Microsoft entertainment division

Not only did Microsoft accept that its "Windows" brand needed advertising to consumers, but that it was far more effective to push "Windows" as a brand rather than focus too closely on individual editions or versions. Now let's look at Microsoft's branding when it comes to entertainment and devices. I don't make it my job to keep up with every new name that Microsoft comes out for things, but I'm painfully aware of a number of brands that Microsoft is trying to push - "Xbox," "Live" and "Zune" are three of the biggest, but there's also "Windows Mobile," and "Windows Phone 7 Series" and "Kin.

Conclusion: Microsoft likes names. What's worse, Microsoft likes to choose silly names. Seriously, how many martinis did it take before people started thinking that words such as "Zune" and "Kin" were catchy? These random words tell you nothing about the product.

As daft as Apple's "iPhone," "iTunes," and "iPad" might be, they do at least tell you right from the start what you are dealing with. Personally, I think that Microsoft might be onto something with names like "Windows Phone 7 Series" because if nothing else, it pushes the view of a unified platform of devices that can coexist, rather than disparate entities. Heck, even adding something as crazy as the "MS" prefix to the services would help pull them together.

Is Microsoft branding a mess, or do you think that there sense in separating out all the products into elements with their own individual names makes sense? I've changed the way I charge my iPhone. You should, too.

Time for a Linux smartphone? Best iPhones : Which model is right for you? This restructuring initiative resulted in elimination of approximately 7, positions in fiscal year As it is illustrated in figure below, Microsoft organizational structure is divided into divisions according to engineering groups and business functions. Specifically, on the basis of engineering groups, the company is divided into three divisions, whereas according to business functions it is divided into 9 divisions:.

The latest restructuring of Microsoft organizational structure and shift to divisional organizational structure offers the following advantages to the business:. Firstly, under the new organizational structure, heads of engineering groups directly report to CEO Satya Nadella with positive implications on new product development initiatives and innovation potential. In July , we announced a change in organizational structure as part of our transformation to a devices and services company.

As we evolve how we allocate resources and analyze performance in the new structure, it is possible that our segments may change. Windows Division develops and markets operating systems for computing devices, related software and online services, Surface RT and Pro devices, and PC accessories. This collection of software, hardware, and services is designed to empower individuals, companies, and organizations and to simplify everyday tasks through seamless operations across the user's hardware and software.

Windows 8 is the first version of the Windows operating system that supports both x86 and ARM chip architectures and that focuses on touch. With this version, Windows is able to scale across more form factors, including mobile devices designed for consuming information and media, and devices that have high performance computing capabilities.

Windows Division revenue growth is impacted by growth of the computing device market worldwide. Principal Products and Services : Windows operating system; Windows Services suite of applications and web services, including Outlook. The general availability of Surface Pro started on February 9, A preview of Windows 8. The Windows operating system faces competition from various commercial software products and from alternative platforms and devices, mainly from Apple and Google.

We believe Windows competes effectively by giving customers choice, value, flexibility, security, an easy-to-use interface, compatibility with a broad range of hardware and software applications, including those that enable productivity, and the largest support network for any operating system. The Windows 8 operating system includes the Windows Store, an online application marketplace. This marketplace benefits our developer and partner ecosystems by providing access to a large customer base and benefits Windows users by providing centralized access to certified applications.

Windows Services software and applications, including SkyDrive and Outlook. Surface Pro and RT devices and our PC accessories face competition from computer, tablet, and other hardware manufacturers, many of which are also current or potential partners and customers. Server and Tools develops and markets server software, software developer tools, cloud-based services, and solutions that are designed to make information technology professionals and developers and their systems more productive and efficient.

We offer our customers both on-premise software and cloud-based offerings, bringing together the benefits of traditional on-site offerings with cloud-based services. Server software is integrated server infrastructure and middleware designed to support software applications built on the Windows Server operating system.

This includes the server platform, database, business intelligence, storage, management and operations, virtualization, service-oriented architecture platform, security and identity software. Server and Tools also builds standalone and software development lifecycle tools for software architects, developers, testers, and project managers.

Server offerings can be run on-site, in a partner-hosted environment, or in a Microsoft-hosted environment. Our cloud-based services comprise a scalable operating system with computing, storage, database, and management, along with comprehensive cloud solutions, from which customers can build, deploy, and manage enterprise workloads and web applications.

These services also include a platform that helps developers build and connect applications and services in the cloud or on premise. Our goal is to enable customers to devote more resources to development and use of applications that benefit their businesses, rather than managing on-premises hardware and software.

Windows Embedded extends the power of Windows and the cloud to intelligent systems by delivering specialized operating systems, tools, and services. In addition, Server and Tools offers a broad range of enterprise consulting and product support services "Enterprise Services" that assist customers in developing, deploying, and managing Microsoft server and desktop solutions.