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[News] [Rival] Microsoft's Web Division Failing, Microsoft's Impending Debt a Problem

  • Subject: [News] [Rival] Microsoft's Web Division Failing, Microsoft's Impending Debt a Problem
  • From: Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Sat, 18 Oct 2008 14:50:19 +0000
  • Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.advocacy
  • User-agent: KNode/0.10.9
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Lights out for Microsoft 2.0?

,----[ Quote ]
| Such is the commitment to drive traffic to its own versions of Google search, 
| YouTube, and Digg, Microsoft has done what most other startups couldn't: 
| spend billions of dollars and almost double it's workforce in just three 
| years. Microsoft now has nearly 100,000 employees.   
| 
| Despite its size, though, Microsoft is poised to experience the same pains of 
| junior startups, if the money that fed Web 2.0 optimism has - as it seems - 
| dried up. If and when that happens, and if Microsoft's business managers 
| behave like most do during a downturn, that'll hurt Microsoft's 
| three-year-old Web 2.0 strategy.    
| 
| Don't bank on the bank
| 
| The economy, as you're well aware by now, is in trouble. Banks are not 
| lending money, and some big names have gone out of business. 
| 
| [...]
| 
| This is just one case, but it's symbolic. What if other customers also start 
| struggling to pay the bills when their cash flow begins to dry up? 
`----

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/10/18/microsoft_online_services_cuts/

What about those loans Microsoft is planning to take?


Yesterday:

Confirmed: Microsoft Gives Up On MSN Groups, Hands It Off To Multiply

,----[ Quote ]
| The rumor was originally reported earlier today after a series of emails were
| posted to a MSN Discussion newsgroup, and has since been confirmed by both
| Multiply and Microsoft through a blog post.
`----

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/15/AR2008101503025.html


Recent:

Microsoft to ditch MSN Groups?

,----[ Quot ]
| An e-mail snafu has led to the leak of Microsoft's decision to shutter its
| MSN Groups service, according to LiveSide.net.
`----

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13577_3-10067137-36.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20


Microsoft Slaps PC Gamers, Decides to Close Ensemble Studios

,----[ Quote ]
| Despite its legacy of producing some of the very finest strategy games with
| its Age of Empire and Age of Mythology series, Microsoft decided that it
| would be financially disadvantageous to continue to operate the wholly-owned
| Ensemble Studios.
`----

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/microsoft-ensemble-halo-age-empires,6343.html


Microsoft Burns Down Book Search

,----[ Quote ]
| Citing poor demand, Microsoft will back away from scanning and indexing books
| and academic works for Live Search
`----

http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2008/05/23/microsoft-burns-down-book-search


MSN Music Debacle Highlights EULA Dangers

,----[ Quote ]
| MSN Music’s EULA is a case in point. When active, MSN Music's webpage touted
| that customers could “choose their device and know its going to work”.
|
| But when customers went to purchase songs, they were shown legalese that
| stated the download service and the content provided were sold without
| warrantee. In other words, Microsoft doesn't promise you that the service or
| the music will work, or that you will always have access to music you bought.
| The flashy advertising promised your music, your way, but the fine print
| said, our way or the highway.
`----

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/05/msn-music-debacle-highlights-eula-dangers


Will the Xbox 360 survive past Christmas?

,----[ Quote ]
| The red rings of death issue simply refuses to go away for Microsoft, and no
| matter how much it reduces the cost and extends the warranty one simple
| question remains: will the Xbox 360 ever be fit for purpose?
`----

http://www.itwire.com/content/view/21017/1063/


The Xbox 360 is dead

,----[ Quote ]
| According to a report, if some Australian retailers had their way, the Xbox
| 360 would be dumped from their shelves.
`----

http://www.itwire.com/content/view/17494/1093/


In-depth exposé reveals Microsoft’s Xbox 360 failure rate was 68%

,----[ Quote ]
| The dreaded high failure rate issue with the Xbox 360, otherwise known as the
| Red Ring of Death, has received some in-depth coverage. We are talking about
| some serious coverage here with insider interviews with the original
| engineers that worked on the Xbox 360 all the way up to the high ranks of
| Microsoft.
|
| [...]
|
| Microsoft’s attitude of “release now and patch later” with the Xbox 360 has
| ended up costing billions of dollars as well as leaving many gamers angry. It
| is also speculated the reason for Microsoft’s decline in worldwide sales is
| directly attributed to the Red Ring of Death issue.
`----

http://gamer.blorge.com/2008/09/06/in-depth-expos-reveals-microsofts-xbox-360-failure-rate-was-68/


Report: Xbox 360 Failure Rate Was as High as 68%

,----[ Quote ]
| Dean Takahashi has published an incredible report that finally goes into
| great detail on Microsoft's RROD hardware saga.
`----

http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/news/report-xbox-360-failure-rate-was-as-high-as-68/?biz=1


Microsoft fires quality assurance whistle-blower

,----[ Quote ]
| A VOLISH QA who exposed shonky production practices during the Red Ring of
| Death fiasco has been fired.
|
| Robert Delaware talked to Venturebeat on the Xbox 360 defects and might face
| litigation, presumably for violating a non-disclosure agreement.
`----

http://www.theinquirer.net/gb/inquirer/news/2008/09/15/microsoft-fires-whistle-blowing


X-Box flops, Microsoft winds up ops in several cities

,----[ Quote ]
| It seems to be troubled days for Microsoft's X-Box as it seems the company is
| now winding up operations in several cities.
|
| [...]
|
| According to sources, the company has withdrawn from several Tier-I cities
| due to lackluster sales. Microsoft Entertainment & Devices Division has also
| withdrawn the marketing budget for the current fiscal.
`----

http://www.moneycontrol.com/india/news/business/x-box-flops-microsoft-windsopsseveral-cities/21/01/338381


Microsoft Needs Its Mojo Back

,----[ Quote ]
| Somewhere in the Silicon Valley, there's a Doctor Evil holding a test tube
| full of Microsoft Mojo. Unlike the golden age of the 1990s, Microsoft isn't
| generating excitement anymore. Sure, people still care what Microsoft does,
| but lately it's more like the industry knows the company is headed for a fall
| and is just rubbernecking to see the inevitable result.
|
| Problems are arriving on all fronts. Vista uptake in the enterprise just
| isn't happening; it's likely that many Vista licenses sold there are being
| downgraded to XP. Microsoft's plan to combine search forces with Yahoo hardly
| matters; at this point the both of them are plummeting against Google, which
| has nearly 70% share. The Zune music player is a minor nuisance to Apple's
| iPod. Sony just announced price cuts that are likely to push Microsoft into
| another round of XBox cuts, just as they were starting to eke out a profit.
| (Microsoft has lost about $7 billion on XBox since 2002.)
`----

http://www.informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2008/07/microsofts_need.html
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