Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions. Established on April 4, 1975 to develop and sell BASIC interpreters for the Altair 8800, Microsoft rose to dominate the home computer operating system market with MS-DOS in the mid-1980s, followed by the Microsoft Windowsline of operating systems. Microsoft would also come to dominate the office suite market with Microsoft Office. The company has diversified in recent years into the video game industry with the Xbox and its successor, the Xbox 360 as well as into the consumer electronics market with Zune and the Windows Phone OS. The ensuing rise of stock in the company's 1986 initial public offering (IPO) made an estimated four billionaires and 12,000 millionaires from Microsoft employees.
Primarily in the 1990s, critics contend Microsoft used monopolistic business practices and anti-competitive strategies including refusal to deal and tying, put unreasonable restrictions in the use of its software, and used misrepresentative marketing tactics; both the U.S. Department of Justice and European Commission found the company in violation of antitrust laws. Known for its interviewing process with obscure questions, various studies and ratings were generally favorable to Microsoft's diversity within the company as well as its overall environmental impact with the exception of the electronics portion of the business.
If, in real estate the key to success is "location, location, location" then in any consumer-oriented business, the priority is "distribution, distribution, distribution." There is no sense having a product that satisfies consumer demand, if that product is not readily available.
Microsoft, burdened as it is by government claims of monopoly practices, still has marketing and distribution strength that makes its products, such as Windows 2000, available in a number of ways so that the ultimate consumer can take advantage of its advantages.
In the audio player market , the choice of distribution channels is determined by nature of products and geographical location of the target audience . Marketers , Apple , Microsoft and SunDisk do not simply assume that people go to a store only to buy products but rather position retail outlets as vehicles that enable the person to satisfy a variety of other needs . The development of distribution strategies should take into account the diversity of the mature market . For example , clustering of stores older people are likely to patronize might be more important to frail recluses than to healthy indulger .The main channels of distribution are direct selling through the Internet , through agents and through specialized retail stores . All companies try to use leadership strategy which helps to ensure high sales and after sakes service . Power , in terms of channel leadership ,and the corresponding degree of control , enables the channel leader to achieve economic advantages by influencing how goods are physically transported and stored . Apple is one of the companies which use proprietary vertical platform " strategy . This perception guides management decisions of how the firm will behave in relation to other channel members as it attempts to control the channel .Therefore , comprehensive distribution strategies of channel design ,integration , and firm positioning all hinge on the ability of the company to either manage the system to their advantage , choose to fit within a revailing system , or design their own separate system . Direct contact with no intermediaries is used by Sun Disk and partly by Apple .On the international arena , the main types of distribution are the 'one-level ' channel and second level ' channel . The aim of the latter one is to deliver products to the large number of small retailers .In many cases , wholesalers want control of the channel to avoid being bound by manufacturer-determined strategies . For instance , Apple and iPod use mobile service distribution channel . Critics admit that "New hardware isn 't the only way Apple can shake things up in the mobile industry . The company has the ability to disrupt the entire distribution channel , which is currently controlled by cellular service providers (Apple `iPhone 2006 . These factors show that Apple tries to reduce number of distributors and implement a 'zero-level ' channel . Likewise ,retailers try to create dependence of other channel members by controlling certain markets or accounts that make them susceptible to influence by the other parties . Apple and SunDisk strive to control distribution channels for better execution of their marketing strategies .
Primarily in the 1990s, critics contend Microsoft used monopolistic business practices and anti-competitive strategies including refusal to deal and tying, put unreasonable restrictions in the use of its software, and used misrepresentative marketing tactics; both the U.S. Department of Justice and European Commission found the company in violation of antitrust laws. Known for its interviewing process with obscure questions, various studies and ratings were generally favorable to Microsoft's diversity within the company as well as its overall environmental impact with the exception of the electronics portion of the business.
If, in real estate the key to success is "location, location, location" then in any consumer-oriented business, the priority is "distribution, distribution, distribution." There is no sense having a product that satisfies consumer demand, if that product is not readily available.
Microsoft, burdened as it is by government claims of monopoly practices, still has marketing and distribution strength that makes its products, such as Windows 2000, available in a number of ways so that the ultimate consumer can take advantage of its advantages.
In the audio player market , the choice of distribution channels is determined by nature of products and geographical location of the target audience . Marketers , Apple , Microsoft and SunDisk do not simply assume that people go to a store only to buy products but rather position retail outlets as vehicles that enable the person to satisfy a variety of other needs . The development of distribution strategies should take into account the diversity of the mature market . For example , clustering of stores older people are likely to patronize might be more important to frail recluses than to healthy indulger .The main channels of distribution are direct selling through the Internet , through agents and through specialized retail stores . All companies try to use leadership strategy which helps to ensure high sales and after sakes service . Power , in terms of channel leadership ,and the corresponding degree of control , enables the channel leader to achieve economic advantages by influencing how goods are physically transported and stored . Apple is one of the companies which use proprietary vertical platform " strategy . This perception guides management decisions of how the firm will behave in relation to other channel members as it attempts to control the channel .Therefore , comprehensive distribution strategies of channel design ,integration , and firm positioning all hinge on the ability of the company to either manage the system to their advantage , choose to fit within a revailing system , or design their own separate system . Direct contact with no intermediaries is used by Sun Disk and partly by Apple .On the international arena , the main types of distribution are the 'one-level ' channel and second level ' channel . The aim of the latter one is to deliver products to the large number of small retailers .In many cases , wholesalers want control of the channel to avoid being bound by manufacturer-determined strategies . For instance , Apple and iPod use mobile service distribution channel . Critics admit that "New hardware isn 't the only way Apple can shake things up in the mobile industry . The company has the ability to disrupt the entire distribution channel , which is currently controlled by cellular service providers (Apple `iPhone 2006 . These factors show that Apple tries to reduce number of distributors and implement a 'zero-level ' channel . Likewise ,retailers try to create dependence of other channel members by controlling certain markets or accounts that make them susceptible to influence by the other parties . Apple and SunDisk strive to control distribution channels for better execution of their marketing strategies .