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Decisive Year for Microsoft
By Dhaval Valia
The next 12 months will be crucial for Microsoft as it prepares to roll out Windows 7, Exchange Server 2010, Server 2008 R2, SaaS offering BPOS (Business Productivity Online Suite), and Azure, its cloud platform.
Each of these launches is critical to Microsoft’s software empire which has dominated the industry for almost two decades. It could even be a make or break situation for the software giant.
Windows 7 is the most important of these launches. What raises the stake for the new Microsoft OS is the fact that its predecessor, Windows Vista, failed miserably. Going by market research figures, Windows XP, which is now a eight-year-old OS, continues to enjoy almost 70 percent installed base.
Hence, it’s critical that Windows 7 delivers. If it fails to do so, Microsoft may very well lose its credibility as a company which can deliver a stable OS platform—and this at a time when its archrival Google has already announced the launch of Chrome OS in 2010. It could also mean that enterprises may look more keenly at Linux alternatives to Microsoft.
This could have a domino effect on Microsoft’s other launches, including Exchange 2010 and Server 2008 R2 which incorporate several features—such as virtualization and unified communications—designed to work intrinsically with Windows 7.
With Windows Server 2008 R2, Microsoft intends to break into the enterprise league where it wants to prove that the NOS can run mission-critical applications. Also core to the new release of the server OS is the enhanced Hyper-V server, an indication of Microsoft’s efforts to streamline its virtualization strategy to take on market leader VMware.
Similarly, BPOS and Azure mark Microsoft’s entry into cloud computing where it needs to catch up with Google Apps and Amazon. While BPOS will test Microsoft’s S+S (Software + Service) strategy, Azure could act as a major turning point in taking the cloud computing paradigm from hype to realization phase. Considering the vast network of ISVs and software developers which Microsoft commands, the success of Azure will lend great momentum to creating the cloud computing ecosystem.
What’s good news for partners is that with the stakes running so high Microsoft has no alternative but to rely on the partner ecosystem more than ever. With the battle-lines drawn on multiple fronts, the company needs an army of partners to take on multiple competitors. |