Microsoft

Microsoft Corp. and Facebook Inc. have agreed to jointly build a subsea cable across the Atlantic Ocean to meet growing demand for high-speed cloud and online services. 

The construction of the new “MAREA” cable will begin in August and it is expected to be completed in October 2017, the companies said in a statement on Thursday.

The 6,600 kilometer cable, the first to connect the United States with southern Europe, will be operated and managed by Telefonica SA’s telecoms infrastructure unit Telxius. 

The cable is initially designed to carry 160 terabits of data per second, the companies said.

The move comes nearly two years after Google Inc., which is now Alphabet Inc., agreed with five Asian companies to invest about $300 million to develop and operate a trans-Pacific cable network connecting the United States to Japan. 

(Reporting by Kshitiz Goliya in Bengaluru; Editing by Kirti Pandey)

Strategic Evaluation

The purpose of this paper is to develop strategic planning on different levels to set and maintain goals for Microsoft Corporation. Business, corporate, and global level strategies will be developing to help achieve the goals of growing the corporation to the next level. The strategic planning for Microsoft Corporation will determine what direction the company should proceed to take for long-term achievements.

Potential Business Level Strategies for Microsoft

Business-level strategy is used to obtain a customer base and sell a product at a profit (Garcia, 2018, para 1). The business level strategy use can help Microsoft focus on ways of obtaining and satisfying their consumers, how they offer their products and services to meet the needs of the market their products are based in and increasing profits. Microsoft Corporation should concentrate on putting themselves in a position where they are staying competitive and up to date on market trends and technology changes.

The two potential business level strategies that Microsoft Corporation should converge on is cost leadership and differentiation. Since the technology field is very competitive and there are many businesses that are innovating products that rival Microsoft cost leadership should take part in winning over customers through aggressive pricing and making profits through high efficiency.

Cost leadership is one strategy where a company is the most competitively priced product on the market, meaning it is the cheapest. Microsoft can use cost leadership strategy to discover new customers. Advertising some of its products at a cheaper price will demonstrate to consumers that they could save money, avoid the hassle of other cheaper products that do not work properly, and are not compatible with their devices.

This is a business level strategy that put Microsoft products in the consumer hands and build a relationship where the consumers will come back to Microsoft because they will eventually be in the market for newer devices to purchase that are priced higher. Differentiation of Microsoft products in a way of uniqueness can give them the edge to set their prices on a higher scale. Apple Inc. seems to have no problem doing this with their iPhones. The technology industry is competitive, so price differentiation can help Microsoft stand out in the demographic target area of technology.

Being the least expensive or the most expensive will rely on the quality and personal experience for Microsoft clients. The Microsoft Office Suite software and Windows programs separate Microsoft from its competitors by putting definite focus on what kind of audience they are seeking. Convenience and expertise are differentiated business level strategies that can increase customer traffic and establish Microsoft Corporation a place in the technology industry and make their products more attractive (Joseph, 2018).

Microsoft Potential Corporate Level Strategies

Corporate level strategies in Microsoft Corporation expresses the scope of a company’s activities and the way a company’s business processes support company goals (Nordmeyer, 2017). Corporate level strategy for Microsoft center on acquiring a business mix of products that will help the company succeed. At the corporate level strategy Microsoft Corporation should be able to share resources without the necessity to duplicate. A strategic corporate strategy that can allow Microsoft to have more control of the availability and pricing of their products is to buy out a supplier (Garcia, 2018). This is based on vertical integration, which will provide the corporation with better opportunities to differentiate and have suitable control over their products that are going in and out of production.

Potential Global Strategies for Microsoft

Global strategy consists of being able to distinguish a company’s resources, capabilities and current international position (Lynch, 2014). Microsoft can use global strategies to consider the world as one big market and source for its products and services. Microsoft potential of using global strategies is to increase their brand to be recognized throughout the world and lower labor and input costs deciding what manufacture to select from that have low labor costs.

Microsoft Corporation can use global standardization strategy to promote their products internationally. Global standardization in marketing is a standardized marketing approach that can be used internationally. This type of marketing strategy conforms to work across different cultures and countries to promote a product (Vogt, 2018, para 2). Microsoft can develop an integrated marketing outline that can be effective across different time zones that will save the company time and money (Vogt, 2018).

Recommendation and Rationale

After proactively evaluating different strategies for Microsoft to implement in their company. It is important to ensure that the implementation strategy fit the corporation. To confirm effectiveness there need to be an efficient plan to accurately execute the strategy. The recommendation for Microsoft is to implement the subscription model. The subscription model offers consumers a monthly fee to use a service provided by a company. Microsoft can benefit more from this service because subscription models ensure you’re continuously running the most updated version of the software possible, and not just the most updated version of old software.

Therefore, Microsoft is even moving towards selling businesses Windows as a subscription (Wilson, 2018, para 4). The best thing about using subscription model in a business is that Microsoft 365 business can be assess anywhere in the world and give businesses the opportunity to connect all devices. Remarketing is another strategy that Microsoft can use to advertise their business. Remarketing is a concept where consumers visit a website, leave it and goes to a different website where the previous ad will be display on the new page. This type of tracking tool can amass consumer data for Microsoft and help develop targeted brand marketing (Mimouni, 2017).

Remarketing gives businesses the opportunity of using specific and tailored ads and offers relating to their experience on the website to lure back indecisive customers. Hence, in simple terms, remarketing gives businesses another chance to close the deal (Mimouni, 2017, para 11). This type of marketing can help Microsoft Corporation connect with the right target audience to purchase their products and services.

Conclusion

Microsoft should be aware on how to tailor and adapt their products and services through strategies that do not ignore cultural context. When Microsoft chooses to market itself internationally, it faces a unique set of challenges. While the company wants to maintain a consistent image across different markets, it must also consider the cultural context into which its marketing material is entering (Wolfe, 2018, para 1). By using the different potential strategies within the corporation of Microsoft they could evaluate the strategies before implementation and make amendments and evaluate again to prevent inaccuracies in the future.

An environmental scanning process consists of an organization gathering information about the industry in which it operates, including information about the economy, government, laws and demographic factors such as population size, distribution and other factors. The organization should focus on its competitors. The company should examine the research for trends, opportunities and threats that might impact its business. An internal scan of the organization is needed to examine the organizations strengths and weaknesses.

An organization should gather information from the community it conducts business and interview the leaders of the groups or use surveys. An external scan of the organization is the opportunities and threats that are outside the organization. When conducting an environmental scan, a variety of methods should be used to collect data, including publications, focus groups, leaders inside and outside the organization and the media. After the data is collected, the final step is to analyze the data and identify changes that can be made using a SWOT analysis, resource–based view, and the VRIO framework.

According to the reading, the VRIO framework helps organizations determine if a resource adds value or defend against threats (Pearce & Robinson, 2013). If the answer is yes, then a resource is considered valuable. Organizations need to constantly monitor the value of the resources because changes in internal or external conditions can make them less valuable or useless. Resources that can only be acquired by an organization are considered rare. Imitation can occur in two ways either through duplicating or substituting the resource. An organization that has valuable, rare and costly to imitate resources can achieve a competitive advantage.

An organization needs to manage its systems, processes, policies, organizational structure and stakeholders to be able to fully realize the potential of its valuable, rare and costly to imitate resources and its intangible assets. Microsoft’s ability to manage their people effectively is a source of both differentiation and cost advantages. Microsoft uses data about its employees to manage them. This capability allows making correct (data based) decisions about which employees to offer employment and the best way to use his or her skills.

As a result, Microsoft is able to hire innovative employees that are also very productive. Besides being valuable, it is also a rare capability because no other company uses data based employee management this often. It is costly to imitate, at least, in the near future. Microsoft has trained HR managers that know how to use the data and manage employees. It also has the needed IT skills to collect and manage the data about its employees. According to the reading, RBV is an approach to achieving a competitive advantage(Pearce & Robinson, 2013).

In other words, organizations should look inside its departments to find the sources of competitive advantage instead of looking at the competitive environment because its easier to exploit external opportunities using existing resources in a new way rather than trying to acquire new skills for each different opportunity. An organization can achieve an edge over its competitors through external changes when its capable to respond faster than other organizations. An organization can achieve cost or differentiation advantages when it develops VRIO resources.

According to the reading, the external environment consists of political, economic, socio-cultural, barriers to entry,economies of scale, and technological factors(Pearce & Robinson, 2013). When these factors change many opportunities arise that can be exploited by an organization to achieve an edge over its competitors. An advantage can also be realized when an organization is the first one to exploit the external change. Otherwise, if an organization is slow in its capitalizing on changes it may never benefit from the opportunities. Microsoft’s is the world’s #1 software company and its corporate office is located in the US.

The current CEO is Steve Ballmer, there are managers for its different departments, board members, partners or stakeholders and it has 94,000 employees. In 2012, Microsoft’s revenue was 73 billion, profits close to 17 billion. Microsoft competitors are Apple, Google and many others. Other products include enterprise applications like Microsoft Dynamics, server and storage software, video game consoles (Xbox), and digital music players (Zune). It also makes software for mobile phones. Based on a SWOT analysis, resource–based view, and the VRIO framework,

Microsoft’s strengths are brand loyalty, brand reputation, easy to use software, strong distribution channels and the acquisition of Skype and other organizations. Microsoft has been the leading software provider, which resulted in more than 90% market share. Brand reputation leads to higher sales and greater market share. Microsoft products are easy to use. Microsoft works with all the major computer hardware manufacturers. For example, Lenovo, Dell, Toshiba and Samsung and major computer retailers to make sure computers would be sold with already pre-installed Windows software.

With nearly 300 million users, Skype is a significant boost to Microsoft’s strategy and online advertising. Microsoft’s weaknesses are poor acquisitions and investments, dependence on hardware manufacturers, criticism over security flaws, mature PC markets and they are slow to innovate. Microsoft’s acquisitions are not successful. Microsoft does not produce its own hardware and depends on computer hardware manufacturers to develop products that run Windows OS. If cheap and popular alternative OS would appear, hardware manufacturers may simple choose the alternative and Microsoft could do little to change the situation.

Windows OS, is criticized for being so weak against various viruses attacks. The market for these products has matured and Microsoft will find it harder to grow revenues in these sectors. Microsoft has resources to enter new markets with innovative products but constantly failed to do so. It had an opportunity to be the first player in online advertising but missed the opportunity. It’s mobile OS was also too late, while Google and Apple captured the market share. The opportunities for Microsoft are cloud services, mobile advertising and growth through acquisitions.

Microsoft could expand its range of cloud services and software as the demand for cloud-based services is expanding. Microsoft does offer Office 365 and many organizations use this platform. Mobile advertising markets are expected to grow over the next few years and Microsoft has a great opportunity to tap into these markets with its mobile OS. Smartphones and tablets markets will grow over the next few years and Microsoft could exploit this opportunity by introducing more of its own tablets. Microsoft could start acquiring new startups that would bring new technology, skills and competences to the business.

The threats facing Microsoft are Intense competition in software products, Changing consumer needs and habits, Open source projects and potential lawsuits. Microsoft is under pressure to introduce successful OS both in PC and mobile markets as such competitors like Google and Apple have already established positions. Customers shift from buying laptops and standalone PCs to buying smartphones and tablets, the markets, where Microsoft has only a modest market share and may never establish itself. Many new open source projects are coming to the market and some of them became quite successful, such as new Linux OS and Open Source Office.

Open source projects are free and so they can become an alternative to expensive Microsoft’s products and its complicated licensing agreements. Microsoft has already been sued and lawsuits are expensive as they require time and money. Recently, an article in the Seattle Times called “Microsoft sells Issaquah Highlands property” written by Keith Ervin, a staff reporter mentioned that Microsoft sold 63 acre in Issaquah , Washington because it no longer had requirements for office developments(Seattle Times. com). This is a cost saving move.

Microsoft’s strategic plan needs to include flexibility while considering the needs and outcomes for its employees, stakeholders and the communities it serves. The vision, mission and value statements should be validated by customers, employees and other stakeholders during an interview and survey process. The external and internal environmental factors should be evaluated by the SWOT analysis, resource–based view, the VRIO framework because conducting a SWOT analysis alone has limitations and the data can prove inaccurate.

The two most prominent sources of competitive advantage can be found in the business’s cost structure and its ability to differentiate the business from competitors. Businesses that create competitive advantages from one or both of these sources usually experience above-average profitability within their industry and avoid tunnel vision. Businesses that lack a cost or differentiation advantage usually experience average or below-average profitability because the strategist has tunnel vision. Implementing and monitoring these strategies will be key for Microsoft to remain a dominant player in the future.

As you are well aware, today’s generation is vastly superior in receiving this vital message. It is my goal to provide an educational tool that is formulated using powerful visual imagery alongside an easy to understand explanation. To borrow the cliche’, “Pictures speak a thousand words”, I have found that children are highly receptive to imagery. Combining persuasive imagery with accurate documentation will prove to be very effective. I plan to produce several Computer based knowledge books specifically for children.

This is going to be the 1st edition, so with this in mind I plan on starting from ground zero and working forward. I would like to include the following screen shots associated with Windows® XP. This screen shot will provide an explanation for what each icon stands represents, the start button location, and where simple programs are located.  I am a father myself, and I plan to include into the manual many of the exercises that I have implemented into my child’s education that have proven to be highly successful.

Finally, I’m hoping to include in the manual the screen shot as shown below to provide simple user skills in Microsoft® Paint. Once again I would like to thank you for taking some time out of your busy day to read this letter. Microsoft is a wonderful company that continues to provide the world with outstanding resources enabling prosperity on many levels. I hope to one day say that I played a very small part in this powerful commitment!

In 2001, Apple was virtually on the brink of extinction; its share of the PC market was still in a downward spiral, and the stock was selling for cash on hand—about $11 per share. Today, however, due largely to the gigantic success of the iPod digital music device, Apple is “the envy of the tech world, and the stock is trading at its highest level in four years.” (Walberg 2004 p. 1). Unfortunately, Apple’s computer shares continue to fall, making more sense to some to buy an iPod than to buy Apple stock. Merrill Lynch analyst Steven Milunovich believes that the success of the iPod can’t help but translate into somewhat higher Mac sales, allowing Apple to “gain small increments of PC share…Even half a point of market share is about $1 billion in sales.” (Fried 2004 p. 3).

Apple has a very exclusive history and background, and for the majority of its two decades, it has “led the desktop computer industry in introducing new technology, features, and designs later adopted in a wider market. But its reluctance to license its operating system to other manufacturers enabled Microsoft to achieve near-ubiquity by licensing its rival Windows software to hardware makers across the industry, such as Dell, HP, and Sony—reducing Mac’s market share to a single digit by the mid-1990s.” (Borland 2004 p. 2). The iPod represents one of the most significant exceptions to the “Apple-only mantra.” (Borland 2004 p. 2). First Apple released an iPod that could actually be used with Windows computers, then released the iTunes jukebox software and song store for Windows. Apple is even creating tools that will allow HP programmers to “tweak” the iTunes music software to enable them to work with features of Microsoft’s Media Center, an action that has caused great irritation to Microsoft, it allows Microsoft users to access Apple’s iTunes music store from windows applications. (Borland 2004 p. 3).

So what exactly are the reasons for the phenomenal success of the Apple iPod? Industry experts feel that the number one reason iPod is such a huge success is that the music industry is heavily backing the iPod. For those who may have missed it, iTunes is a solid supporter of the iPod. Consumers routinely go to iTunes to download literally millions of songs from virtually every known artist for a reasonable price of 99 cents per tune. (Walberg 2004 p. 2). This had made iTunes, just like the iPod, the world’s leading source of online music.

The second reason Apple’s iPod has had such success is that management has built “an entire suite of add-ons designed solely for the iPod. These add-ons bring higher profit margins than the core product, and they help to establish brand loyalty.” (Walberg 2004 p. 3). The general idea behind add-ons is that once a consumer invests in headphones, speakers, carrying cases, and other such items, they are much more reluctant to switch to a competing, non-compatible product. The add-ons for the iPod are literally booming, and this market is worth some $2 billion dollars all by itself. New iPod owners spend roughly $150 each on add-ons. “They buy things such as rubbery cases, fancy stereo connectors, iPod-specific speaker systems, and alarm clocks, white headphones, and even iPod-themed baby clothing. Some designer iPod cases cost as much as the iPod itself…CEO Steve Jobs recently said that there are more than 1,000 accessories for the iPod.” (Kahney 2006 p. 4). The add-on idea sure seems to be working!

We have truly become an “iPod Nation.” Writing for Newsweek, Steve Levy notes that on nearly every block in New York City one can observe someone with white headphones on. Another person interviewed in London notes the same phenomenon. On college campuses, the numbers seem even higher—nearly two out of three students seem to be wearing the trademark earphones. (Levy 2005 p. 1). This particular consumer product has become something much more: “an icon, a pet, a status indicator, and an indispensable part of one’s life. To more than three million owners, iPods not only give constant access to their entire collection of songs and CD’s, but membership into an implicit society that’s transforming the way music will be consumed in the future.” (Levy 2005 p. 1).

To some, the iPod has become something akin to a cult. Consider that even the President of the United States and the Queen of England own iPods, making the iPod’s appeal pretty much universal. Since the player’s introduction in October 2001, over 30 million iPods have been sold, and “every three months Apple sells almost twice as many iPods as it did during the three months that came before.” (Kahney 2005 p. 1). In this particular market niche, Apple enjoys what Microsoft enjoys with its pc—domination of the market to the tune of 75 percent worldwide. In October of 2004, Apple announced that its profits for the prior quarter were a net of $106 million, compared to $44 million just twelve months before. (Apple 2004 p. 1).

The iPod’s phenomenal impact was one few could have foreseen. Back in the “old days” you had a stack of LP’s piled up in your room, but you only played the half-dozen or so at the front with any regularity. The iPod’s amazing storage capacity—the ability to hold literally tens of thousands of tracks—offers literally a lifetime worth of music in one small hand-held gadget. The iPod offers several ways to categorize and play your music as well. You can play your songs by year, by genre, by keywords, or you can merely shuffle and see what your iPod comes up with. (Kahney 2006 p. 4).

So just what are some of the more memorable marketing techniques of Apple when selling their iPod? Well, on August 3, 2006, Apple announced it would be teaming up with Ford Motor Company, General Motors, and Mazda to “deliver seamless iPod integration across the majority of their brands and models, making it easy for iPod users to enjoy and control their iPod’s high-quality sound through their car’s stereo system.” (Cupertino 2006 p. 1). Over 70 percent of the 2007 model US automobiles will offer iPod integration—truly staggering numbers. Beyond integration into vehicles, Apple intends to team up with Air France, Continental, Delta, Emirates, KLM, and United Airlines in their quest to offer passengers iPod seat connections, as well as iPod seat connections which would allow passengers to charge their iPods during flights. (Cupertino 2006 p. 2). A further innovation in marketing strategies has the Apple company teaming up with upscale hotels to offer in-room iPods, loaded with as many as 2,000 songs each. In Dream, a Manhattan four-star hotel, the music players come with special cables that plug into the Bose speakers in each room. Of course, the Crescent, located in Beverly Hills, noted they had to ad an antitheft measure to the iPods by encasing them in Lucite and anchoring them to the desks in each room, as well as having each customer sign a contract agreement that requires the return of the iPod or having their credit cards billed. (Cupertino 2006 p. 3). Apparently an in-room iPod has become something akin to mint on the pillow; albeit a rather upscale expensive mint.

Further marketing strategies include the iPod being integrated into the design of the BMW and the Mini, clothing, most notably Levis jeans, and furniture. Some Levis jeans come specially equipped with a holder in the pocket made especially for the user’s iPod to nestle in. Not that it was especially needed, but iPod received a shot in the arm when they were sent down tubes to the trapped Beaconsfield miners. In addition to President Bush and Queen Elizabeth, Tony Blair and the Pope own iPods, and it has been stated that MP Jackie Kelley “raised eyebrows by listening to one in Parliament.” (Dubecki 2006 p. 1).

As stated above, one of the reasons for the iPod’s phenomenal success has to do with iTunes. Nevertheless, backing away from their “when hell freezes over,” stance, in November 2003, Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced Apple’s plans to sell tunes to Windows users. During the year after that, Apple more than doubled the number of iPods it was selling, and while “The Mac maker won’t say how many of its songs or players are going to Windows users…it’s reasonable to think it’s a pretty good chunk, given the relative prevalence of PC’s (90-plus percent of the market, while Mac holds less than 5 percent.)” (Fried 2004 p. 1). Consider that more than 1.5 billion—yes, that’s billion—songs have been downloaded worldwide from iTunes, with about 1.5 million per month from Australia alone. (Dubecki 2006 p. 2).

The success of iTunes has been just as phenomenal as the sale of the iPod. iTunes holds a 70 percent share of the online downloadable music, with Napster coming in at only 11 percent, the next closest competitor. In 2004, approximately 1.3 million people per month were downloading songs from a legitimate online source. (Fried 2004 p. 3). The iTunes music store carries singles and albums and offers the albums and songs with explicit lyrics, many of which are not being sold at certain chains. Even the racy videos which are deemed unacceptable for showing on MTV can be seen at the iTunes Music Store.

What exactly do most users do with their beloved iPods? Of course, they listen to music—that’s a given. But they also store notes, email, digital photos, videos and even listen to the radio on their iPods. It is only the high-end iPods that allow the user to do more than listen to music, as the video-capable iPods have been around for just over a year. According to some statistics, video comprises just over 2% of the total amount of time spent with one’s iPod, and music, the solid standby, comprises the vast majority. (Mincy 2006 p. 1).

Last year at this same time, Richard Menta wrote that Holiday buyers, in the amount of 30%, were replacing older iPods. Statistics such as this show that when customers come back again and again, they are satisfied, and we all know that a satisfied customer is the single greatest asset for any business. (Menta 2005 p. 1). These repeat customers are either replacing a beloved, yet worn out iPod, or are simply adding another iPod to their collection. A year ago, Apple iPod had garnered 75.7% of the MP3 player purchased, with Sandisk following with a 4.7%, Hewlett Packard in third place with 2.8%, Iriver with 2.6%, and Creative Labs taking a dismal fifth place with a 2.3 % share of the market. It was estimated that some ten million iPods were sold last Christmas season—what does Christmas 2006 hold for the iPod? (Menta 2005 p. 2).

Well, that happens to be the 64 million dollar question of the season as Microsoft’s Zune has made its arrival onto the MP3 scene. Announced on September 17th of this year, Microsoft proudly introduced its own 30 GB Zune music player. The Zune’s major advantage over the solid-selling iPod lies in its wireless connectivity abilities. In its initial press release, Microsoft made this statement:

“Wireless Zune to Zune sharing lets consumers spontaneously share full-length sample tracks of select songs, homemade recordings, playlists or pictures with friends between Zune devices. Listen to the full track of any song you receive up to three times over three days. If you like a song you hear and want to buy it, you can flag it right on your device and easily purchase it from the Zune Marketplace.” (Howe 2006 p. 1)

Although this statement happens to be a far cry from the previous rumors of unlimited WIFI sharing, it will be interesting to see consumer reactions to this feature as well as seeing just how the Zune affects holiday sales of Apple’s iPod. (Howe 2006 p. 1). Only time will tell what portion of the market Zune will capture this Christmas season, but Apple execs hardly seem worried. For a company that has dominated the market since 2001, Microsoft will have to do something pretty spectacular in order to make even the slightest dent in the old faithful iPod.

Reference Pages:

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Over the past few years, many millionaires have been created due to the economical explosion of the stock market. The market isn’t just growing, as it did in the mid to late seventies; but it is on steroids, and is growing like never before. Backed by the relentless, yet sometimes spasmodic, growth of the NASDAQ Composite, Wall Street’s impact on the future cannot be denied. For as long as the market has been in existence, drastic changes such as these have never taken place. What awesome power could have produced so much money in so little time?

What colossal force could have caused the United States’ economy to flourish?

The answer lies in one, simple, recently coined phrase: the tech stock. The stock market has been around since people traded silver for ownership of cargo 200 years ago, yet many people don”t know how it works, or where their money goes when they purchase a stock; they simply think “buy low, sell high. ” Although this is a good basic investment plan, it is imperative that one knows where his money is headed when he buys a thousand dollars worth of a specific stock.

When one purchases a stock, they are actually purchasing part of a company (Brian 1). The reason one would do this is because he wants part of the profits of the company. If one purchases 1% of a company, he will receive 1% of the income, to put it in a simplified manner. The money the company gains from selling their stock is placed back into the company. This way, the company can grow, and produce more profits for the stockholders. The company’s value is represented by the stock price on the stock exchange (Brian 2).

Over time, a method of judging a stock’s performance, called the “profit to earning ratio” was created. P/E is shorthand for the ratio of a company’s share price to its per-share earnings. For example, a P/E ratio of 10 means that the company has $1 of annual, per-share earnings for every $10 in share price (Green 1). ” This ratio basically represents how much money the investor is putting in per dollar earned. This was generally a good thing to look at when choosing a stock to invest in, but the P/E ratio can be misleading, especially in the few tech stocks that have tremendous stock prices, yet have little net profit.

No one knows exactly when the tech stock came about, but it seems like it came all at once. The phrase “tech stock” simply refers to all stocks that deal with any form of technology related, directly or indirectly, to the computer or computer chips. A good portion of the popular tech stocks today deal with the Internet (Brian 4). One reason for this is the easy access by millions of people worldwide. Small companies are able to reach out to the whole globe with just a few bucks, and thus become prosperous over a short amount of time.

Just a few of the most popular tech stock corporations include: Microsoft, Apple, TI, Amazon, Yahoo, and Dell. Companies such as Microsoft, Apple and Dell are companies that handle computers directly, and have been around for a long time (NASDAQ 5) TI creates many semiconductors that are found in most all products that have computer chips in them. Amazon and Yahoo are both directly related to the Internet. These companies are popular due to their originality and business management.

However, popularity hardly gains profit, so why is it that Yahoo can make so much money on the stock market?

Surprisingly and ironically enough, it is precisely popularity that causes its gains. Because of the popularity, people continue to purchase Yahoo’s stock. Although the company isn”t making direct profit, it certainly makes a lot of money from the stock purchases, so the company actually makes the money off of the stock market (Brian 5). Rare, indeed, to see this at such an extreme. With all of this success must come organization, and thus is the role of the NASDAQ Composite. Although NASDAQ came about long before the rise of tech stocks, it now represents the growth that they portray.

This is mostly due to the large volume of blue chip Internet stocks that have joined the Composite, as well as the small technical companies that are looking for a big break. Duarte summarizes the whole NASDAQ universe in once sentence; “The NASDAQ is fueled by blue chip stocks and small caps which explode into high-earnings (Technology 1). ” And explode it did. In just over one year, “The Index gained 1876. 62 points and 85. 59 percent for the year. The NASDAQ Composite Index also eclipsed the 3000 and 4000 point milestones during the last quarter of 1999” (Nasdaq 1).

This far surpasses the Dow Jones Industrial, which only gained 25. 22% over the 1999-2000 year. “The market’s best index performers were the computer, telecommunications, and biotechnology up 105. 03 percent, 102. 71 percent and 101. 64 percent respectively” (Nasdaq 2). This obviously displays a growing interest in the tech stock, which has caused this major uprising to occur. One may wonder how the Dow Jones Industrial got off so bad, because, after all, it represents our nations largest companies. For a long time, the Dow Jones Industrial has represented the stock market as a whole, but times change.

One cause of this change is the high interest rates that affect the corporate stocks such as Wal-Mart and ExxonMobil. These stocks reduce in price as a result of this, and therefore, the Dow average reflects the decrease. The Dow Jones blue chips remain stable, but haven’t increased dramatically, and this isn’t sufficient to make up for the losses of the stocks that tanked, such as banking stocks, financial stocks, and oil marketing stocks (Duarte, Technology 1). One thing that everyone wonders is “Is the gold rush over? ” The answer is no, not as of 3-2-00, anyway.

However, all good things must come to an end; the question is when. Milton Friedman and Alan Greenp are both major authorities in Wall Street, and when they speak, the world of investors listens. The one bad thing is this, they usually never agree. In late 1999, Friedman “suggested the current market looks similar to the pre-crash markets in the U. S. in 1929 and the pre-crash market in Japan in 1989. ” Soon after, “Greenp made equally scary remarks about the stock market and the wealth effect” (Duarte, Greenp 1).

These are remarkable authorities in the world of investing, but these notes don’t specifically talk about the tech stock falling. Some people believe that the so-called “crash” that they spoke of has already happened at the turn of the millennium, when both the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq fell at record-breaking volumes. This proved that the NASDAQ wasn”t invincible with its precious tech stocks, but it also started an ugly observation that whatever the Dow does, the NASDAQ does at a more flamboyant rate (Jennings 1).

This simply means that if the Dow goes up a little, the NASDAQ goes up a lot. When the Dow drops a little, the NASDAQ drops a lot (Fool 9). However, there’s no concrete evidence to prove this theory that they are connected somehow. January 4th, 2000; a sigh of relief sweeps the world as nothing too terribly devastating happens on the turn of the millennium. However, this sigh turns quickly into a gasp; at least for those watching the stock market. The Dow Jones plummets nearly 360 points, and NASDAQ plummets nearly 230 points in just one trading day.

The next two days, NASDAQ continues to fall another 200 points, resulting in nearly a 8% drop in just three days. It recovers from this drop in only about two days, only to drop back into a lower pit in three more days. Those who held onto their pocketbooks for this roller coaster ride found a light at the end of the tunnel, and by the end of February, the Composite had climbed to the 4600 mark, 600 points higher than at the beginning of the year (Fool 1). Many other times in the first quarter of 2000 NASDAQ took a hefty fall, but it always regrouped and rallied to surpass it is original price.

Another thing to remember is that NASDAQ isn”t made entirely of tech stock blue chips such as Dell and Amazon (Nasdaq 1). It is also made up of small caps that fail, large caps that fail, and those penny stocks that people get so worked up about… that also fail; so it is hard to judge how well tech stocks are actually doing by looking directly at the NASDAQ Composite or P/E ratios. Tech stocks are still a relatively new thing for the market, and investors haven”t yet predicted their fate.

However, they are still intensely popular, and as long as they are popular, people will keep buying; and, of course, if people buy them, they will raise in value. Technology is not going away any time soon, there”s no doubt about that; the future is now. Computers rule our lifestyle, making everything faster, easier, cheaper, more efficient; and these tech stocks represent our new economy based on this new efficient system. Even though they may not present themselves as strongly as they once did, tech stocks are definitely here to stay.

Their products can last years like their laptops for example, but if you have a windows based laptop you need to replace it very year in order to keep up with technology. When talking about what to compare with these two companies I am going to focus on the logo, stocks, and their operating systems. Apple is a more consumer-based product, while Microsoft tends to reach out more towards businesses. Apple’s logo is more classic and just a picture of an apple with a bite out of the apple. While Microsoft’s is just the name Microsoft with four colored squares that look like a window.

Microsoft looks like a combination of Google and Apple’s design elements. Microsoft tries to use design elements from multiple companies in order to help them with the public. No more logo in technology is more known than Apple’s. Microsoft has tried many times to rebind themselves. According to Matt Burns, Microsoft’s logo is “simply me”, and I couldn’t agree more (Burns, 2012, Para. 3). Microsoft has regained its position as the number 2 most valuable US company right behind Number 1 Apple. Apple is a maker of closed and proprietary Technology products.

Apple has earned a commanding market value of 669 billion in comparison to Microsoft’s 408 billion. Apple develops its in secret and unveils them to the public with presentations shown to people all over the world. Apple and Microsoft are in a dead heat this year with shares of Apple rising 21. 5% and Microsoft rising at 20. 3%. “During the intermediate term, it’s a close battle, too. Shares of Apple are up 69. 8% over the past three years, just marginally ahead of the 63. 6% rise by Microsoft. (Karate, 2014, p. ) The edge goes to Apple; over the last five years Apple is up 314% compared to Microsoft 91 % gain. Contrary to popular belief prior to the phone 6 coming out, Microsoft outsold Apple on cellophanes. The trouble for Microsoft though is only 5. 8 million out of 36 million was smartness. Apple SO X and Microsoft Windows are two of the most used operating systems. When is comes to the operating systems Apple has more software bundled with their operating system than Microsoft. There are more titles available on the Windows platform. SO X has more offerings in music and video production.

You can run windows non Mac, but you can’t run SO X on windows. So you have the best of both worlds on an Apple computer. When it comes to security of the operating system a vicious program can change the system on windows without you even knowing it. When it comes to Apple, SO X added “sandbagging to improve protection against mallard and Trojan. ” (“Apple vs.. Microsoft,” 2014, Para. 6) When it comes to viruses you have to buy additional software to protect it on a Microsoft operating system, but with Apple it comes built into their operating system.

When you want to upgrade your operating system it is more affordable with Apple. If you wanted the newest operating system with Apple it would be free if you had the prior operating system, and with Microsoft it would cost 1 19. 99 for just the upgrade version. With Apple you can just install it from the App store, but with Microsoft you would have to go to a tore to purchase it. While SO X has the benefit off faster startup and higher performance, the graphics applications run faster on Windows.

The question of what company is better in my opinion is Apple. All the hardware and software just works well together. Apple offers an absolutely flawless integration of hardware and software. Only with Apple do you get a system built by the same group who makes the operating system, the applications and the computer. The Apple operating system and its hardware make for a far more reliable, less troublesome environment than Windows. Microsoft just does not have a consistent, coherent and unified brand like Apple clearly does.