Microsoft (MSFT) Claims Windows 7 Is Major Success

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) CEO Steve Ballmer told attendees at the company’s annual shareholder meeting that Windows 7 sales were astonishingly high. According to a Wall Street Journal account of the gathering, “Microsoft Corp. has sold twice as many copies of Windows 7 in its first few weeks than any previous version of the operating system,” Ballmer said.

The news means that one of Microsoft’s five major operating units may do well and next year. That leaves four to go.

In the quarter than ended on September 30, revenue from Microsoft’s Window’s division fell from $4.3 billion in 2008 to $2.6 billion. The success of Windows 7 may will help rebuild sales in the unit.

The real threat to Microsoft’s recovery is revenue in its business division which Microsoft Office. That operation is under pressure from current competitors including Oracle (NASDAQ:ORCL), SAP (NYSE:SAP), and Salesforce.com (NYSE:CRM). Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) and IBM (NYSE:IBM) are also moving to take business from Redmond.

Ballmer is pointing to the early success of Windows 7 and the joint venture he has set up with Yahoo! (NASDAQ:YHOO) in search as the key to the “turnaround” of the world’s largest software firm. But, some of his largest operation as still under heavy fire which he may not be able to counter.

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Douglas A. McIntyre