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CNN Money: Microsoft is a Dying Consumer Brand

money.cnn.com

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Re: CNN Money: Microsoft is a Dying Consumer Brand

#131

Post by unexpected »

rospaya wrote: post #126
unexpected wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree with you, but I fear that the internal politics with Microsoft have been absolutely stifling! Let's take smartphones for instance - look at the Kin. From all reports, killed b/c of politics, in favor of Windows 7. Why not have both and see what the market decides? The Courier. Killed - who knows why? Most likely politics. Microsoft has so many innovative ideas that we see in Research - but we never see them i…

> Why not have both and see what the market decides? Kin was killed after six weeks, the market decided it was crap and only a couple were sold. Actually not so much that the Kin itself is bad, but carriers weren't enthusiastic enough, and Microsoft had marketing problems for a product that would battle WP7 6 months later.

you're right - it was killed after 6 weeks, but if you read the post-mortems/insider "scoops", it seems as if the Sidekick team wasn't allowed to make the product that they wanted to make. Features were getting pulled, changed, and strip-mined.

You illustrate another problem - I don't know why MS would view it as "battling" WP7 6 months later: 1) 6 months is a LIFETIME for a phone. The Pre went from amazing, potential company-saver phone to dud in less than that. 2) At the end of the day, all the money goes back to Microsoft. Why is that a battle? Internally it's a battle for mindshare - but MS needs to realize that they're both on the same team. Apple is happy cannibalizing its iPod sales for iPod Touches/iPhones.

3) If Microsoft wants to grow, several products are going to overlap. There seems to be a convergence towards "the one true device". A year from now, MS is going to start worrying if mobile phone sales are creeping into their netbook sales - they already worry that Office 365 sales are going to creep into Office licensing

Re: CNN Money: Microsoft is a Dying Consumer Brand

#132

Post by Tyrannosaurs »

cryptoz wrote: post #89
Timmy_C wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The sites built for marketing Microsoft products are often outsourced. So the fact that the new Xbox website was broken in any regard is the fault of a poor marketing manager and not a poor Microsoft developer.

If a software company doesn't build its own software, then there are other, larger problems here. (Yes, websites are software).

No, you outsource or buy where it's appropriate. They should no more build every Microsoft website than any other firm should write their own word processor.

Re: CNN Money: Microsoft is a Dying Consumer Brand

#133

Post by Tyrannosaurs »

hugh3 wrote: post #73
brentb wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I would think that the real problem is Microsoft's unwillingness to become something completely new, something other than Windows and Office." Inability, perhaps. Unwillingness? You're out of your mind. Microsoft has had their fingers in smartphones, music players, search engines, touch computing, web mail, [you name it] for YEARS. And they are not just dabbling... they have poured billions into these areas, trying…

Xbox was their last big success in entering a new market. That's just under a decade ago. The problem is that they have a sucky innovation model. They find something that's already successful, throw money at making a slightly better version (or whatever they can convince themselves is a slightly better version). Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. It worked when they copied the Macintosh to make Windows. It wor…

Their last big success? It was launched 10 years ago, last year was the first time the XBox division made a profit and it's still years and years away from recouping the investment made in it.

If that's a success I really don't want to see one of their failures.

Re: CNN Money: Microsoft is a Dying Consumer Brand

#134

Post by points »

potatolicious wrote: post #110
points wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

FWIW, I disagree. When MS announced support for facebook on the xBox, I thought "hmm why not just give users a browser". Then they announced twitter integration... "Umm how about just stuff a browser on there". It's farcical. But OTOH, it fits right with MS's plan - they detest the www. It's open. It's free. It's not a walled garden they can monetize. Last time I heard the web division at MS still makes a huge loss.…

Have you used the PS3 browser? Or worse, the Wii browser? One has to navigating the web with a joystick (have you tried it? It's fifth circle of hell terrible), the other has you suffering from cramps in 10 minutes flat. If you've used the browsers, you know just astronomically bad those ideas are. A browser doesn't not belong on a joystick-driven device, it's slow to use and frustrating as hell. So why would MS put…

USB keyboard. Many people use the wii to browse.

Re: CNN Money: Microsoft is a Dying Consumer Brand

#135

Post by potatolicious »

points wrote: post #134
potatolicious wrote: post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you used the PS3 browser? Or worse, the Wii browser? One has to navigating the web with a joystick (have you tried it? It's fifth circle of hell terrible), the other has you suffering from cramps in 10 minutes flat. If you've used the browsers, you know just astronomically bad those ideas are. A browser doesn't not belong on a joystick-driven device, it's slow to use and frustrating as hell. So why would MS put…

USB keyboard. Many people use the wii to browse.

Even if you eliminate the typing difficulties (and they are quite severe) of the platform, you still haven't replaced the mouse. On the PS3 it's tedious maneuvering of a pointer with a joystick (second order control system == frustration), on the Wii it's an arm-killing posture that is also aggravatingly imprecise.

But taking all of that out of the equation - assuming that magically the Wii and the PS3 are both capable of interacting with USB mice and keyboards... how many people do you know who have an (extension cord required) USB connection to a keyboard and mouse combo on their couch? I can count these people on one hand. In fact I can count them on 3 fingers, and all are pretty hardcore tech geeks to boot.

Re: CNN Money: Microsoft is a Dying Consumer Brand

#136

Post by CrazedGeek »

potatolicious wrote: post #135
points wrote: post #134

Earlier quoted context omitted.

USB keyboard. Many people use the wii to browse.

Even if you eliminate the typing difficulties (and they are quite severe) of the platform, you still haven't replaced the mouse. On the PS3 it's tedious maneuvering of a pointer with a joystick (second order control system == frustration), on the Wii it's an arm-killing posture that is also aggravatingly imprecise. But taking all of that out of the equation - assuming that magically the Wii and the PS3 are both capab…

FWIW, the PS3 does support mice and keyboards. Works decently in the web browser.

Re: CNN Money: Microsoft is a Dying Consumer Brand

#137

Post by warfangle »

unexpected wrote: post #83
brentb wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I would think that the real problem is Microsoft's unwillingness to become something completely new, something other than Windows and Office." Inability, perhaps. Unwillingness? You're out of your mind. Microsoft has had their fingers in smartphones, music players, search engines, touch computing, web mail, [you name it] for YEARS. And they are not just dabbling... they have poured billions into these areas, trying…

I agree with you, but I fear that the internal politics with Microsoft have been absolutely stifling! Let's take smartphones for instance - look at the Kin. From all reports, killed b/c of politics, in favor of Windows 7. Why not have both and see what the market decides? The Courier. Killed - who knows why? Most likely politics. Microsoft has so many innovative ideas that we see in Research - but we never see them i…

I really, really wish they would have productized the Courier. I kept waiting with bated breath... and then, like usual, Microsoft ultimately finished quickly and with little fanfare.

Re: CNN Money: Microsoft is a Dying Consumer Brand

#138

Post by discreteevent »

Typhon wrote: post #61
DavidBishop wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Actually, Apple is the one taking the consumer market. 1 in every 5 retail computer sales is a Mac. Best Buy's CEO recently said that 50% of their laptop sales have been cannibalized by the iPad - a 6 month old product. Apple is the #1 technology company on the planet by market cap and recently attained the 3rd place in computers by market share. Their stock price has grown over 2000% in 10 years. Apple is the one po…

OH GOD NO ! I'd rather have Microsoft's monopoly endure than have it replaced by Apple domination. Perhaps they make better software, but they're also much better at being evil.

Maybe not evil but definitely closed. Watch out for that.

Re: CNN Money: Microsoft is a Dying Consumer Brand

#139

Post by [deleted] »

cryptoz wrote: post #3

I firmly believe that most of Microsoft's failings in the consumer market come from their fear of the World Wide Web. Microsoft does everything they can to hide their users from the real power of the web, since everyone - including Microsoft - knows that a ubiquitous Web means fewer sales of Windows and Office. Their logic in locking users to Windows-based experiences is old, tired, and not going to work anymore. Peo…

[deleted]

Re: CNN Money: Microsoft is a Dying Consumer Brand

#140

Post by hugh3 »

Tyrannosaurs wrote: post #133
hugh3 wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Xbox was their last big success in entering a new market. That's just under a decade ago. The problem is that they have a sucky innovation model. They find something that's already successful, throw money at making a slightly better version (or whatever they can convince themselves is a slightly better version). Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. It worked when they copied the Macintosh to make Windows. It wor…

Their last big success? It was launched 10 years ago, last year was the first time the XBox division made a profit and it's still years and years away from recouping the investment made in it. If that's a success I really don't want to see one of their failures.

I'm not familiar with the detailed financials, but the Xbox has at least captured a substantial market share, which is more than I can say for any of their subsequent major pushes into new market segments.

I'm actually surprised if the xbox hasn't been profitable. It can't have been that costly to develop (get a fancy graphics chip and stick it in a box), they've sold a helluva lot of them, and they only update it once every five years, and they're making a crapload of money on the games too (don't forget they own Bungie) so I would have thought it would be a bit of a cash cow. But maybe they need to sell the consoles at a loss.

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