Yes, Microsoft should be broken up. It's scary how they have their tentacles everywhere. Both Consumer and Business focused. OS, PCs, Browser, search engine, Ad network, professional social network, news outlet, cloud infra, cloud tools, dev tools, games, gaming platform, gaming hardware, server OS and DB, office tools locally installed, office tools in cloud, cloud storage, CRM, ERP, personal video calls and messenger, video conferencing tools and business messenger, owns github, owns npm, owns 50% of OpenAI. I have probably forgotten a few.
Imagine all the cross selling and tricks they can pull off having all this inhouse.
Instead of a breakup, something close to what OP is asking for was imposed on Microsoft — a "technical committee" was empowered to ensure that all Windows protocols were fully documented. [1]
Dismantling Microsoft would absolutely be the correct response. That's what they did to Bell or AT&T or whatever they were called, and it was a good thing.
Break up Microsoft into a company that makes Office, a company that makes Windows and a company that does .NET.
- Office: all productivity software, including Exchange and SQL Server
- Microsoft: operating systems and platforms - server, client, mobile,
Xbox, developer programs
- MSN: all internet properties + Internet Explorer, along with all
home/etc apps
... Can't think of what else there is in the Microsoft portfolio; I am sure I have left out a ton of their product offerings, but there's a few companies in the split-up I'd like to see happen. I think there'd be a ton of innovation that such a move could unlock.
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