Is Microsoft in trouble?

IMO, on contrary to the author, MS should stick to desktop/laptop Operating Systems. Desktop usage might have decreased but laptop is not going anywhere. There is so much market untapped in the world, I can't see the end of desktop OS.

I don't see not using my laptop fo at least a decade. And yes, I don't want to use iOS or Android on my laptop. I like the old school Linux, Windows or OSX.

Microsoft is not in trouble until they make products like Windows 7.

There are several key points in the growth (or lack thereof) of a company. There is the initial inflection point where the rate of growth is positive (the company begins growing at a faster than linear pace). There is the inflection point where the rate of growth becomes negative (the company may still be growing, but slower and slower). Then there is the point where the effects of that 2nd inflection point become readily apparent, the peak, when growth stops and then begins to reverse. Then there is the point where the company has shrunk to a shell of what it once was.

MS has passed that 2nd inflection point, but the peak and the fall are still ahead of them. With the amount of marketshare, locked in business, and cash-on-hand they have they'll be a long time falling but the writing is on the wall, unless something changes.

I thought Sharepoint and SQL Server were huge hits - no?

I was with them until here. The Xbox 360 has claimed a gigantic share of the market starting from nothing just a few short years ago.

Compared to Nintendo, whose sales of the Wii have slowed to a relative crawl, and whose mobile gaming market is being relentlessly gutted by smartphones.

The Xbox is also enjoying an attach rate that is the envy of the industry (simplified: number of games bought per console), as well as being the only one able to get away with charging for online services. They're also about to launch a device that (having tried it myself) makes the Wii's #1 selling point an also-ran.

If anything, the Xbox is stronger than ever before, and one of the few examples of markets where MS is doing just about everything right.

I'm convinced that J Allard's departure was a gigantic blow to Microsoft; in fact, IMHO the secret to MS's success in the consumer products space lies in the Xbox team.