Now or never
Google's I/O developer conference featured a lot of exciting developments in the areas of mobile phones and the digital home - two of the key markets for Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices Division. Apple will host its own developer conference in a couple of week, at which it will hope to go one better than Google.
When Apple blogger John Gruber wrote his thoughts on Google I/O, he remarked that Microsoft is "...simply not even part of the game," in the phone market, and that "Microsoft's irrelevance is taken for granted." Right now it's hard to disagree with Gruber, the question is: what is Microsoft going to do about it?
According to independently sourced reports from both the WSJ and NYT, Microsoft is in the process if a major overhaul of this devices division, which represents its biggest investment in diversifying away from its Windows and Office cash cows. The division, which includes Xbox, currently accounts for 11 percent of Microsoft's revenue.
The WSJ reckons one exec, who was overseeing the canned Courier project, will leave his role as CTO of the group, and there will be other changes. We have to assume that Kin was part of this group too and, right now, it's not looking like a great success.
If Microsoft wants to have a hope of keeping-up with Apple and Google in the mobile space, let alone beating them, the phone division needs to be a lot leaner, nimbler and quicker. It can't get away with the relatively glacial rate of progress in its other divisions because competition is much fiercer here.
Furthermore, let's not forget that it has been Microsoft championing the connected home with the successive launches of Vista and Windows 7. It should have been Microsoft standing on stage last week with Intel, Sony and Logitech, but instead it was Google. We wouldn't be surprised to see Apple reveal an improved Apple TV offering at its WWDC either.
Xbox still seems to be doing alright, and it might even topple Nintendo's Wii when Project Natal is launched later this year. But it's hard to point to any other conspicuous successes from the Entertainment and Devices division. It needs to be cut loose and allowed to operate at a faster pace than the rest of Microsoft. Only then can it hope to keep up with the pace of innovation from its two great rivals.
UPDATE - 17:00, 25 May 2010: Seattle Microsoft-watcher Todd Bishop has confirmed that group president Robbie Bach and VP J Allard are leaving the company.
UPDATE - 17:45, 25 May 2010: So has Microsoft.
