upstart writes:

Should Microsoft sell Windows and Office? This former exec believes so:

A former Microsoft executive has offered up some advice for current CEO Satya Nadella: spin off Windows and Office and focus on Azure, Microsoft's cloud computing crown jewel.

Ben Slivka, a 14-year veteran at Microsoft who left in 1999, gave the unsolicited advice to Nadella in an interview with CNBC, saying: "The right thing probably is to bet the future on the cloud."

[...] On top of this, Nadella invested heavily in building out Azure and other enterprise-focused offerings to compete with Amazon's AWS and Google Cloud. By some estimates, Azure hold 20% of the cloud market, below AWS' 32% and above Google's 9%.

According to analysts that CNBC spoke to, spinning off Windows and Office would make very little sense. Nadella has built significant and much-needed synergies between Microsoft's various businesses, in such a way that the rise of one boosts the others.

So what do you think?

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  • (Score: 2) by looorg on Thursday January 13 2022, @10:24AM

    by looorg (578) on Thursday January 13 2022, @10:24AM (#1212383)

    From a user/consumer perspective I would like this. That said I don't think this is in the interest of Microsoft. There is still plenty of cash on the table so to speak in Windows and Office to just walk away from it. I guess there would also be a lot of QQ about it from the alternatives then if Windows and Office became free. I guess it would practically kill all the other options on the spot. No need to run those office clones anymore when the MS office suite is free. I guess Linux and Apple wouldn't complain, they have their locked in userbase already. But a lot of people would probably be fine with Win7 (the last good one) be free. But still it would probably be the whole Netscape Navigator vs Internet Explorer saga in a rerun as far as Office was concerned.

    They could even make it free for consumers while still charging companies and other agencies for it. After all they are usually the once that also get support. So they sort of get what they paid for. But I don't think it's an option really.

    Betting all their option on "the cloud" tho sounds like a great idea .... /sarcasm/

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