Microsoft Betting BIG on Cloud with Windows 8 and Tablets
October 11, 2012
Grazed from Forbes. Author: Dave Einstein.
The upcoming Windows 8 launch will cost a staggering amount. Microsoft, the driving force behind personal computing for 30 years, is betting its future on the cloud and tablet computing. And there are two schools of thought about the sanity of that bet.
The Windows 8 release date is October 26; the tech bellwether whose operating system runs most of the world’s PCs is tying its flag to mobile devices and cloud-based apps. In the process, it may be cutting the apron strings to the traditional PC, the device that Microsoft founder Bill Gates once said he wanted to put on every desktop…
The technology world has changed since Gates stepped away from Microsoft at the dawn of the 21st century. PC sales are flat—and have been for two years—while sales of smartphones and tablets are through the roof. The venerable desktop PC has been supplanted by the laptop, and tablets—led by the iPad—are starting to replace laptops.
Time for a big bet…
Steve Ballmer, who replaced Gates as CEO, sees Windows 8 as an opportunity to put his stamp on the company, and pivot it into a leader in mobile computing. He’s putting in motion not just a product launch, but a three-pronged campaign…
Read more from the source @ http://www.forbes.com/sites/netapp/2012/10/11/windows-8-release-date-tablet-microsoft-cloud/