sherlund

The man who helped Bill Gates found Microsoft says he thinks it's time to break up the massive Redmond, Washington-based tech firm. Paul Allen says Microsoft should consider spinning off some of its businesses, including Bing search and Xbox. Allen ... and Gates founded Microsoft in 1975. Today, Allen holds a $2 billion stake in the firm. Allen didn't speak directly to the media on this issue. Instead, Paul Ghaffari, the chief investment officer who manages Allen's $15 billion fortune, made the statements on behalf of Allen at the Financial Times Investment Management Summit. Microsoft Distracted ... (view more)

What's the best way for Microsoft to improve its financial outlook? Sell off two prominent properties: its Xbox video game division and its Bing search engine. At least, that's the opinion of Rick Sherlund, an analyst for Nomura Equity Research. In ... a report released earlier this week, Sherlund argues that selling off the Xbox and Bing properties could help Microsoft from a financial standpoint. Bing Division Consistently in the Red First, selling Bing does make some sense. After several years competing with industry heavyweight Google, Microsoft's online services division continues to report ... (view more)