Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft was founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen on April 4, 1975. Microsoft Corporation
is an American multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, that
develops, manufactures, licenses, supports and sells computer software, consumer
electronics and personal computers and services. Its best known software products are the
Microsoft Windows line of operating systems, Microsoft Office office suite and Internet
Explorer web browser. It is also one of the world's most valuable companies. Microsoft
dominated the personal computer operating system market, until the early 2000 when
Apple, Google, and Face book came about. (Microsoft) This is when the company started to
lose its credibility.
In December of 2008 Microsoft decided to kill off Windows Mobile because it couldn’t
compete with the I Phone and Android. They decided instead to develop Windows Phone a
completely new mobile operating system. In October of 2010 Microsoft's first phones
running Windows Phone was established, but the sales were low. The company was not
coming up with a firm product to successfully sell to the consumer because it was not
meeting the wants and need of them as well. Microsoft had to find a way to boost sales.
Microsoft later decides to buy Nokia cell phone business for 5.4 billion euro or $7.2 billion.
The two companies have had a development agreement since 2011. The combination of the
two companies would help increase their sales on the Window Phones. Microsoft CEO said,
“Clearly, greater success with phones will strengthen the overall opportunity for us and our
partners to deliver on our strategy to create a family of devices and services for individuals
and business.” Microsoft was determined to increase its strengths ...
smart phone. The company has improved increasingly because the combination with the
Nokia company. Away to insure that the company can stay on top is to increase the
innovations to their devices. Nokia was once a mobile telephone powerhouse, but has
struggled since smart phones hit the market. As part of Microsoft, it will have better footing
to compete there, however Ballmer noted that Nokia remains a leader in non-smart with
phones sold in developing regions. The company’s ultimate goal is growth for the platform.
After years trying to regain relevance in the mobile industry, Microsoft’s Windows Phone
operating system narrowly nudged ahead of third-place BlackBerry in global smart phone
shipments, now sitting somewhere in the neighborhood of five percent globally. In the end
Microsoft has accomplished their goal as a company and plans to stay there for a while.
Get AccessCheck Writing QualityHistory of Microsoft
Microsoft was founded on April 4, 1975, by two friends Paul Allen and Bill Gates. It all
began when Paul Allen got fascinated when the first microcomputer, Altair 8800 was
released the previous year.
Upon hearing about the new microcomputer system, Paul approached his childhood friend
Bill Gates, who was a sophomore at Harvard, to share and hear his take on the new system.
Paul and Bill were geeks at the truest sense – they both were totally into computers and
never missed the chance to experience anything related to technology.
It was said that the two usually used to skipped classes in their high school to tinker with
the computers there and once even got caught for hacking into their school systems. But
instead of being punished, the two were asked to help penetration and help the school
strengthen their computer systems.
With such a background, the two were eager to share about anything related to technology
and both soon released the potential of the micro system. They decided on developing an
implementation of BASIC – a general-purpose high-level programming language – for the
Altair 8800 micro system.
So both, Paul and Bill founded Microsoft in an Albuquerque garage in 1975 and soon moved
to a motel nearby, where they wrote the BASIC port for Altair 8800. Their BASIC
implementation for the Altair 8800 was a success and the new system was sold by Altair’s
manufacturer as Altair BASIC and both Paul and Bill knew that they had something unique
in their hands.
This became the first product to be developed by them under the newly formed Microsoft.
Microsoft grew quickly in size and scale – it made its first $1 million in 1978, just three
years after starting. They soon felt the need to shift their headquarters to Washington since
it was hard to find good programming talent around New Mexico. On January 1, 1979,
Microsoft moved to Bellevue, Washington which remained as its headquarters for around 7
years.
The company was incorporated in Washington, D.C. under the name “Microsoft
Corporation, Inc.” on June 25, 1981. The name stuck chords with everyone at the company
after Bill Gates started calling it that. With having incorporated the company, it was
announced that Bill Gates and Paul Allen would be the president and executive vice-
president respectively, with both of them being a part of the Microsoft board.
After the shift, the company started focus on producing software for various systems and companies.
Apart from its take on the BASIC programming language for different systems, Microsoft also launched its very first
operating system in 1980. it was a port of the Unix operating system that it licensed over from AT&T Corporation.
became the main source of revenue for that year, helping Microsoft stay afloat.
Instead of developing from the scratch, Microsoft bought a CP/M clone named 86-DOS and
made changes to it as MS-DOS or Microsoft Disk Operating System. IBM released its IBM PC
in August 1981 and marketed CP/M and MS-DOS versions for around $240 and $40.
This lower price led to MS-DOS becoming the standard for the IBM PC. The IBM PC sold in
large numbers and helped put Microsoft in the minds of the consumers and enthusiasts
alike.
In 1983, Microsoft released its word processing software Multi-Tool Word which was later
renamed to Microsoft Word. People took notice of Microsoft Word since it was much easier
and intuitive to use than what was currently available in the market. During the same year,
it launched the Microsoft Mouse, which was also given away for free with every purchase of
Microsoft Word.
Windows
Microsoft launched the first version of its renowned Windows operating system software
in November 1985 named Microsoft Windows. It was initially launched as a GUI for its
existing MS-DOS operating system but soon went onto becoming a standalone software.
RESEARCH METHODLOGY
Research methodology
Research methodology can be quantitative [for example, measuring the number of times
someone does sometimes under certain condition] or quantitative [for example, asking
people how they feel about a certain situation]. Ideally, comprehensive research should try
to incorporate both qualitative and quantitative methodologies but this is not always
possible, usually due to time and financial constraints.
Research designs
Research designs are connected with turning the research question into a testing project.
The best depend on your research question. Every design has positive and negative sides.
The research design has been considered as a ‘’blueprint’’ for research, dealing with at least
four problems; what question to study, what data are relevant, what data to collect, and
how to analyze the results.
Data can be collected in two forms, namely, primary and secondary data. The data
collection method used in this research involves the search secondary data. Primary data
are originated primary data can be expensive ans time consuming. Since primary data is
collected with specific purpose, it is the most significant. Depth interviews, focus group,
observations and surveys are the major methods of gathering primary data.
Primary data
Questionnaire
By observation
Secondary data
Secondary data is information gathered for purpose other than the completion of a
research project. A variety of secondary information sources is available to the researcher
gathering data on an industry, potential product application and the market place.
Secondary data is also used to gain initial insight into the research problem.
Secondary data is classified in terms of its source either internet or external. Internal, or in
house data, is secondary information acquired within the organization where research is
being carried out. External secondary data is obtained from outside sources.
The major advantages of using secondary data in market research are time and cost saving.
When secondary data is available, the researcher need only locate the source of the data
and extract the required information.
Secondary research is generally less expensive than primary research. The bulk of
secondary research data gathering does not require the use of expensive, specialized,
highly trained personal.
Semi-Official; e.g. State Bank, Railway Board, central cotton committee, Boards of Economic
Enquiry etc.
Internet.
News papers.
Limitation
Secondary data can be general and vague and may not help in researcher.
Secondary information pertinent to the researcher topic is either not available, or is only
available in insufficient quantities.
Much secondary data is several years old and may not reflect the current market condition.
Trade journals and other publications often accept articles six month before appear in
print. The research may have been done months or even years earlier.
10. Windows XP
With each iteration released every few years, Windows operating system has undergone some
major revamps over the past decades. Microsoft took the experience gained from each iteration
and created a version of Windows that held the top market share of computer operating
systems. The end result was Windows XP, and its default desktop picture is now synonymous
with stability and innovation. All users, whether it was the consumer, developer, student, small
business, or enterprise was using Windows XP heavily from its launch in 2001 all the way until
the beginning of the 2010 decade. Some people still praised it as the all-time best version of
Windows.
9. Bing
You might know Bing as the search engine that is historically overshadowed by Google.
Bing is without a doubt not as popular, but can proudly claim the title of second-best
behind the search engine that already has a place in dictionaries (to google something is to
look it up on Google). The power of Bing comes from Microsoft’s various experiences with
the search engines that preceded it. These include MSN Search, Windows Live Search, Live
Search, and Yahoo! Search. Yahoo! Search has a long and storied place in the finance and
medical industries. This gaves Bing access to previously compiled indexes.
8. MS DOS
MS-DOS, short for Microsoft Disk Operating System, was the premier operating system for
IBM personal computers in the 1980s and 1990s. It’s a classic interface with simple neutral
colors that consolidated many different user interfaces and systems before the visual
operating systems that we know and use came to be, making them more attractive and
widely used among mainstream users. You could say MS-DOS truly defined the ‘personal’ in
‘personal computers.’
7. Microsoft Solitaire
Back in the 1990s, Microsoft faced an issue that would affect its software ease of use and
usability. Computer mice were just starting to become popular and Microsoft had adopted
the mouse and pointer method for navigating the graphical user interface of Windows. The
average consumer didn’t know how to use the mouse. Microsoft tackled this issue by
bundling the Solitaire card game with its operating systems, starting with Windows 3.0 in
1990. The game taught users how to use, move, click, drag, and drop, the basic motions and
actions required for using a mouse. Many users were also intimidated by the GUI of
Windows and the mouse, but Solitaire eased this daunting challenge. Solitaire is included in
the new versions of Windows even today, paying homage to an integral piece of software
that may have influenced an entire generation.
6. Visual Studio
Microsoft Visual Studio is used to develop computer programs, web services, and mobile
applications. The first version of Microsoft Visual Studio was released in 1997 and it gave
developers great flexibility with its bundled toolkit creating an overall better experience
and providing different angles with various development languages, frameworks, and tools.
Since 2015, Microsoft has dedicated their Visual Team to adding utility to Visual Studio by
revamping the already great interface and overhauling the toolset to make development
more efficient.
5. Xbox 360
Microsoft entered the gaming console war with the release of the Xbox in 2001. It featured
online game services where players could compete with each other without being in the
same room. There was also an intuitive user interface and buddy list system. The Xbox 360
built upon all of this and was released in November 2005. Over 75 million units were sold
worldwide and have completely changed the way people think about multiplayer games.
With games like Halo and Gears of War, the Xbox 360 proved that online gaming
communities could exist on gaming consoles.
The Xbox team at Microsoft went above and beyond with the release of Kinect, a webcam
mounted peripherally for the Xbox 360 that enabled gamers to play games with motion
gestures and oral commands. For its time, Kinect was truly a technological ingenuity, and
that puts the Xbox 360 in the Top 10 Microsoft Products
4. Microsoft Office
The launch of Microsoft Word, followed by Excel, and Power point in the mid-1980s was
the precursor to the release of Microsoft Office. These three programs were released
separately, with many more Office programs to follow in later years. Microsoft released
Office 95 in 1995, which bundled Word, Excel, Power point, Access, Schedule+, and Binder.
Professionals and everyday normal consumers around the world have since been utilizing
homogenous content creation, editing, and management. Today we applaud the efforts of
the Microsoft Office teams from its humble beginnings to the now cloud-based Office
360 that helps businesses power their management teams in addition to offering the great
programs that we know and love.
3. Internet Explorer
The history of web browsers is relatively young. It all began with the grandfather of web
browsers, Mosaic. Hand in hand with ViolaWWW, the evolution of these systems lead to the
release Netscape and subsequently the creation and release of Internet Explorer in 1995.
Netscape is no longer with us today, but Internet Explorer is still going strong. While
Microsoft Edge replaced Internet Explorer, many professionals are still using Internet
Explorer to maintain compatibility for older websites. Internet Explorer was also the
default web browser bundled with every version of Windows. For many, the first access to
the world wide web was through Internet Explorer. This program and its name itself will
remain timeless.
2. Microsoft Azure
Microsoft Azure is a cloud web service and arguably a product that can become the next
transcendent Microsoft product. Azure is in many ways the future of Microsoft. It offers
Virtual Machines, app services, SQL database, storage, frameworks, development tools, and
so much more for businesses seeking Digital Transformation and professionals. 95% of
all Fortune 500 companies use Microsoft Azure. It offers unprecedented horizontal and
vertical scalability that enterprises and corporations are constantly striving for. It operates
as a Software as a Service Infrastructure as a Service and Platform as a Service
Microsoft Azure runs mainly on the .NET framework, another Microsoft product, and
provides over a hundred different services. You can run both Windows or Linux virtual
machines on Azure, providing a means to run programs and bring about immediate
changes and support. Or essentially set up a Windows or Linux virtual machine that hosts
whatever software you want to use and the software runs only when you want it to. Access
to this software can be from anywhere in the world due to the nature of the cloud. In many
ways, it’s simply a product of the 21st century just like how Windows 95 was a product of
the 20th century.
1. Windows 95
Our number one in our Top 10 Microsoft Products of all time is without a doubt Windows
95. It really needs no introduction. Great functionality, Windows File Manager, Program
Manager, Windows Explorer, Print Manager, and dynamic interface are just a few reasons
why Windows 95 is at the top of our list. This fully integrated version of Windows and DOS
and offered built-in internet support and came bundled with Internet Explorer.
The interface of Windows 95 was so great and useful that every version of Windows
succeeding Windows 95 uses an upgraded version of the original user interface. It’s the
interface that hundreds of millions of people around the world are familiar with. A desktop
with icons, a start button that gives access to programs, and a taskbar that displays the
programs that are currently running. Windows 95 was released during the dot com boom
and certainly assisted in connecting millions of users to the World Wide Web for the very
first time. It’s hard to describe its place in technology history and its impact will remain
undeniable for eternity.
So after doing the great countdown, what is Microsoft doing today with its products?
SWOT Analysis of Microsoft
Following is the Microsoft SWOT analysis:
3. Vast market reach – Microsoft operates in more than 190 countries worldwide. After
launching the promoted version of Windows 10, it has over 700 million installs worldwide.
4. Constant growth – The latest earning results of Microsoft clearly demonstrate its strong
growth in the cloud business. According to Investor’s Business Daily, Microsoft could be
worth
5. Addition of newer SKUs (Stock Keeping Units) – Microsoft has recently added
newer SKUs to its brand portfolio. This includes Microsoft 365 combining Office 365 and
Windows 10. Its M365 is a multi-billion dollar business.
6. Reputed Brand with superior customer loyalty – Microsoft has 1.2 billion Office
users and 60 million Office 365 commercial customers. It has undoubtedly the greatest
loyal customer base. Customers trust the brand and remain loyal to it.
7. Huge Market Capitalization – With 776 billion U.S. dollars of market capitalization,
Microsoft is one of the biggest hi-tech company on the planet. Microsoft is ranked the 2nd
largest Company in 2020 based on market value and was the 3rd most valuable Brand in
the world in 2019.
8. Effective Adverting platform – With its strong and effective marketing strategies,
Microsoft has influenced people all over the world. Its emotive advertisement aired in July
with the title ‘The future starts now’ touched many worldwide.
Brand reputation – Microsoft was ranked 4th by Interbrand as the world’s most valuable
brand with the highest brand strength and brand equity in the digital industry. In 2020
Forbes Global 2000 Ranking, Microsoft is ranked 13th overall and 6th Top Regarded
Microsoft is known for its hi-tech and quality products offerings. Windows OS and Office
software products are quite user-friendly with highest quality standards Brands in the
world.
Weaknesses – Internal Strategic Factors
1. Overexposure to the PC market – PC shipments are often subjected to frequent falls due
to vendors’ rising prices and currency fluctuations. It has landed Microsoft in a vulnerable
position.
2. Cybercrime theft – The increasing cybercrime cases have left Microsoft in a vulnerable
state. Hackers have reportedly attacked the cybersecurity of the Windows Operating
System several times.
3. Lacking innovation – Microsoft has been failing to grow its hardware products sales such
as surface pro computers and phones. It has been lagging in innovation and advanced
technology, whereas, Apple, Google, and Amazon are quickly blazing trails.
4. Lacking market leadership in Internet browser segment – While Google, Safari, and
Firefox have been gaining the market share in internet browser segment, Microsoft is
losing the market. Microsoft IE & Edge didn’t even make a list in 2018’s most popular web
browsers.
5. Unsuccessful acquisitions – Microsoft’s fewer acquisitions like WebTV, LinkExchange,
Massive, and Danger resulted in failures and divestitures. Such unprofitable investments
are the biggest weaknesses of Microsoft.
Recommendations
To remain the leading software provider, Microsoft needs to work on its weak aspects and
embrace opportunities. Few recommendations are given below in this regard:
1. Upgrade its software and bring innovation. Microsoft must take radical steps to
successfully embrace the future of innovation.
2. Continue enhancing its brand reputation through effective marketing tools.
3. Update its internet browser market and take initiatives to increase the market share in
this segment.
4. Build more competitive advantages to compete with technology rivals like Google and
Apple.
5. Increase partnerships, strategic alliances, and acquisitions to strengthen its market
standing.
6. Resolve the cybersecurity issues and address the global cyber thefts by advancing its
security network systems.
7. Decrease the prices to reduce the illegal use of its software systems.
Marketing Strategy of Microsoft – Microsoft strategy
Founded in 1975 by Bill gates, Microsoft, the American MNC is the technology giant which
is making the life of the people around the globe convenient, comfortable and advanced
through its various offerings in personal computers, consumer electronics & computer
software.
It manufactures, develops licenses and provides supporting services for the products &
services in its portfolio. It is world’s largest and one of the world’s most valuable company
which is listed in Forbes top 100 companies of the world repeatedly
Due to having a wide product & service portfolio Microsoft uses mix of differentiated &
undifferentiated targeting strategy. In office and Windows or overall in operating systems,
the population is homogenous and the target is the complete world which has access to
computers. However, in mobiles and developer tools, Microsoft needs to have a
differentiated target as these products have a lot of competition and the market is divided
based on the features offered.
From rebranding its products & services to logos; company underwent a turnaround
recently to reposition itself as a value based company mean to enrich the life of the
individuals worldwide. If we talk about the positioning of Microsoft, then its operating
systems and several software are simply top of the mind positioned in the market. Because
of the brand value of Microsoft, any product it launches gets a good positioning. But in
some cases, it might not be the top of the mind positioning. Example – Microsoft mobiles
phones vs Samsung or Apple in the smart phone market.
Competitive advantage in the Marketing strategy of
Microsoft
Microsoft is in the business of large no. of products & services which gives it edge over other
companies in the world. It has offerings in Microsoft tablet to Xbox console games to software.
Being in meta-market industry is helping the company in using shared capabilities to excel in
its functional businesses.
One of the most important competitive advantages that Microsoft has over its competitors is its
acquisition strategy. Microsoft have acquired some of the best companies in the world like
Hotmail, skype, Nokia, Visio corporation, Navision and many other small and big companies.
Another competitive advantage which Microsoft has over its closest competitor Apple, is that
its operating system is installable on any PC or laptop and there is no hardware binding on the
operating system – A key problem in the distribution of Apple Smartphones. But this also
means that there is huge loss due to piracy.
The whopping product line of Microsoft gives the company its advantage. It is the world’s
leading operating systems provide computers and it is almost dominating that industry when
we compare worldwide figures (of which last & latest one in its series is Windows 10 which
was given as a free upgrade for Windows 7 owners). Microsoft has worked upon TCO (Total
cost of ownership) so as to make the software easily & economically available to the customers.
Similarly it has other solid line of products like Skype, Mobile phones, Xbox series, games,
Browsers, Search engine, Microsoft office, Business solutions and whatnot. Naturally, it is a
mammoth organization. And that is where lies its competitive advantage.
The XBox 360, and the office suite are also stars because their market share is high but
there is continous direct and indirect competition in these two segments. In the former it is
from Nintendo and Sony and in the Latter it is from open source programs like Open office
or Kingsoft or many of the others.
Some of its campaign like “Get the facts”, Scroogled and many others had helped the
company in increasing the brand visibility further.
Customer analysis in the Marketing strategy of Microsoft- Microsoft has products &
services for every age group and different types of customer groups whether it
is individual customer or an enterprise.
.
Finding
1. Majority of respondent are belonging to age group of 18-25.
3. I find that majority of respondent are own various Microsoft product, but window MS
office & internet explorer are best among all of them.
4. out of 100%, 54% of respondent feels that Microsoft product are not costly.
5. 90% of the people/respondent are satisfy with the features of Microsoft product.
6. From the research I find that 60% of the responsible are complaining to retailer in the
case of dissatisfaction.
7. I find that, most of the respondent came to know about Microsoft from t.v. & internet.
8. I find that 90% of the respondent are using Microsoft product from more than 2 year.
10. The research also shows that people like Microsoft because of their new application.
Suggestions
Microsoft with its apparent success in the present must face problem that will be evident in
the near future. Although Microsoft is a leading company in its chosen field of software
industry. The dominance and the monopoly that it enjoy can be erased and its dominance
in the market can be eclipsed by other new companies in the industry. The has I dentified
several problem inherent to the company and have highlighted the effect thet the negative
factors will bring on the overall stability of the company in the future. Problem such as
poor designs, the challenge of the other competitors like linux and tightening government
control are some of the hindrances that will eventually obstruct Microsoft in its road to
progress. To eliminate and to diminish the impact of these problem and difficulties the
compny must undertake needed reforms and initiate policies that will improve certain
aspect of the company.
These adptabillity and changes helped Microsoft to maintain as a tough competitor and
strong player in the market. In spite of the high growth of google and apple the future of
Microsoft is bright and can actually help to make the market more balanced interms of
decreasing the monopoly of any single player.
Bibliography
INTERNET
http;//www.microsoft.com/enable/Microsoft/mission.aspx
www.google.com/images
www.businessbuffet.net/analysis
BOOKS
NEWSPAPER
India today
Questionnaire
I feel extremely exhilarated to have completed this project under the able and
inspiring guidance of MR. Neeraj Raikwar here undered me all possible help me
guidance while reviewing the manuscript in finalizing the report.
I also extend my deep regards to my teachers, family members, friends and all
those whose encouragement has infused courage in me to complete to word
successfully.
Acknowledgement
Preparing a project of this nature is an ardous task and I was fortunate enough to get
support from a large number of person. I wish to express my deep sense of gratitude to all
those who generously helped is successful completion of this report by sharing invaluable
time and knowledge.
I feel extremely exhilarated to have completed this project under the able and inspiring
guidance of He rendered me all possible help me guidance while reviewing the manuscript
in finalizing the report.
I also extended my deep regards to my teachers, family members, friends and all those
whose encouragement has infused courage in me to complete to work successfully.
GULAFSHA BEE
I declare that the project report titled ’’A STUDY OF BRAND PERSONALITY OF
MICROSOFT’’ on market segmentation is nay own work conducted under the supervision of
MR. NEERAJ RAIKWAR Department of business Management, SVNU, SAGAR to the best of
my knowledge the report does not contain any work, which has been submitted for the
award of any degree, anywhere.
GULAFSHA BEE
1. INTRODUCTION
2. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3. OBJECTIVE
4. PRODUCT
5. SWOT ANALYSIS
6. MARKET STRATEGIES
7. FINDING
8. LIMITATION
9. SUGGESTION
10. CONCLUSION
11. BIBLIOGRAPHY
12. QUESTIONNAIRES
13. THANKS
THANKS