Garden of Good and Evil

[Wildbilly]

The Collapse Of Microsoft's Monopoly

http://us.mg6.mail.yahoo.com/neo/launch?.rand=1900064588&action=showLetter&umid=2_0_0_1_473845_AE1K2kIAAGWXUILBzwhxGj2plF8&box=Inbox

As recently as eight years ago, Microsoft had a monopoly on the internet connected computers of the world. Today, not so much.

This chart comes from Goldman Sachs, and it shows Microsoft losing its market dominance of computing devices as smartphones and tablets have come into the market.

It's cliched at this point to say Microsoft whiffed on mobile, but a chart like this really puts into context. Microsoft went from 95% of the internet-connected market to 20% in an eight year span. It's going to get better thanks to Windows Phone and Windows 8, says Goldman, but only just barely.

Microsoft's inability to make a smartphone people really love could be a deadly mistake. As people became comfortable with the iPhone, they became open to the idea of the iPad. As the iPad takes off, it is slowing PC sales. As people become comfortable with the iPad, they're going to be more inclined to buy a Mac to stay in Apple's ecosystem.

But what about corporations, you might say. Well, Goldman says that in 2000, 60% of computing purchases were from corporations. Today, it's only 15%. That means Microsoft has to fight for consumer sales, which is not its strength.