Pedro Hernandez

Microsoft released some statistics that provide further insight into why the software titan forked over $8.5 billion for Skype in 2011. It’s a lesson in how the right investment—and a heaping pile of cash—can help a company nab a treasure trove of consumer engagement. Collectively, Skype’s user base spends 2 billion minutes each day connecting […]

Two months after launching its development and testing resource site, dubbed modern.IE, Microsoft floated a quickly sold-out special offer in an attempt to recruit Web developers that live by the “Made on a Mac” credo. The software giant announced on April 2 that with the help of Swish, an e-commerce platform for inventors and startups, […]

Five months after its official launch, Windows 8 now accounts for more than 3 percent of the desktop operating system market, according to Web traffic analytics firm Net Applications. In March, Windows 8 powered 3.17 percent of the PCs online, or 3.31 percent if Windows RT and Windows 8 tablets are also taken into account. […]

A smaller Surface tablet may be in the works. That is, if Microsoft decides to exploit new Windows 8 certification changes that the company itself quietly issued earlier this month. ZDNet’s Ed Bott spied the updates in the Microsoft’s Windows Certification Newsletter for March 12. The changes, while seemingly minor, could have a major impact […]

Windows 8 users won’t have to wait for the forthcoming Blue update to experience improvements to some of the operating system’s most prominent core apps. In past Windows releases, default programs typically lingered unchanged—and unloved, some would argue—for years, with the exception of a few apps like Internet Explorer. Amid the buzz surrounding the Windows […]

Microsoft has finally broken its silence about Blue, a code name that not only refers to a Windows 8 operating system update, but also encompasses a large swath of the software giant’s product and services portfolio. Apart from some fleeting job ads or casual mentions like the ones in a TechFest 2013 presentation featuring an […]

In the wake of the big Windows 8 Blue leak during the weekend of March 24, technology experts are wondering if familiar elements like the taskbar and desktop icons are being retired from Microsoft’s software ecosystem. Do Windows 8 Blue’s tweaks, many of which target Windows 8’s touch-friendly tiled interface, spell the demise of the […]

“Windows Blue” is turning into a bigger deal than initial reports indicated. On March 24, an internal, prerelease version of Windows Blue leaked onto the Internet, offering the clearest picture yet of what Microsoft has in store for users of its desktop and tablet operating system. And in what is somewhat of a surprise, the […]

Microsoft has rolled out enhancements to its Bing search engine that leverages social media to help users forge more professional connections. Since Microsoft first unveiled Snapshot May 11, 2012, the company has been working to expand its reach across the Internet and social networks, explains Richard Qian, head of the Bing Index team, in a […]

Users, customers and industry rivals aren’t the only ones keeping Microsoft busy. The company reported March 21 that in 2012 it fielded an average of 266 law-enforcement requests per day. The software and Web services provider received 75,378 requests from law-enforcement organizations around the world for customer data. All told, the requests had the potential […]