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[system11]

Nobody is going to miss Bing or Surface.

 

[bishoptl]

First of all, killing all of these branches would be the dumbest decision which MS could possibly do!
Did anybody spent just a few minutes with MS last earnings for Q2FY14?



Surface
They're doubled revenue with Surface (even though it still makes loss due to the first generation not selling well), but if they continue this way, they will soon be profitable. Surface 2 was sold out nearly 2 months in my region until I finally got mine a few days ago. Never had a more premium and well designed device in my hands! Windows 8 looks and feels great on this device and Modern UI now makes sense and works like a charm!

I work as a IT System Engineer and Surface is gaining huge momentum not only in terms of my private acquaintances/family/friends, but at work as well. We already ordered two Surface Pro and we are planning to substitute our HP Elitebooks with Surface Pro! Surface has so much potential and everyone I know who had it in his/her hands was blewn away especially if compared to Android or iOS tablets. Even with Surface 2 (/w Pro) you get a full Windows 8.1 OS with USB support, miniSD card slot and a real 16:9 Full HD screen plus the awesome Type Cover 2 keyboards. You have a tablet for consumers AND a real workstation molded into one awesome device. Even a full Office 2013 is included!
Try this with the competitors. Android devices are mostly cheap, slow and bloated (except for Nexus) devices which only can do some of the above mentioned tasks after hacking it. iOS basically is just a bubble for consuming everything Apple just like Kindle for Amazon, but you have none of the abilities which Surfaces offers you!

Bing
I'm using Bing now several months as my main search engine and except for some few cases where it doesn't deliver search results as good as Google I'm really satisfied with it. It has some really nice functions which Google is missing (easier management of settings and search history, better overview of and access to images and videos) plus a really nice start page with useful information and picture everyday! Love it so far and revenues/usage is raising for Bing as well as Surface!

Xbox
Honestly, they've put so much money into this business since the beginning of Xbox. Now it isn't only a gaming console, but a whole media brand for games, music, movies, TV shows (even self-produced ones like the upcoming Halo series) and the upcoming books/magazin/comic reader Xbox Reader. They want to do it as a ecosystem just like Apple, Google and Amazon and they do it very well IMHO. They have a name, a brand and a lot of households are having Microsoft present everywhere through Xbox. If they would resign to do only business with enterprise they would lose all of it fading out of the mind/sight of the majority of people. Don't forget that all these "consumers" go to work probably driving decisions towards or against MS products, so to be present in entertainment might come in handy as well. Last but not least Xbox is selling like a breeze, especially 360. I'm sure One will gain huge momentum as well as soon as the price drops and more games are out, but even today they are selling very well!

Windows Phone
Even though this is not on investors list, I have to say that I'm on WP since Day one and while it lacked a lot of common features at the beginning it evolved into a great competitor as of today and at least in Europe they already have over 10% marketshare. Same goes here in my private and work life. I can see a lot of momentum. GF just bought one without my hasseling (she hates iTunes and Apples restrictive ecosystem), brother and friends bought it and my ex-employer started to settle on to Windows Phone instead of BlackBerry. All of them very happy with WP. Also here I can see huge momentum!

Sorry for the huge text, but I had to write this down and let everyone know that it would be nonsense to scrap these products! Yes, I'm a MS fan, but I'm not blind fanboy. I just think MS deservers a treatment of more respect. Had all kinds of devices from Apple, Amazon, Google, Sony and Nintendo. Tried them all and they are all good in some way, but I don't see Microsoft not getting it's place among them. IMHO quite the opposite is happening, MS is gaining huge momentum with their products right now and it will pay out in the near future!

 

[Biker19]

I always like these 'Microsoft want to killl the Xbox' threads because you see the same posters saying the same stuff and hoping in their little hearts that it will happen even though there is imo 0 chance of it happening, maybe if they had WiiU level or lower numbers but even then i would expect them to push forward with it for a good amount of time.

Sony has lost a lot of money over the years and is in trouble while Nintendo's console is doing awful, there is probably more chance of both of them dropping their console business than Microsoft in the 'real' world but no, let the stealth posters with their fake concern carry on dreaming.

LOL. You seem to think that just because Microsoft has a lot of dough more so than Nintendo & Sony, that their shareholders/investors are going to continue to allow Microsoft to pour money into the Xbox brand without making back a lot of profit.

You're as gullible as they come. Their money isn't infinite, you know.

 

[Azih]

LOL. You seem to think that just because Microsoft has a lot of dough more so than Nintendo & Sony, that their shareholders/investors are going to continue to allow Microsoft to pour money into the Xbox brand without making back a lot of profit.

Their money isn't infinite, you know.

True enough, but their greatest competition (Google, and to a much lesser degree, Apple) are making a lot of bank in the consumer markets and using that strong position to threaten Microsoft's core businesses.

 

[FairXchange]

Man, they better not even be entertaining the idea of dropping Xbox right after I spent half a grand on my new console. I'd never buy a Microsoft product or service again in my life for that kind of transgression.

 

[Gorillaz]

Man, they better not even be entertaining the idea of dropping Xbox right after I spent half a grand on my new console. I'd never buy a Microsoft product or service again in my life for that kind of transgression.

if they actually do go through with it, they will probably let this gen ride out, I think they will wait for 4-5 years after launch to decide

 

[thepotatoman]

True enough, but their greatest competition (Google, and to a much lesser degree, Apple) are making a lot of bank in the consumer markets and using that strong position to threaten Microsoft's core businesses.

True enough, but Apple and Google's greatest competition (Microsoft) is making a lot of bank in the business productivity market and using that strong position to threaten Apple and Google's core businesses.

 

[Marvel]

I don't think there will be another Xbox after this machine personally if that's how investors feel.

 

[Azih]

True enough, but Apple and Google's greatest competition (Microsoft) is making a lot of bank in the business productivity market and using that strong position to threaten Apple and Google's core businesses.

Well I'm not sure what you're saying. Are you agreeing with me that it is good strategy for MS to be in the Search (Bing), and Consumer devices (Xbox, Windows Phone, Surface) markets as it would not be a smart thing for them to abandon them and let their competition grab all the mindshare? It's not so much that they are profiting much from competing in these spaces (though there is so much money in there that they could in the future) it's that it would hurt them to NOT do so.

 

[BY2K]

Bing
I'm using Bing now several months as my main search engine and except for some few cases where it doesn't deliver search results as good as Google I'm really satisfied with it. It has some really nice functions which Google is missing (easier management of settings and search history, better overview of and access to images and videos) plus a really nice start page with useful information and picture everyday! Love it so far and revenues/usage is raising for Bing as well as Surface!

Are you The Amazing Spider-Man!?

 

[JordanN]

Edit: Whoops. The quoted post sent me to the wrong thread.

I wanted to reply to this.