Microsoft and Apple go way back in the history of technology. Their relationship has been rocky at some points, and friendly at others. One thing that is certain is they are in competition with each other. With their Surface tablet Microsoft is competing with Apple in a way they’ve seldom done in the past: with hardware. So it should come as no surprise when CEO Steve Ballmer has quotes like the one below.
“We are not going to leave any space uncovered to Apple. We are not going to let any piece [go uncontested to Apple]. Not the consumer cloud. Not hardware software innovation. We are not leaving any of that to Apple by itself. Not going to happen. Not on our watch.”
In other words: “Apple, your free ride is over. We’re stepping in to the round.” Will this be successful? Only time will tell, but it will certainly make things less easy for Apple.
[via BGR]
