SEATTLE (Reuters) – Washington voters knocked down plans for a state income tax on the wealthy intended to fund education and health spending, ending a fight pitting Bill Gates against other Seattle tech billionaires, and signaling that Americans’ appetite for progressive taxes is low.

The plan devised by the father of the Microsoft Corp co-founder to slap a 5 percent tax on earnings over $200,000 — Initiative Measure 1098 — was rejected by 65 percent of voters, with almost two-thirds of precincts reported.

SEATTLE (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp beat Wall Street’s expectations with a 51 percent jump in quarterly profit, as higher sales of its flagship Windows and Office software knocked down fears Apple Inc’s iPad would take a bite out of its main business.

Its shares, down 14 percent this year, rose 3 percent in after-hours trading. Despite doubling sales and profit in the last eight years, Microsoft’s stock has largely languished at the same level, as investors worry about its ability to counter new rivals such as Google Inc or adapt to new ways of computing.

SEATTLE (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp beat Wall Street expectations with a 51 percent jump in quarterly profit, as higher sales of its flagship Windows and Office software knocked down fears Apple’s iPad would take a bite out its main business.

Its shares, down 14 percent so far this year, rose 3 percent in after-hours trading. Despite doubling its sales and profit in the last eight years, Microsoft’s stock has largely remained at the same level, as investors worry about its ability to dominate new markets or adapt to new ways of computing.

SEATTLE (Reuters) – Every July, Microsoft Corp invites a sizable Wall Street crowd to its leafy, low-rise campus outside Seattle. Chief Executive Steve Ballmer and his top managers take a half-day to explain where the world’s biggest software company is going, to a generally friendly audience.

This year things didn’t go quite according to plan.

Ballmer, CEO since 2000, talked excitedly of Windows 7, its new Bing search engine, new Phone software and the Xbox game system. But he was skimpy with details of how Microsoft would counter Apple’s hugely popular iPad, a question that has been vexing investors.

SEATTLE (Reuters) – Every July, Microsoft Corp invites a sizable Wall Street crowd to its leafy, low-rise campus outside Seattle. Chief Executive Steve Ballmer and his top managers take a half-day to explain where the world’s biggest software company is going, to a generally friendly audience.

This year things didn’t go quite according to plan.

Ballmer, CEO since 2000, talked excitedly of Windows 7, its new Bing search engine, new Phone software and the Xbox game system. But he was skimpy with details of how Microsoft would counter Apple’s hugely popular iPad, a question that has been vexing investors.

SEATTLE, Oct 26 (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is
expected to report a big jump in earnings on Thursday, helped
by the newest versions of its lucrative Office software and the
blockbuster Halo game; but short- and long-term issues with its
core Windows franchise nag at investors.

The world’s largest software company has sold a
record-breaking 240 million Windows 7 operating system licenses
in the year since launch. But lower-than-expected personal
computer sales are restricting growth, and some worry that its
flagship product is under threat from Apple Inc’s (AAPL.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) iPad
and a longer-term shift to mobile computing.

SEATTLE (Reuters) – Ray Ozzie, Microsoft Corp’s departing software chief, has asked the company to move on from its roots as a computer-oriented company to imagine a ‘post-PC world’ that relies on wireless devices and the Internet to function.

The call from Ozzie, who announced his retirement from Microsoft last week, is meant to galvanize the company, which has fallen behind Apple Inc and Google Inc in the rapidly growing phone and tablet computer sector that many now see as key to the future.

SEATTLE (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp’s software chief Ray Ozzie, who took over the role from Bill Gates and pushed the company firmly in the direction of the Internet, will take an entertainment job at the company and then retire.

The move signals a new phase in Microsoft’s move into cloud computing, which Ozzie championed, and a new focus on entertainment at the world’s largest software company, where it has lost ground to Apple Inc and Google Inc.

SEATTLE/NEW YORK, Oct 11 (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp’s
(MSFT.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) last ditch attempt to make an impact on the
fast-growing market for multi-featured “smartphones” won
favorable early reviews on Monday, but success will hinge on
how well the phones are marketed against Apple Inc (AAPL.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and
Google Inc (GOOG.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), analysts said.

The world’s largest software company is hoping that a
lineup of nine new phones, from handset makers Samsung
Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), LG Electronics Inc (066570.KS: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz),
HTC Corp (2498.TW: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Dell Inc (DELL.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), will propel it back
into the mobile market, which many see as the key to the future
of computing.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp unveiled a new line of phones running its Windows software on Monday, as it attempts to pull back market share from Apple Inc’s iPhone and Google Inc’s Android system in the fast-growing market for multi-featured “smartphones.”

The world’s largest software company is hoping that the new phones, from handset makers Samsung, LG, HTC and Dell Inc, will propel it back into the mobile market, which many see as the key to the future of computing.