Software pioneer Ray Ozzie knows a thing or two about the inner workings of Microsoft. After all, Ozzie spent five years at the company from 2005 to 2010, serving as chief technical officer and chief software architect.
So, why did Microsoft miss mobile and what does it need to do to catch up?
In an interview at the Code/Mobile conference in Half Moon Bay, California Monday, Ozzie laid out the challenge when veteran journalist Walt Mossberg asked point blank: “If it is so profound, why isn’t Microsoft a player of any significance in mobile?”
Ozzie took some of the blame, saying he was at the company when Microsoft missed mobile.
“Every large company who has a successful product has to deal with the notion of — as things move forward — how do you balance the potential disruption with the stream you’ve got…. It is kind of like bundling of products. There are times when things are best together, and they can take advantage of each other, either be vertically integrated or distribution leverage, partner leverage. And there are times when the complexity becomes overwhelming, and it slows you down because you can’t react as quickly to things that are happening in the external environment.”
Ozzie added that the biggest challenge facing Microsoft in mobile is that developers are placing their energy on iOS and Android, noting that developers only have a “certain number of calories to devote to building something.”
“The core fundamental thing that they need to do is be relevant with developers again and be relevant with users,” said Ozzie. “There’s a combination there.”
OK. Well, that’s not an easy task, especially since Microsoft’s mobile market share has been stuck in single digits for years. Ozzie also acknowledged how challenging it can be to convince developers to work on a new platform, noting that it is an “unnatural act.”
Ozzie has discussed the importance of Microsoft embracing the “post-PC world” in the past, talking at length about it at the GeekWire Summit in 2012.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has pledged to make mobile a priority, discussing his philosophy at a luncheon in Seattle last month.
When we define mobile in the marketplace, we don’t think of it by today’s market share positions on a given form factor. Devices and device sizes will come and go, even within a single year, you will be changing multiple phones. It’s more about the mobility. In fact, if there’s anything central to our vision, it’s don’t think of the device at the center, think of the individual, the people at the center. And then have the platforms and productivity experiences get built with that at the center.
Here are highlights from Ozzie’s talk at Code/Mobile.
