Microsoft's (MSFT) Ballmer is 'Ready to Rumble' with Apple (AAPL)
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NEUTRAL (= Flat)
Dividend Yield: 2.7%
EPS Growth %: +20.0%
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If you have the capacity to imagine Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) CEO Steve Ballmer sporting a Mexican luchador mask, do so now.
According to reports out Monday night, Ballmer isn't going to let Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) just walk all "willy-nilly" over each part of the consumer electronics sector by itself.
CRN quotes Ballmer as saying, "We are trying to make absolutely clear we are not going to leave any space uncovered to Apple...We are not. No space uncovered that is Apple's...We have our advantages in productivity...We have our advantages in terms of enterprise management, manageability. We have got our advantages in terms of when you plug into server infrastructure in the enterprise. But we are not going to let any piece of this [go uncontested to Apple]...Not the consumer cloud. Not hardware software innovation. We are not leaving any of that to Apple by itself. Not going to happen. Not on our watch."
Yes.
Comments were made following Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Conference in Toronto yesterday.
On Microsoft's Surface tablet, which has gotten the software giant criticized for alienating OEM partners, Ballmer said, "...if a partner says, 'Hey look I want to sell some of these things. I want to put them in solutions,' they can order some off Microsoft.com and sell them. There is nothing that gets in the way of that. But, we have not set up what I would call industrial distribution as sort of a first element."
So, there you have it. Ballmer is now set on gaining some market share back from Apple in the smartphone sector, an area which has eluded Microsoft over the last five or so years. Whether or not its partnerships with Nokia (NYSE: NOK) and HTC will be enough to drive sales when Windows Phone 8 comes out later this year is yet to be seen. With such deep integration of the Windows operating system on millions and millions of PCs globally, Microsoft would have to really flub Windows Phone 8 not to have it get at least a little share back.
Microsoft is indicated higher in early trading Tuesday.
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According to reports out Monday night, Ballmer isn't going to let Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) just walk all "willy-nilly" over each part of the consumer electronics sector by itself.
CRN quotes Ballmer as saying, "We are trying to make absolutely clear we are not going to leave any space uncovered to Apple...We are not. No space uncovered that is Apple's...We have our advantages in productivity...We have our advantages in terms of enterprise management, manageability. We have got our advantages in terms of when you plug into server infrastructure in the enterprise. But we are not going to let any piece of this [go uncontested to Apple]...Not the consumer cloud. Not hardware software innovation. We are not leaving any of that to Apple by itself. Not going to happen. Not on our watch."
Yes.
Comments were made following Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Conference in Toronto yesterday.
On Microsoft's Surface tablet, which has gotten the software giant criticized for alienating OEM partners, Ballmer said, "...if a partner says, 'Hey look I want to sell some of these things. I want to put them in solutions,' they can order some off Microsoft.com and sell them. There is nothing that gets in the way of that. But, we have not set up what I would call industrial distribution as sort of a first element."
So, there you have it. Ballmer is now set on gaining some market share back from Apple in the smartphone sector, an area which has eluded Microsoft over the last five or so years. Whether or not its partnerships with Nokia (NYSE: NOK) and HTC will be enough to drive sales when Windows Phone 8 comes out later this year is yet to be seen. With such deep integration of the Windows operating system on millions and millions of PCs globally, Microsoft would have to really flub Windows Phone 8 not to have it get at least a little share back.
Microsoft is indicated higher in early trading Tuesday.
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