1975

Microsoft (then spelled “Micro Soft”) is founded by William “Bill” Gates, a 20-year-old Harvard dropout, and Paul Allen, his 22-year-old school chum. They begin selling its first product, a BASIC programming language interpreter.

1980

Microsoft signs an agreement to build the operating system that became known as MS-DOS for IBM’s new personal computer, which was launched in 1981. Microsoft was allowed to license the operating system to others, spawning an industry of “IBM-compatible” machines dependent on Microsoft software.

1983

February: Paul Allen, ill with Hodgkin’s disease, resigns from active management of the company but remains on the board of directors.

1986

March 13: Microsoft’s stock goes public with an initial price of $21 a share, closing the first day of trading at $28. Revenue for its previous fiscal year (which ended June 1985) $140.4 million.

1989

August: Microsoft introduces earliest version of its “Office” software suite, which includes the popular word processing program “Word”. Today, the company says it has more than 500 million users.

1990

June: The U.S. Federal Trade Commission begins a secret probe focusing on possible collusion between Microsoft and IBM. Microsoft remains under the microscope of regulators for another 18 years.

1992

January: Gates, 32, is named the richest American, with more than $6.5 billion, thanks to his one-third stake in Microsoft.

1993

June: A federal judge rules in favor of Microsoft, ending 63 months of litigation by Apple Computer Inc., which charged that Windows copied the look and feel of its Macintosh computers.

August: After the FTC deadlocks twice on the issue, the Justice Department announces it has taken over the Microsoft investigation, which now focuses on its business practices.

1995

January: Microsoft unveil one of it more celebrated flops, a software companion called “Bob”.

July: Gates is named the world’s wealthiest man for the first time with an estimated worth of $12.9 billion.

August: Microsoft launches Windows 95 with a marketing blitz five times bigger than any of its previous efforts. Experts say the system offers no technological breakthrough but adds features enjoyed for years by users of the rival Apple system.

1999

Microsoft added to the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Its revenue for the fiscal year ending in June reaches $19.75 billion.

2000

January: Steve Ballmer named to succeed Gates as CEO. Gates remains Chairman.

June: At an event with university students in Tokyo, Gates is asked what more he wanted in life. He promptly replies, “privacy.”

2001

May: Microsoft launches Windows XP operating system.

November: Microsoft jumps into the interactive game business with the launch of the Xbox , taking on rivals such as Sony and Nintendo. Its most important day-of-release game, “Halo: Combat Evolved”, is a huge hit, helping to drive Xbox sales, and eventually sells more than 5 million copies

2003

February: Microsoft shares split for the 9th time. One original share is now equal to 288 shares.

2006

June: Gates says he will transition out of a day-to-day role in the company in July 2008. Steve Ballmer is the companies top decision maker; Ray Ozzie steps up to be Chief Software Architect.

2007

January: Microsoft launches “Vista” , the latest version of its ubiquitous Windows operating system software, in 70 countries, and expects it to be installed on over 100 million PCs worldwide. Influential Wall Street Journal columnist Walt Mossberg, in his review of Vista, called it a “worthy, but largely unexciting, product.”

2008

January: Ballmer makes a $44.6 billion takeover offer to Yahoo’s board. Yahoo later rejects the offer, setting off a lengthy battle over the future of Yahoo.

March: While still wealthier than many nations, Gates falls to third on the list of Earth’s richest man, behind famed investor Warren Buffet and telecoms tycoon Carlos Slim. Forbes magazine estimates Gates wealth at $58 billion.

June 27: Bill Gates steps down out of a day-to-day role in the company, to focus on philanthropy. He still holds nearly a 9 percent stake in Microsoft, and remains its biggest shareholder. Since 2000, Microsoft’s stock has fallen 52 percent.

(Photos: From Reuters, Microsoft.com, Flickr, Google Finance)

Oh, by the way, you may have missed it, but today is Bill Gates’ last day on the job at Microsoft. 

For good reason, there has been no shortage of coverage today with reporters covering every angle of the story.

A good deal of the writing has focussed on Gates’ legacy over the three decades he ran Microsoft.

Here’s what the New York Times writes: 

Still, the Gates legacy is impressive. In addition to the software itself, Mr. Gates and his company have fundamentally shaped how people think about competition in many industries where technology plays a central role. Today, there are more than one billion copies of the Windows operating system on PCs around the world.

But it hasn’t been all roses, as CNN.com points out: 

On the downside there have been muted attempts to crack the music download market, the delayed launch of Windows Vista and the failed $45B-plus bid for Yahoo. The company’s monopoly of the PC software market has also seen it fall foul of regulators both in the United States and in Europe.

Tellingly, most of these failures have come in recent years, as Gates has gradually divested himself from day-to-day management of the company.

There is also quite a bit of reporting about what Microsoft will look like under the leadership of Steve Ballmer. The Wall Street Journal writes: 

The memo, which he called “The CEO Evolution,” provides a window into how Mr. Ballmer plans to lead as Mr. Gates — his friend since college days and longtime partner — ends full-time work at Microsoft on Friday to focus on philanthropy. It comes as the company faces increasing pressure from fast-moving, focused rivals such as Apple Inc. in software and cellphones and Google Inc. in Web search and advertising.

At the center of Mr. Ballmer’s dilemma is ongoing tension over whether Microsoft’s huge business divisions should have wide freedom to set their own course — or be more centrally planned, a strategy that could meld expertise across the company in ways that provide an advantage over rivals with narrower technology portfolios. In the memo, according to Microsoft executives, Mr. Ballmer cites lessons from both the Wal-Mart and GE experiences.

Another area getting a lot of attention is what’s ahead for Gates, besides his foundation? The Seattle Post-Intelligencer talked to Paul Allen.

“Bill has a wide-ranging and curious mind,” said Paul Allen, who founded Microsoft with Gates and remains friends with him. “It will be interesting to see what things he ends up really diving into, because once Bill dives into something, he really wants to make a difference.”

Allen and Gates share interests in such areas as alternative energy and brain research, and Allen said he could see them collaborating on future projects.

Keep an eye on:

• Social network site Facebook will press members to declare whether they are male or female, seeking to end the grammatical device that leads the site to refer to individual users as “they” or “themself” (Reuters)
• A Japanese mobile phone firm has halted an advertisement depicting a monkey as a political candidate after bloggers said the commercial was a racial slur against U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama (Reuters)
• News Corp. is looking at bidding for two key players in local pay-TV markets, Germany’s Premiere AG and Spain’s Digital+, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing people familiar with the situation

(Photo: Reuters)

With Yahoo shares trading just above $20, investors must be desperate for any sign that buyout talks with Microsoft could be resuscitated. It’s been relatively quiet since Yahoo struck the Google ad deal — with nary a peep from the usually loquacious activist investor Carl Icahn, who has been blogging about CEO pay but keeping silent on where he will take his Yahoo proxy battle.

So it’s no surprise that Yahoo shares jumped as much as 15 percent on Tuesday after TechCrunch reported that Microsoft and Yahoo are back in takeover talks, citing multiple sources at both companies.

But investors’ hopes were short-lived with CNBC quickly knocking down that rumor, saying its source thinks there are no new negotiations between Microsoft and Yahoo.

Meanwhile, CNET on Monday raised the possibility of a sweeter offer from Microsoft for a partial buyout.

With so many rumors flying about, Sanford C. Bernstein analyst Jeffrey Lindsay tells Reuters correspondent Eric Auchard that Yahoo and Microsoft continue to hold low level talks but says people are attributing huge outcomes to very small pieces of information.

In this situation, there is so much disinformation about what is going on.
All these things are going on at the same time. Right now we are too much in the middle of it to really see what is going on.
We can see the end game and we know where we are now, but we just can’t see how we are going to get there yet.
We think Microsoft will still buy Yahoo at the end of the day. It may be months after the annual meeting (on Aug. 1).
If Microsoft doesn’t acquire Yahoo, it has almost zero chance of an online play. Yahoo on its own can’t get close to the value that a Microsoft transaction would give it.

Who do you believe?

(Photo: REUTERS/Jo Yong-Hak)

Things have gotten tense over at Live Nation. An internal feud at the concert promoter could end with Chairman Michael Cohl resigning.

The Wall Street Journal says Cohl is currently negotiating his resignation, having fought with Chief Executive Michael Rapino for weeks over so-called “360 deals.” In such deals, Live Nation gives superstars hefty upfront payments in exchange for financial rights in nearly all their business. Think Madonna and U2 and Jay-Z.

It seems, according to the reports, fairly simple: Cohl wants to sign more of these deals and Rapino wants the pace of these signings to slow; the board tells them to work out their differences; Cohl heads out the door.

Still, there is the fundamental question of whether these “360 deals” are good business or not. As the New York Times points out, the “deals were expensive for Live Nation - a reported $120 million for Madonna and $150 million for Jay-Z - spurring many industry executives and analysts to debate whether the company was paying too much.”

While Cohl could be gone as soon as next week, it will take some time to sort through which executive had it right.

Keep an eye on: 

• Online social network site Facebook.com has launched a version targeting mainland Chinese Web surfers to compete with local and overseas rivals in the world’s largest Internet market (Reuters)
• Viacom Inc’s Paramount Pictures must show it can thrive in the film industry without some of Hollywood’s top talent, if DreamWorks’ Steven Spielberg and others bolt (WSJ.com) 
• After taking on the big and small screens, comic book heroes like Spiderman and Superman may soon be appearing on an even smaller screen — your mobile phone (Reuters)
• Microsoft isn’t about to kickstart a bunch of internet acquisitions after its failed move on Yahoo (FT.com)
• After the departure of former chief executive Victor Ganzi, speculation about who will ultimately succeed him is swirling at Hearst (NY Post)

(Photo: Reuters)

Surprise, surprise! Online advertising spending appears to have slipped quarter-to-quarter, the first time that’s happened in three years, according to a new report.

Before pulling your hair out, keep in mind that first quarter online advertising spending rose 18 percent from the year ago period – it’s just that it slipped from the fourth quarter,  according to the IAB. So while still robust, it seems that online advertising isn’t impervious to the economic troubles gripping the United States.

Another report, this one by PricewaterhouseCoopers, takes a longer view of advertising in new media. It finds that advertising tied to digital and mobile media will account for 24 percent of the growth in the media and is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 19.5 percent to 2012.

There are a lot of different numbers to sort through, and they address different things, but the upshot seems to be this: Digital media may suffer a bit during the downturn, but smart money still has it booming over the coming years and leading the way for growth in media.

Keep an eye on:  

• Sam Zell’s Tribune could face default by year’s end, even with attempts to sell assets and debt to shore up its debt, says a Standard & Poor’s analyst (Bloomberg) 
• DreamWorks SKG and India’s Reliance ADA Group are near a deal to create a new movie venture, which would provide director Steven Spielberg with the cash to finance his DreamWorks team’s departure from Paramount Pictures (WSJ.com) 
• Business community site LinkedIn has pulled in a $53 million infusion from venture capitalists, valuing the company at $1 billion (Reuters)
• A new study finds that advertisements in traditional media are ”much more likely” to make a  positive impression with consumers than those appearing in digital media (NY Times/TV Decoder)
• Microsoft has bought Navic Systems, a company that helps advertisers place spots on TV programs, for an undisclosed amount (paidContent.org)

Back in May, we reported that Google was in the driver’s seat when it came to Microsoft and Yahoo’s on-again, off-again merger talks. Well, Thursday’s news suggests that Google has crossed the finish line — in first place.

Yahoo turned down what sources said was a $35/share offer from Microsoft for a 16 percent equity stake, choosing instead to seal a search advertising deal with Google for up to 10 years.

While Yahoo estimated a $250 million to $450 million boost to cash flow in the first year of the Google deal, and said the annual revenue opportunity was $800 million, Wall Street was skeptical.

Yahoo shares plunged as much as 14 percent to $22.50 at one point.

Forrester Web marketing analyst Shar VanBoskirk said the competitive benefit to Google appeared to outweigh the additional $250 million Yahoo stood to make:

Google just found a way to make money off of its biggest competitor’s inventory.

Global Crown Capital analyst Martin Pyykkonen added:

Yahoo is being a reseller of Google whenever it makes sense and that is likely to be a lot of the time given how much more effective Google Web search ads have proven to be. For Yahoo’s Panama system the deal is a humbling statement.”

While Microsoft shares rose 4 percent on investor relief that it wouldn’t overpay for a risky deal, Sanford C. Bernstein analyst Jeffrey Lindsay noted:

Google has made an enormous gain strategically. This move might well have shut Microsoft out of the online space altogether…Microsoft’s current online services business is losing money…Now they are trying to attack the search market with under 5 percent share.

This is how the Wall Street Journal’s Deal Journal put it:

Yahoo destroyed itself to save itself. Microsoft tried to get stronger, but only ended up exposing its own weakness. Somehow Google emerged triumphant, effectively neutralizing its two biggest competitors.

That is what makes the Yahoo-Microsoft nonmerger such a spectacular failure. Never have so few failed so many for so much at stake.

(Photo: Kyle Busch gets out of his car in the victory lane after winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Best Buy 400 benefiting Student Clubs for Autism Speaks at Dover International Speedway in Dover, Delaware June 1, 2008. REUTERS/Robert LeSieur)

When Microsoft first said it was ending talks to buy Yahoo, many people thought, “well, that’s the end of it.” Zombie movie fans, on the other hand, know that a dead body can get up and walk again. And walk again it did!

But you have to believe The New York Times when it says you can lay the corpse to rest. And that’s just what the Times Dealbook said about Yahoo and Microsoft on Thursday evening:

The talks are dead. Really, this time they are dead. Yahoo is preparing to announce that it has ended its talks with Microsoft over a search-related deal as well as the sale of the entire company, people involved in the discussions said. Yahoo is expected to move forward with an advertising pact with Google as early as today, these people said. How did we get to this point?

Visit the comments section for further hand-wringing.

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer believes in resurrection, however:

But rather than closing the book on the saga, which began with Microsoft’s unsolicited bid for Yahoo, today’s developments appear likely to open a new chapter. Yahoo says the agreement will be non-exclusive and will make it a stronger competitor. However, Microsoft previously raised antitrust concerns about an alliance between the No. 1 and No. 2 players in the search business. The Redmond company has not commented on the deal yet.

Buried in the Yahoo release is another notable piece of news: Google and Yahoo will make their instant-messaging systems work with one another. The Yahoo and Microsoft IM systems already work together.

Yahoo said the Google ad deal represents a revenue opportunity of as much as $800 million a year, and $250 million to $450 million in annual operating cash flow. Yang said the companies don’t believe the agreement requires regulatory approval, but the companies are waiting three-and-a-half months to allow the U.S. Justice Department to review it.

And then there’s just plain nihilism:

Yahoo is now in a four year long deal with Google. I am sure Microsoft is not going to be happy and would follow the legal route. Personally, a deal between Google and Yahoo is any day better than a deal between Microsoft and Yahoo.

Microsoft said on Wednesday that casino chain Harrah’s Entertainment Inc is the second customer to deploy Surface, the company’s coffee-table-shaped computer that responds to touch.

Harrah’s installed six Surface tables at the iBar “ultralounge” at its Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Unlike AT&T, the first company to deploy Microsoft Surface at a handful of its stores, Harrah’s has developed its own applications for the machine.

The most interesting is a new “Flirt” application. Since each Surface comes with a video camera, bar patrons can communicate or “flirt” with people at other tables. It seems like a pretty fun application, although one has to wonder why it has taken so long to become a product. After all, this was an idea conceived in the 1990s by none other than Miss Janet Jackson. Check out this video for proof.

It’s probably not visible in this picture, but here’s a sample of what Harrah’s calls flirting.

• “Apart from being sexy, what do you do for a living?”
• “I lost my number. Can I have yours?”
• “I tripped on a kiss and fell in love with you.”
• “You’re so HOT … got sunscreen?”

The Surface will also allow bar patrons to create and order cocktails, watch YouTube videos and play video games like bowling, pinball and memory games. There are a couple of “virtual concierge” applications. One lets customers tour Harrah’s Vegas properties and attractions, while another provides a virtual guide to the Las Vegas strip.

 The heat is definitely on at Yahoo.

As though it weren’t under enough pressure, the board now has Carl Icahn warning them that they will be held personally liable for approving a controversial employee severance plan.

Oh, and shareholders suing the company now want a speedy trial related to failed merger talks between Yahoo and Microsoft, saying they would like to get to court before the company’s August 1 annual meeting.

Here’s the upshot of the fight over the severance plan: Shareholders suing the company argue that the board is free  to reorganize Yahoo’s work force as it sees fit without fear of triggering the severance benefits.

But the catch, they say, is that if Icahn’s board slate prevails, then Yahoo shareholders will be forced to fund the costly severance payouts to departing workers.

Yahoo denied assertions made in the lawsuit in a response filed with U.S. regulators.

Let’s forget the courts for a second. Perhaps of more immediate concern is the public relations battle that Icahn is waging against Yahoo. Yesterday, after a speech to the New York Financial Writers’ Association, Icahn told Reuters, “If they continue with this line, I believe they (the board) may be personally liable.” 

He also called the board’s actions “reprehensible.”

“These board members get $10,000 a week to go to a few boondoggle meetings,” he said during the speech.

You can imagine that Yahoo’s boardroom isn’t the place you really want to be spending your summer.

Keep an eye on: 

• The new iPhone wasn’t the only Apple blockbuster franchise displaying a slimmer frame Monday - a dramatically skinnier CEO Steve Jobs was, too (NY Post)
• Pearl Jam has struck a deal with Verizon Wireless’ V Cast service to sell select tracks from the authorized live bootlegs that will be available in conjunction with the band’s upcoming summer tour (Billboard)
• U.S. officials are facing a potential glitch in a program designed to help television viewers make the switch to digital TV next year (Reuters)
• Landmark Communications has distributed information to potential bidders on Dominion Enterprises, its portfolio of advertising websites and publications, now that its attempt to sell The Weather Channel is nearing its final stages (FT.com)
• FiLife, a personal finance venture from IAC/InterActiveCorp and Dow Jones & Co, will open its site to a public test on Wednesday after a year in development and much media speculation over its future (Reuters)

(Photo: Reuters)

It’s almost time, at least we’re pretty sure it’s almost time. Come Monday, Apple CEO Steve Jobs is widely expected to introduce a new iPhone at the company’s developers’ conference.

Early buzz is that the new iPhone will be faster and accompanied by support for corporate e-mail, which should help expand the gadget’s audience to the business world. Apple has declined to comment on what Jobs will announce, but speculation can be found just about anywhere on the web.

Rather than spending hours today reading through all the rumors, check out TechCrunch, which gives a good roundup of the iPhone chatter.

It’s easy to get excited about all the potential new features on the phone, but keep in mind this is also a big business story for Apple. After all, it’s introducing the new iPhone at a tricky time for the economy.

Sure, it may reach out more to corporate customers with this version, but the iPhone is still heavily reliant on demand from your average consumer. With $4-per-gallon gasoline, underwater mortgages and a tough job outlook, your average consumer isn’t in the best place right now.

Even so, investors seem to believe that demand is holding up for Apple products like the Macintosh or the iPod, given that the company’s stock is up 50 percent over the past three months. We’ll soon find out. 

Keep an eye on:  

• Britain’s Taylor Nelson Sofres and Germany’s GfK have agreed to a merger to create the world’s second-biggest market research company with a market value of about $4 billion (Reuters)
• Yahoo Inc CEO Jerry Yang ordered up a draft press release rejecting a Microsoft Corp takeover bid months before January’s unsolicited bid, company documents unsealed on Monday show (Reuters)
• Fire-damaged Universal Studios reopened Monday as investigators examined the ruins of some of the most famous sets in Hollywood to find the cause of the spectacular weekend blaze (The Wall Street Journal)
• NBC Universal’s Jeff Zucker can no longer rely on GE’s deep financial pockets amid investor pressure, so had looked to private equity firms to help fund a bid for the Weather Channel (NY Post)

(Photo: Reuters)