shail.4u007
Shailesh Mundhada
can any one plz help to find full case study of microsoft dividend policy
case study req
- Thread starter shail.4u007
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ankitgokani
Ankit Gokani
here is the case go thru it
INTRODUCTION
Microsoft, the world's number one software company, provided a variety of products and services including the ubiquitous Windows operating systems and Office software suite. The company had expanded into markets such as video game consoles, interactive television, and Internet access. With its core markets maturing, Microsoft was targeting services for growth, looking to transform its software applications into Web-based services for enterprises and consumers. While desktop applications and platforms remained the bread and butter business, Microsoft had moved into video game consoles, enterprise software, computer peripherals, software development tools, and Internet access services.
The US government had charged Microsoft with antitrust violations in 1998. An initial ruling to split Microsoft into two companies was struck down. Under a tentative settlement between the company and the US Justice Department, Microsoft agreed to uniformly license its Windows operating systems, not to offer exclusive contracts to manufacturers, and to allow competing software to be included with its operating systems. Microsoft had also reached settlements with long-time rivals Netscape (paying the company about $750 million) and Sun (agreeing to pay the company about $1.6 billion in addition to royalty payments on certain technologies).
One of the most profitable companies in the software industry, Microsoft's sustained levels of financial performance had been unmatched. By early 2004, Microsoft's cash balance had crossed $50 billion. One persistent investor complaint against Microsoft was its zero dividend policy. Microsoft had not paid dividends for 17 years. It believed in ploughing the money back in its R&D. In part, due to increasing pressure from shareholders to explore alternatives for its ever-growing cash hoard, in 2003 the company declared its first ever dividend for common stock. The announcement seemed to mark a turning point in Microsoft's financial history. More recently, Microsoft announced plans to pay back up to $65 billion of cash to investors over a period of four years. This included a one-time special dividend of $30 billion.
Background Note
Bill Gates (Gates) founded Microsoft (originally Micro-soft) in 1975 after dropping out of Harvard at the age of 19. Gates teamed up with high school friend Paul Allen (Allen) to sell a version of the programming language BASIC.
While Gates was at Harvard, the pair wrote the language for Altair, the first commercial microcomputer. Microsoft started off by modifying BASIC for other computers. In the mid-1980s, Microsoft introduced Windows, a graphics-based version of MS-DOS that borrowed heavily from rival Apple's Macintosh system. The company went public in 1986, and Gates became the industry's first billionaire a year later. Microsoft introduced Windows NT in 1993 to compete with the UNIX operating system, popular on mainframes and large networks. In the early 1990s, many complained about the unfair advantages Microsoft was reaping as a monopoly.
In 1995, antitrust concerns blocked a $1.5 billion acquisition of personal finance software maker Intuit.In 1998, the US Justice Department, backed by 18 states, filed antitrust charges against the software giant, claiming that it stifled competition in the Internet browser market and limited consumer choice. A federal judge ruled in 2001 that Microsoft had used its monopoly powers to violate antitrust laws. This led to the prospect of two (smaller) Microsofts, a decision against which the company aggressively appealed. A federal appeals court struck down the initial ruling to break up Microsoft. A tentative settlement between the company and the US Justice Department left Microsoft intact but imposed broad restrictions on the company's licensing policies for its operating systems......
just a gist of the case for whole case plz refer
Microsoft's Dividend Policy - Finance Case - ICMR Case Studies | Case Study in Business, Management
INTRODUCTION
Microsoft, the world's number one software company, provided a variety of products and services including the ubiquitous Windows operating systems and Office software suite. The company had expanded into markets such as video game consoles, interactive television, and Internet access. With its core markets maturing, Microsoft was targeting services for growth, looking to transform its software applications into Web-based services for enterprises and consumers. While desktop applications and platforms remained the bread and butter business, Microsoft had moved into video game consoles, enterprise software, computer peripherals, software development tools, and Internet access services.
The US government had charged Microsoft with antitrust violations in 1998. An initial ruling to split Microsoft into two companies was struck down. Under a tentative settlement between the company and the US Justice Department, Microsoft agreed to uniformly license its Windows operating systems, not to offer exclusive contracts to manufacturers, and to allow competing software to be included with its operating systems. Microsoft had also reached settlements with long-time rivals Netscape (paying the company about $750 million) and Sun (agreeing to pay the company about $1.6 billion in addition to royalty payments on certain technologies).
One of the most profitable companies in the software industry, Microsoft's sustained levels of financial performance had been unmatched. By early 2004, Microsoft's cash balance had crossed $50 billion. One persistent investor complaint against Microsoft was its zero dividend policy. Microsoft had not paid dividends for 17 years. It believed in ploughing the money back in its R&D. In part, due to increasing pressure from shareholders to explore alternatives for its ever-growing cash hoard, in 2003 the company declared its first ever dividend for common stock. The announcement seemed to mark a turning point in Microsoft's financial history. More recently, Microsoft announced plans to pay back up to $65 billion of cash to investors over a period of four years. This included a one-time special dividend of $30 billion.
Background Note
Bill Gates (Gates) founded Microsoft (originally Micro-soft) in 1975 after dropping out of Harvard at the age of 19. Gates teamed up with high school friend Paul Allen (Allen) to sell a version of the programming language BASIC.
While Gates was at Harvard, the pair wrote the language for Altair, the first commercial microcomputer. Microsoft started off by modifying BASIC for other computers. In the mid-1980s, Microsoft introduced Windows, a graphics-based version of MS-DOS that borrowed heavily from rival Apple's Macintosh system. The company went public in 1986, and Gates became the industry's first billionaire a year later. Microsoft introduced Windows NT in 1993 to compete with the UNIX operating system, popular on mainframes and large networks. In the early 1990s, many complained about the unfair advantages Microsoft was reaping as a monopoly.
In 1995, antitrust concerns blocked a $1.5 billion acquisition of personal finance software maker Intuit.In 1998, the US Justice Department, backed by 18 states, filed antitrust charges against the software giant, claiming that it stifled competition in the Internet browser market and limited consumer choice. A federal judge ruled in 2001 that Microsoft had used its monopoly powers to violate antitrust laws. This led to the prospect of two (smaller) Microsofts, a decision against which the company aggressively appealed. A federal appeals court struck down the initial ruling to break up Microsoft. A tentative settlement between the company and the US Justice Department left Microsoft intact but imposed broad restrictions on the company's licensing policies for its operating systems......
just a gist of the case for whole case plz refer
Microsoft's Dividend Policy - Finance Case - ICMR Case Studies | Case Study in Business, Management
rosemarry2
Rose Marry
Hey buddy,
Here i am sharing Returning Cash to the Owners – Microsoft Dividend Policy , so please download and check it.