Mac OS X vs Windows 7

Apple and Microsoft are fighting for the mindshare of consumers as both companies prepare to roll out upgrades to their operating systems later this year.

Apple on Monday showed Worldwide Developers Conference attendees Snow Leopard, the next major version of Mac OS X. Apple has been very open about the fact that Snow Leopard is meant to be an under-the-hood maintenance release, focusing on performance enhancements to the operating system.

Windows 7 is essentially Microsoft's maintenance release for Vista, which according to many accounts was a failure for the company. Putting aside all of the back and forth between the two companies, one industry analyst feels it comes down to the consumer. "It's really immaterial the degree of the rewrite in the operating system," Ross Rubin, director of analysis for market research firm National Purchase Diary (NDP).

While early testing of Windows 7 seems to bear out improvements in the operating system, Microsoft is approaching a very awful consumer experience with Windows Vista.

Apple, on the other hand, is becoming one of the most successful operating system launches in the company's history. Mac OS X Leopard was a solid release, packed with features. Overall, Leopard had relatively few problems throughout its life cycle.

Apple doesn't have to fight off that negative perception from its users or the industry. Macs have been selling better than ever and there is no sense that will slow down anytime soon. Typically, Apple sells its new operating systems for $129. That's a flat fee. Everyone gets the same version that includes all features and enhancements. However, Leopard users will be offered an upgrade to Snow Leopard for $29. Microsoft has yet to release its upgrade pricing, but it is expected to be much higher.

Microsoft Buys Skype for $8.5 Billion

Just days after reports that Google and Facebook were interested in partnering with, and possibly buying VoIP company Skype, Microsoft announced that it was buying the company for $8.56 billion in cash.

Last year, Skype had a profit of $860 million on which it posted an operating profit of $264 million. However, overall it made a small loss of $7 million, and had long-term debt of $686 million. This is the second time Skype has been bought out; after being started in 2003, it was purchased by eBay in 2005 for $3.1 billion. EBay then sold the majority of its stake in 2009 to a private investment group for $1.2 billion less than it paid.

The purchase was Microsoft’s biggest ever. That alone makes it surprising; the company’s track record with large purchases is decidedly mixed. Danger, the exciting mobile technology company that produced the Hiptop, better known as the T-Mobile Sidekick line, was purchased for an estimated $500 million in 2008. The aQuantive purchase too had mixed outcomes, with Redmond unable to find a role for the Razorfish division before eventually selling it off in 2009; Microsoft continues to be unable to make a profit from online

Microsoft has in the last couple of years has been sticking to buying smaller, easier-to-manage organizations, leading some to argue that this was a direct result of the digestive difficulties faced with the large purchases. A $7 billion Skype offering would show that perhaps Redmond believes it has resolved such problems.