There are companies that are very present in our daily lives and, without a doubt, microsoft is one of them. In the 1970s, people still wrote by hand in offices; the telephones were only landlines and the Internet connection was not essential. Microsoft was born in this context, a company that has spent decades helping us to be much more productive and It has revolutionized our office, our study center and also our homes.
For this, we want take a look at the history of microsoft and what have been the steps that have led it to become one of the most iconic companies in the world.
How Microsoft was born
The Microsoft story begins when two young men, Paul Allen Y Bill Gatesdecide to leave their respective universities and create Microsoft in 1975. When they founded the company neither of them could have imagined the tremendous success they would have in the market and the change it would mean for the world of telecommunications.
The company was founded with a single premise: to change the way people work and that every home, office or school could have a computer.
They took their first steps hand in hand IBMthe pioneering technology company of the moment, making a very smart deal by Allen and Gates: receive a percentage for each computer sold that had one of the company’s software installed: the MS-DOS.
After this, they continue to work on their own in a own operating systemknown worldwide as Windowsso in the 90s this company’s software already has 90% of the personal computer market share. This is what would lead it to become the megalithic company it is today.
Windows, the operating system par excellence
From the beginning of its history, Windows had a practical operating environment with which to work, version 1.0, already granted the option of having a keyboard and a mouse and it was a complete success.
Its second version, Windows 2.0, introduced desktop icons, expanded memory, improved graphics, and keyboard shortcuts. In addition, it offered control over the screen layout and the option to overlap windows.
In 1989 Microsoft had already developed its version of office software and one of its most important products in its history: Microsoft Office with Word and Excel.
In the early 1990s they released Windows 3.0 with graphics with 16 colors, new icons and even games like the loner and minesweeper. For its part, in 1992, came Windows 3.1, which sold nearly 3 million copies in its first months on the market. In this same year, the well-known database tool also arrived: Microsoft Access.
In 1995 arrives Windows 95which is very popular thanks to the fact that it incorporates the start button and Allows connection to the Internet by dial-up. This same year, the first version of the well-known browser arrives internet explorer and the online messaging service msn.
Finally, in 1997, with the arrival of Office 97 and Internet Explorer 4.0Microsoft manages to unseat Netscape, which had been the leading browser up to that point.
The following years the company obtained an exponential growth launching different operating systems among which stand out Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 Y Windows 10.
Windows currently occupies 57.8% of the market share being the most popular and used operating system for computers in the world. Secondly, its market capitalization reaches 1.58 billion dollarsbeing one of the largest in the market behind Apple.
The successes and failures of Microsoft products: Xbox, Tablet-PC and Zune
In 2001, Microsoft entered the video game market with the console Xbox trying to compete with those of Sony and Nintendo. Although the Xbox did not surpass the PlayStation 2, it brought great benefits to the company at a time when companies linked to the internet were going through a bad time, due to the bursting of the dotcom bubble. Therefore, this success was a respite within the company.
If the Xbox turned out to be a hit for Microsoft, the same cannot be said for the Tablet PCs they came up with. Although the real “boom” of tablets began in 2010 with the launch of the iPad, the idea of this kind of device came from a long time ago.
In fact, in 2001, Microsoft would launch its own, a failed attempt to replace desktop computers that ended up failing due to a bad execution by Microsoft. It is true that this class of devices offered more comfort for certain tasks, but people wanted to continue using their computers on a daily basis.
Microsoft’s attempts to expand beyond personal computers did not stop there, seeing the success that Apple had achieved with the iPod, they soon developed their own music playback devices. So that, Zunecame at a time when the iPod already had a solid footing in the market.
A short time later, the Zune project would be abandoned. With the arrival of the iPhone and the integration of the music player in mobile devices, the player market is completely overshadowed. This was another big failure for the company.
Nokia acquisition and the failure of Windows Phone
The truth is that Apple’s new product, the iPhone, had created a movement that continued to affect Microsoft history long after. This product was a revolution in the world of telephony.
In 2007, companies such as Blackberry or Microsoft continued to rely on mobile phones with a keyboard, very popular at that time in the business world. However, many other companies they began to imitate Apple by bringing out their own smartphones and leaving behind telephones with keyboards.
In addition to this, Google soon designed its own mobile operating system: Androidleaving little room for windows phone in the mobile world.
To reach more people in the sector, and after several years trying to introduce Windows Phone in the telephony market, Microsoft got rid of this company by selling it again.
The reasons for this failure were several. but the main one was the business model itself. Mobile manufacturers did not want to include Windows Phone in their phones, since they had to pay for their rights. What this did was that they had to make the rest of their products more expensive, resulting in less competition in the market.
Microsoft today
Microsoft has managed to turn its business model around 180 degrees, when in 2012 they launched their surface product range which continues to grow exponentially to this day. Currently, the popular company of the “little window” continues to expand its horizon with the purpose of maintaining the privileged place it has.
Though the main founders of Microsoft are already retiredits history and how they managed to position the company on a global scale and impact millions of people, will continue to be an obligatory reference and a great example for future generations.
What is clear is that Microsoft continues with its initial premise of improving people’s lives through technology and its failures have not prevented it from continuing to grow and innovate over time.
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