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The press gave Apple a pass for the iPhone 4 antenna and Maps?
You're kidding, right!?!
Business Approach Comparison Sony PS4 and Microsoft Xbox
- Thread starter BRiT
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You're kidding, right!?!So....is the problem a problem? Or is the problem not a problem unless the media cover the problems of other firms?
I dont understand your point. What's in there in the article are indeed real and very damaging business decisions
No they aren't real problems. They are mostly manufactured problems by the press. Press coverage that's negative prior to the release of a device or service filters into public perception because public perception is driven by what the public considers expert opinion. Over the last two years most tech "journalism" has really just been thinly veiled hit pieces on MS technology including surface, wp8 and Xbox one.
People with axes to grind and a platform. Even when MS tech is better than the competition there's always a "but"...
See this weeks engadget piece on Surface 2 for just another in a long list of prime examples.
Right, because there's obviously a secret cabal of journalists out to stick it to Microsoft.
I pointed out engadget. Read it for yourself. The verge has done the same. Extremetech is doing it through that shoddy ass article. And yes there is a not secret cabal who wish to do exactly that.
The public and press have loved hating Microsoft since the 80s. I don't think it is a victim thing as much as a loving the underdog and hating the bully thing, and compared to Microsoft, almost everyone else is an underdog. Somehow Apple has managed to keep the image of scrappy underdog despite being a larger company now, and more often being the bully in interactions.
When I worked at MS, the thing to do every quarter was sell stock right before the earnings report, and buy after. We announced record profits for something like 12 quarters in a row, and every single time the stock would drop after the earnings release.
They're not very secret!
Well MS used to push their weight around, which is well documented.
Even in video games, MS went to Sony like some Mafiosi going to shopkeepers offering 'protection' services that they pay for or else.
MS offered Windows CE and Direct X to Sony or else they would go into business against playstation.
Even in video games, MS went to Sony like some Mafiosi going to shopkeepers offering 'protection' services that they pay for or else.
MS offered Windows CE and Direct X to Sony or else they would go into business against playstation.
You'll have to present seriously strong evidence to back that up. Otherwise it's rumour-mongery and FUD and the sort of story that can generate negative opinion without any basis in fact. I've heard that MS entered into discussions with all the console players and were turned down, which is why they did their own thing, but this the first I've heard that MS threatened anyone.
Well of course the article is overblowing the issue and painting a doom and gloom...when it's not for MS. However it did raised an issue with sloppy work, as if no one is in control and everything is designed by community. Where is the strong conviction of their vision by the project leaders? Why are they so quickly backed down?
Yeah, yeah some of you might say the MS is listening to the customers, but you know what...customers know just jack sh*t. I have been in software development for a while now...and there's one thing I learnt. Customers don't really know what they want...but we off on a tangent.
Is this a new MS? Or just bunches of coincidences?
Yeah, yeah some of you might say the MS is listening to the customers, but you know what...customers know just jack sh*t. I have been in software development for a while now...and there's one thing I learnt. Customers don't really know what they want...but we off on a tangent.
Is this a new MS? Or just bunches of coincidences?
It's not about cabals, secret or otherwise, it's about selling news, as opposed to merely reporting it. These days the only thing sexy about MS is flubbing things up to one extent or another. As a company they always make money, own large swaths of everything going on with computers all over the world at this point ( kinda boring after decades). Lets face it there are so many things MS is juggling at any one time there is always something to complain about, it's a complex beast. Folks like Paul Thurrott who are as pro MS as you can reasonably be and he still has a long list of issues that MS is having problems with.
Another thing is that in general "reporters" and more importantly readers, like easy stories about narratives that fit into pre-existing ideas about how things are. Eventually stories will come out about a counter narrative because that would be more intriguing or notable and therefore more newsworthy. MS will get the benefits of that counter narrative after Ballmer leaves IMO. This is the same for all news really not just about MS.
Apple is a whole other story, lots of marketing and secrecy drive up the sexy and they do follow through, to one extent or another,as a profitable company with good products. Apple will be studied for years in business schools I am sure. Apples Fanboys will be studied as well, in labs and psychology schools
Another thing is that in general "reporters" and more importantly readers, like easy stories about narratives that fit into pre-existing ideas about how things are. Eventually stories will come out about a counter narrative because that would be more intriguing or notable and therefore more newsworthy. MS will get the benefits of that counter narrative after Ballmer leaves IMO. This is the same for all news really not just about MS.
Apple is a whole other story, lots of marketing and secrecy drive up the sexy and they do follow through, to one extent or another,as a profitable company with good products. Apple will be studied for years in business schools I am sure. Apples Fanboys will be studied as well, in labs and psychology schools
Zup very good account there. That's pretty much how a certain group of people see things. Its amazing that there are people who will on the one hand say no one is going after MS, then in the next breath say they deserve all the negative publicity they get and list x y and z reasons.
The problem is clearly visible in articles like the one mentioned in this thread because THERE ARE NO CLEAR linkages between anything that happened in the past and the organization and products that exist today. The comments below the article from former MS employees provide much more insight into MS' problems than anything highlighted by the article.
None of MS' current products are technologically bad or weak relative to their competition; in fact, they are very competitive. What has happened is that every device, service or acquisition is first looked at in a negative light, linked to past events that didn't work out well (zune, kin) then extrapolated into future failure, loss of market, being out of touch, in danger of dying, etc. This activity effectively kills all positive buzz about a product MONTHS before it even launches.
Then if the product does not sell well in the face such overwhelmingly negative press and video reviews (cnets review of the Lumia 1020 for example), then its looked at as ANOTHER failure and a pile on ensues. Very ingenious.
In the midst of that nonsense, if a counter narrative comes to light (eg Windows 8 has sold more than 150 licenses since last October) its caveated. "Oh well, we don't know how many is sold through","its only OEMs who HAVE to buy them...", "Sold out on xbox one means only means 1/3 of what sold out is on PS4" blah blah. Its so activist, pervasive and blatant, its a mystery as to how MS manages to make more money each quarter than the last.
I see all of this even as a former ipad, android phone, and current PS3 user.
The problem is clearly visible in articles like the one mentioned in this thread because THERE ARE NO CLEAR linkages between anything that happened in the past and the organization and products that exist today. The comments below the article from former MS employees provide much more insight into MS' problems than anything highlighted by the article.
None of MS' current products are technologically bad or weak relative to their competition; in fact, they are very competitive. What has happened is that every device, service or acquisition is first looked at in a negative light, linked to past events that didn't work out well (zune, kin) then extrapolated into future failure, loss of market, being out of touch, in danger of dying, etc. This activity effectively kills all positive buzz about a product MONTHS before it even launches.
Then if the product does not sell well in the face such overwhelmingly negative press and video reviews (cnets review of the Lumia 1020 for example), then its looked at as ANOTHER failure and a pile on ensues. Very ingenious.
In the midst of that nonsense, if a counter narrative comes to light (eg Windows 8 has sold more than 150 licenses since last October) its caveated. "Oh well, we don't know how many is sold through","its only OEMs who HAVE to buy them...", "Sold out on xbox one means only means 1/3 of what sold out is on PS4" blah blah. Its so activist, pervasive and blatant, its a mystery as to how MS manages to make more money each quarter than the last.
I see all of this even as a former ipad, android phone, and current PS3 user.
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All I can say is I am glad they did for the consumer's sake and probably for theirs.
In terms of management MS seems to be a bit crazy. All PR problems are essentially management problems since I have to believe everything is signed off in triplicate. I would think there is quite a bit of CYA ( cover you ass ) over at Redmond especially with their fondness for Stack Ranking ( http://www.slate.com/articles/busin...res_a_firsthand_account_of_the_company_s.html )
Highly productive workforce sure, lots of product development coming from all that productivity , not so much. Another big part of the problem/solution is the focus on Products and Services. For years MS has been doing great as an enterprise business but as a consumer business it has had few wins ( the Xbox and Windows 7 being examples ). Now I think that MS wants to bifurcate into Services ( mostly stuff for business but cloud stuff for consumers ) and Products ( mostly consumer ) ALL while still maintaining the Windows brand as the overarching umbrella under which everything is supposed to flourish and reinforce each other.
The problem comes from the fact that while their services will still do well on the business side they are trying to be like Apple on the product side and they just don't have that audience who is willing to put up with what Apple fans are willing to put up with. Keeping Windows as the Big Brand is kind of up in the air at this point. The brand and the company is like a supertanker looking to navigate some tricky straights.
Take the Xbox One and all the drama around it. It was very Apple like, forward thinking, leveraging lots elements to reinforce the brand while creating an environment to monetize the hell out of everything AND pushy. Apple is pushy, killing off legacy everything ( which MS can't do as of yet ), keeping things in silos, forcing folks to do things they might not want do, but that is Apple that is not Microsoft. Apple knows it's audience better that it's audience knows itself but MS has a much larger audience with all kinds of different demographics. They can't just start telling people "You will do this..." and get away with it like Apple apparently can. Personally I think most Apple fans like to be pushed around but some of that comes from the idolatry of Steve Jobs, ah another can of worms that.
Well I don't wanna get into the weeds here ( too late ) Suffice it say that MS will do fine since they do have lots of things in play and so as long their core business stays intact for now they still have time to maneuver around just not the kind of time they are used to having.
See, right there. If Microsoft changes course in response to customer feedback, it's "backing down". If Apple or Google change course in response to customer feedback, it's "good corporate governance" and "customer focused" and "listening to customers".
In defense of MS on the whole Windows 8 thing if MS hadn't tried to make a major shift towards touch/mobile computing they would be getting a ton of shit as well. Pushing hard for a one-platform solution was different than what Apple is doing and very ambitious, too much so it seems. I give them more credit for Windows 8 than XB1 shenanigans personally. At least you can get the classic shell back easily and for free with the right utilities ;-)
Maybe they are bad in other ways which consumers and the press does not appreciate?
Windows 8 have a lot of problems. The RT/metro stuff does not feel good on large screens and I think the whole dev environment is borked. They should have unified WP7/Metro/Tablet app store years ago. And all apps should work on any device.
