Microsoft in the mobile space
What's going on with Microsoft in the mobile phone space? "We had a good longtime employee who wanted to retire and he's going to do so. And it doesn't make sense to replace him. On the phone side of the business, we learned the value of excellent execution. We were ahead of this game and now we find ourselves No. 5 in the market. We missed a whole cycle.
"I've been quite public about the fact that I've made some changes in leadership around our Windows Phone software. We had to do a little clean-up. The excellence in execution is an important part of innovation. We're driving forward in the phone business.
"But this is a very dynamic business; the market leaders here have shifted over twice in the past few years, and that's an opportunity for us. So we've got to have great ideas and we've got to execute consistently."
Thoughts on Apple in the mobile space: "They've done a good job of coming from nowhere a few years ago. They've done the best job on the browser. People focus on the apps, but the browser is really the thing that has distinguished their phones from others."
And Google: "On the phone, Android's a real competitor. On the larger screen devices, who knows? I don't know that these Android-based things will matter. But I don't know that they won't either. I don't really understand why Google has to have two different operating systems. Chrome? It's like two, two, two operating systems - but they're not in one! You want to know about Chrome, talk to them."
There was a Q&A session from the audience to finish off and we'll leave you with the most amusing one. Q: "Any advice for Apple and Google as they face potential antitrust troubles?" A: "No advice. I just wish them the best in getting lots of good experience."
