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Microsoft logo since August 23, 2012
Microsoft is a multinational computer technology corporation. The history of Microsoft began on April 4, 1975, when it was founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in Albuquerque.[1] Its current best-selling products are the Microsoft Windows operating system and the Microsoft Office suite of productivity software.
In 1980, Microsoft formed a partnership with IBM that allowed them to bundle Microsoft 's operating system with IBM computers, paying Microsoft a royalty for every sale. In 1985, IBM requested that Microsoft write a new operating system for their computers called OS/2; Microsoft wrote the operating system, but also continued to sell their own alternative, which proved to be in direct competition with OS/2. Microsoft Windows eventually overshadowed OS/2 in terms of sales. When Microsoft launched several versions of Microsoft Windows in the 1990s, they had captured over 90% market share of the world 's personal computers.
The company has now become largely successful. As of 2008, Microsoft has a global annual revenue of US$ 60.42 billion and nearly 90,000 employees in 105 countries. It develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of software products for computing devices.[2][3][4]
Contents [hide]
1 1975–1985: The founding of Microsoft
2 1985–1991: The rise and fall of OS/2
3 1992–1995: Domination of the corporate market
4 1995–1999: Foray into the Web and other ventures
5 2000–2005: Legal issues, XP, and .NET
6 2005–present: Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8
7 See also
8 References
9 External links
1975–1985: The founding of Microsoft[edit]

Microsoft staff photo, December 7, 1978. From left to right:
Top: Steve Wood, Bob Wallace, Jim Lane.
Middle: Bob O 'Rear, Bob Greenberg, Marc McDonald, Gordon Letwin.
Bottom: Bill Gates, Andrea Lewis, Marla Wood, Paul Allen
Missing: Ric Weiland, Miriam Lubow.

Gates described the photograph in 2009 as "that famous picture that provides


References: Jump up ^ "Microsoft 2005 Annual Report" (DOC). Retrieved October 1, 2005. Jump up ^ "Fast Facts About Microsoft". microsoft.com. Microsoft Corporation. August 1, 2007. Retrieved 2007-08-15. Jump up ^ MSFT Investor Relations (July 19, 2007). "Microsoft Fourth Quarter FY 2007 Earnings Release: Microsoft’s Annual Revenue Surpasses $50 Billion". microsoft.com. Microsoft Corporation. Retrieved 2007-08-15. Jump up ^ "Bill Gates: My 1979 Memories". Retrieved November 30, 2012. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x "What We 'll Miss About Bill Gates – a Very Long Good-Bye". Wired. May 19, 2008. Retrieved May 3, 2011. Jump up ^ "Key Events in Microsoft History". Retrieved June 26, 2012. (DOC format) ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w "Microsoft Company 15 September 1975" Jump up ^ Alfred, Randy. "April 4, 1975: Bill Gates, Paul Allen Form a Little Partnership". Wired Magazine. Retrieved May 20, 2013. Jump up ^ Gates, Bill (October 2, 1995). "Bill Gates & Paul Allen Talk". CNN. Retrieved May 3, 2011. ^ Jump up to: a b Jason Levitt (June 12, 2000). "Is It Time Again For Microsoft And Unix?". Information Week. Retrieved 2006-04-29. Jump up ^ Dafydd Neal Dyar (November 4, 2002). "Under The Hood: Part 8". Computer Source. Retrieved 2006-07-04. Jump up ^ A. Allen, Roy (October 2001). "Chapter 12: Microsoft in the 1980s". A History of the Personal Computer: The People and the Technology (1st ed.). Allan Publishing. pp. 12–13. Retrieved 2006-07-04. Jump up ^ Leffler, Samuel J.; et al. (October 1989). The Design and Implementation of the 4.3BSD UNIX Operating System. Addison-Wesley. p. 7. ISBN 0-201-06196-1. ^ Jump up to: a b Bunnell, David (Feb–Mar 1982). "The Man Behind The Machine? / A PC Exclusive Interview With Software Guru Bill Gates". PC Magazine. p. 16. Retrieved February 17, 2012. Jump up ^ John Steele Gordon Michael Maiello (December 23, 2002). "Pioneers Die Broke". Forbes. Retrieved 2006-07-05. Jump up ^ "comp.sys.msx FAQ". Retrieved October 14, 2005. Jump up ^ Seattle Post-Intelligencer Staff (May 18, 2005). "Redmond council OKs Microsoft expansion". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved 2006-07-04. Jump up ^ Harry McCracken (September 13, 2000). "A Peek at Office Upgrade". PCWorld.com. Retrieved 2006-07-04. Michael Newman (May 23, 1999). "Bob is dead; long live Bob". Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2006-07-04. Ken Polsson. "Chronology of Events in the History of Microcomputers: 1995+ Confusion". Archived from the original on May 15, 2006. Retrieved 2006-07-04. Jump up ^ Gates, Bill – The Internet Tidal Wave. Microsoft, May 26, 1995. Made publicly available at United States Department of Justice. United States v. Microsoft Trial Exhibits Jump up ^ "MSN Historical Time line" Jump up ^ "The Halloween Documents". Archived from the original on May 13, 2006. Retrieved 2006-05-18. Jump up ^ Bob Trott (November 6, 1998). "Microsoft pondering legal challenge to Linux". CNN. Retrieved 2006-05-18. ^ Jump up to: a b "Kinect Confirmed As Fastest-Selling Consumer Electronics Device". community.guinnessworldrecords.com. March 2011. Retrieved May 19, 2012. Jump up ^ "Microsoft hit by record EU fine". CNN. March 25, 2004. Archived from the original on April 13, 2006. Retrieved 2006-05-19. Jump up ^ "Text of the European Union ruling against Microsoft" (PDF). Retrieved 2005-08-05. (from the official EU website) Jump up ^ Dan Nystedt (December 7, 2005) Jump up ^ Juan Carlos Perez (February 1, 2005). "Microsoft Spotlights Its Search Engine". PCWorld. Retrieved 2006-07-04. Jump up ^ Robert A. Guth; Kevin J. Delaney (May 4, 2006). "With adCenter, Microsoft Bids For Web-Search Bonanza". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2006-07-04. Jump up ^ Neil McAllister (January 15, 2007). "Soft Sell for Open Source Apps". InfoWorld. Retrieved 2007-01-15. Jump up ^ Richard Waters (June 15, 2006). "Bill Gates calls time on career at Microsoft". Financial Times. Retrieved 2006-06-17. Jump up ^ "Microsoft mulls fresh Yahoo deal". BBC News. May 19, 2008. Retrieved 2010-05-04. Jump up ^ "Microsoft Withdraws Proposal to Acquire Yahoo!". Microsoft.com. May 3, 2008. Retrieved 2012-09-25. Jump up ^ "Microsoft to acquire Skype". May 10, 2011. Retrieved May 10, 2011. Jump up ^ "Microsoft sued over search-related patents". Reuters. Retrieved January 31, 2013. Jump up ^ "Microsoft sues U.S. Customs office to force Google phone ban". ZDNet. Retrieved July 12, 2013. Jump up ^ "Microsoft reaches $7.2B deal for Nokia handset business". USA Today. Retrieved September 3, 2013. Inside The Deal That Made Bill Gates $350,000,000, Bro Uttal, Fortune, July 21, 1986 reprinted on March 13, 2011 The History of Microsoft and Bill Gates – Timeline, Rahul Vijay Manekari, February 2, 2013
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