MS to end XP support in ’14
Prepares blueprint to transform itself into a product and services firm
After an extended lifecycle, Microsoft is phasing out support for Windows XP effective April 2014.
“Windows XP is a wonderful operating system which was great for a lot of years. On April of 2014 it is dead; it will turn 15 years old; that’s great ROI on that particular piece of technology, but we’ve got to move forward and take the industry forward too. However, we will throw a big going away party for Windows XP in April 2014,” said Mr Kevin Turner, COO, Microsoft Corporation, who was in the city to participate in the Microsoft Executive Forum.
Stating that Microsoft is transforming itself from a software company into a devices and services company, he said: “It is a multiyear transition; one that we’ve been on for a few years and one that will con- tinue on going forward, but make no mistake, that our focus is predominantly on delivering devices and services that people love and businesses need.”
Elaborating, he said, “That doesn’t mean that we will make all the devices, we will make some of them. We have entered the devices space with Surface and Surface Pro last year. We will continue to enable a great partner ecosystem and have great third party hardware from all of our big OEM partners in addition to some significant first party hardware. Microsoft is also a services company, both in the consumer services space and business services space, all of which will be delivered on the Cloud. We’ve bet on the Cloud and are now well on our way to being a Cloud Services company.”
Mr Turner said, this year, Microsoft will invest $10.1 billion in R&D across the five mega technology trends – cloud, enterprise social, mobility, big data and touch.
In 2012, Microsoft spent over $9.5 billion in R&D which was more than its nearest competitor. Stating that the role of the CIO is changing today, Mr Turner said an understanding of the five mega technology trends and the ability to move quickly to implement strategies around them will catapult CIOs into the decision making table to lead their companies in this new era of technology.
Microsoft is moving its entire ecosystem to ‘touch’ with Windows 8 which brings ‘touch’ to all form factors with the Surface tablet, laptops and PCs. The company has more than double the number of Windows 8 devices since October 2012. Microsoft is working to fulfill the promise of a continuous cloud service for every person, every device and every business, said Mr Turner.