Microsoft is a computer software vendor that has created applications like Microsoft Word and Excel and web browsers like Microsoft Word. It was founded on April 4, 1975, by two friends, Bill Gates and Paul Allen. Its original name was Micro-Soft, which combines the words microcomputer and software. This name changed to Microsoft Corporation on June 25, 1981, but most people call it Microsoft.
The idea of Microsoft was first created when Bill Gates and Paul Allen decided to make an interpreter for the Altair 8800, an early personal microcomputer. After successfully selling the product to the creators of the Altair, Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard University and Paul Allen quit his job to work on their new project. In the following year, the company released products such as its operating system called Xenix, and another operating system called MS-DOS.
In 1938, Paul Allen left his position as Microsoft’s Executive Vice President of Research and New Product Development after being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Paul Allen was treated for this disease and went on to work on different interests. The 1980s was when Microsoft released Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. In 1985 Windows was released, this was Microsoft’s newest operating system at the time. The software started to gain popularity and by the mid-90s, 90% of the world’s computers were running this software. The 1990s were also when Microsoft released its free browser, Internet Explorer.
In 1998 Microsoft faced a problem, it was being charged with violating antitrust laws by the U.S. Department of Justice and 20 state attorneys general. Antitrust laws ensure fair competition, and Microsoft was accused of driving out competition using its power. Luckily, in 2001, the company created an agreement that restricted the company’s business methods. This was also the same year the company entered the video game industry and released the first Xbox.
In 2009, the company created Bing, a search engine, following the success of Google’s search engine, Google. 2 years later, the company also purchased Skype for 8.5 billion dollars. The year after, Microsoft released its first computer called the Surface. Even as the years go on, Microsoft remains one of the most successful companies in the world, with a net value of around 3.1 trillion dollars. Microsoft still creates computer programs and continues to release new products.
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https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/microsoft-founded
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https://www.thoughtco.com/microsoft-history-of-a-computing-giant-1991140
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