Microsoft remains a market leader in IT. The editor generates comfortable profits from sales of Windows and its productivity software first and foremost the Office suite. However, it is buffeted by competition on some of its fundamental and should learn from the woes of former stars fainter market today such as BlackBerry.
During his recent BlackBerry World conference, the manufacturer has announced that its mobile IM solution BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) will soon be available for free for iOS and Android smartphones. This decision was undoubtedly one of the highlights of the event, but it comes too late. What would have been considered a brilliant idea from a tactical point of view there are two or three years is now considered an act of desperation that is unlikely to change the game for BlackBerry. BBM is a central function of the mobile platform BlackBerry. There was a time when she was the most sought after in the Canadian smartphone maker function. But the fact of having reserved exclusively for branded products was not enough to distract users from the iPhone and Android mobiles.
Customers are always alternatives and they exist
Worse, new messaging services like WhatsApp and Facebook have exploded onto the iPhone and Android platforms. Today they overshadow BBM. Currently, WhatsApp has a number of users more than three times higher than BBM and Facebook has nearly twelve times. And these are just two examples among a myriad of instant messaging applications available. Finally, BlackBerry has missed the boat.
The lesson to be drawn is that Microsoft is using a popular software as a carrot designed to prevent users from adopting a less prominent product does not work. Users change regardless of what they lose and find alternatives that meet their needs.
While Office is the office suite per excellence, it still loses market share as competitors products are gaining popularity. Microsoft offers Office for Windows and Apple OS X environments But Google Docs, Open Office, Libre Office and other office suites offer similar functions such as Linux OS. In parallel, Docs to Go, QuickOffice and iWork apps Apple fills the field left empty by Office on iOS and Android.
Untie the Office destiny a PC market that declined
In terms of traditional PCs, Microsoft has little to fear. Windows still has a market share of over 90% while Apple assumes 7% of crumbs left by the Redmond company. The problem is that the personal computer market is rapidly shrinking as the market for mobile platforms (excluding laptops) explodes. And Office only works on a small proportion of smartphones and tablets sold. It makes sense to use Microsoft Office to add value to the mobile platform that runs on Windows. But the availability of Office on a smartphone or tablet, or the fact that the result is not there will not influence a buying decision. Companies will not decide not to buy products iOS or Android if they think they best meet their needs. If Office is not available on the hardware they bought, they find apps to replace. In this sense, Office could become irrelevant if the demand for traditional PCs collapses.
Microsoft should learn from the experience of BlackBerry. The misplaced pride can kill and blackmail always has an effect against-productive. The best way to maintain its dominance and its relevance is to ensure that customers always rely on your products, regardless of the platform they chose.
0 comments:
Post a Comment