Friday, 25 April 2008

Profits slide for Microsoft Yet Apple sees an increase


This from the BBC website.

Computer software giant Microsoft has seen third quarter profits fall, but beat market expectations.

Profits fell 11% to $4.39bn (£2.22bn) in the three months to 31 March from $4.93bn a year earlier. Sales were stable at $14.5bn.

Sales in the division selling Office and other business applications fell, hit by lower demand.

The results come before a deadline the firm has given Yahoo to respond to its $44.6bn-bid for the internet firm.

One factor denting profits was a $1.42bn fine imposed by the European Commission for breaching competition rules.

While the firm predicted stronger sales for the year, its forecast for the current quarter was at the lower end of market expectations, contributing to a 5% fall in the firm's share price in after-hours trading.

On the plus side, the firm's Xbox 360 video game consoles showed a strong performance, helping sales in its entertainment and devices sector grow 68% year-on-year.

Meanwhile, I've found this about Apple:
Apple, the technology giant, has posted a 36 percent rise in quarterly profits after strong global sales of its Macintosh computers and solid iPod sales, but remains cautious for the rest of 2008.

The company surpassed analysts expectations and made a net profit of $1.05 billion (£0.53bn)

Guess the smart money is in hardware...for the moment.

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