Well, they did some profit in last Q, but they did cut prices, bribed some devs etc. so they might not be profitable atm. Before that they did nothing but lose money and they might not get that even back fully. Thats what I am talking about. :)

However I must admit that they are doing way better than sony anyways.

to be honest (as an Irish bloke) I couldn't give a shit about American companies. Because of the strong Yen I fear for my beloved Japanese companies, and we all know when it comes to electronics the japenese rule.

Some examples of japanese electronic companies are:

Casio
Canon
Denon
Fujitsu
Hitachi
JVC
Kenwood
Mitsubishi electric
NEC
Nikon
Omron
Onkyo
Orion electric
Panasonic
Pioneer
Ricoh
Sanyo
Seiko
Sharp
Sony
Toshiba



Now its obvious life would be crappier without these great firms

Britain's cars rule if only because their road-aproval rules concerning small-production cars allows marvels such as the lotus super 7 replicas or the atom to be legal anywhere in the EU.

Let us all mourn for the company that will make ~$15 billion in profits this year.

OMG! is this true!? Do companies really scale back in time of financial crisis? Tell me know it all teens! tell me!

 I know. I tried explaining this recently in a thread about Sony but I got grilled left right and centre for saying it.

First of all, this is still a rumor and not confirmed. Second, even if it's true it's very different from some other companies' layoffs. Microsoft's 20-30% profit margins aren't under threat of being reversed into loss margins anytime soon. If these job cuts happen, they're just preemptive, not a symptom of deep trouble in the company.

Despite magik10's sarcasm, this is a valid and interesting topic of discussion.

I agree with a proper analysis but you're often left fighting with Timmy the Tiger who just got home from school and needs to impress you with his understanding of the world and thus my sarcasm.

MS operates at very high margins and while they will not break their record profit numbers from last year, they certainly will not struggle. As with most multi faceted companies, they have projects ongoing that depends on other sectors of the market to perform at a certain level. As these sectors shrink, MS must adjust accordingly. This is on top of the fat trimming that most companies can do when necessary. Many people would be surprised at how "bloated" companies can be when cash flow isnt' a concern and outlook is positive. It would be fiscally irresponsible of any organization in this market to turn a blind eye to the market situation. Especially public companies.

Why are we talking about Microsoft in trouble?

Companies in trouble are:

Woolworths (dead)
MFI (dead)
Currys (nearly dead)
GM (needs saved)
Chrysler (needs saved)
Toyota (in a sticky patch)
FG Wilsons (in a sticky patch)

and so on......................


Compared to these companies Microsoft and Sony are thriving