Microsoft

Microsoft is delivering Skype to Outlook.com users' inboxes.

A preview, which combines the video chat and messaging service with the tech giant's free e-mail service, is being introduced now to users in the U.K. and will be rolled out to users in the U.S. and Germany "in the coming weeks." Further international expansion is expected this summer, the company announced Monday evening.

Microsoft promotes the integration as "less typing, more talking":

"Even with the best email service, sometimes text isn't enough," Simon Longbottom, Skype's director of global marketing, … Read more

While Amazon is still king in the cloud computing world, it appears that Microsoft's Azure software is on the up and up. Not only have Azure subscriptions risen 48 percent over the past six months, but Azure and related Microsoft cloud service software earned $1 billion in revenue over the past year for the first time ever, according to Bloomberg.

Making the "billion-dollar club" is pretty significant -- considering the slumping PC market. Microsoft revealed these new performance details to Bloomberg in an interview on Monday.

Twenty percent of companies use Azure, while 71 percent go to … Read more

If you've never been to a wedding that ended in a punch-up, you really haven't lived.

There's always something so bracing in seeing people devolve to their true, animal state, drunk and flailing their fists.

Someone at Microsoft clearly has recent experience with such a thing, as the company Monday released a new ad that describes the constant spat between fanpersons of Apple and Samsung as a battle between two tribes of the insane.

We are at a wedding. Everything seems fine, until someone with a very large Galaxy phone gets in the way of someone with … Read more

In a closely watched case, a federal judge has determined that Motorola is entitled to millions -- not billions -- of dollars in compensation for Microsoft's use of certain standard-essential patents.

U.S. District Judge James Robart ruled Thursday that Microsoft should pay Google's Motorola Mobility unit $1.8 million a year in royalties for use of wireless and video coding patents it used in the Xbox and its smartphones.

Motorola had demanded Microsoft pay royalties of $4 billion for use of patents that are part of the H.264 video and 802.11 wireless standards, which is … Read more

The next Xbox, which Microsoft will unveil on May 21, will reportedly cost $499, or $299 for customers who also buy a two-year Xbox Live Gold subscription for $10 per month.

That comes from longtime Microsoft blogger Paul Thurrott, who also accurately broke the news of the Xbox unveiling date earlier this month in an interview with the video blog "What the Tech." (His comments about the next Xbox start at the 54:44 mark.)

Microsoft declined to comment on the report.… Read more

Microsoft and its partners have cracked the tablet market, according to a report from Strategy Analytics.

Windows 8 tablets (which include Windows RT) took 7.5 percent of the global tablet market based on operating system (OS) market share in the first quarter, Strategy Analytics said.

PC makers (including Microsoft) shipped 3.4 million units worldwide in Q1 2013, "for a niche 7.5 percent share," Neil Shah, a Strategy Analytics analyst, said in a response to an e-mail query.

But the market research firm said things could have been better.

"Very limited distribution, a shortage of … Read more

Microsoft has made it official: the next Xbox will be unveiled at a May 21 event in Redmond, Wash., just weeks before E3 opens its doors. This looks like the inevitable Xbox-PlayStation next-gen console war we've all been expecting.

What will it take for Microsoft to keep its strong foothold in the gaming industry? Here's what I'm looking for.

Be the ultimate TV-streaming (and movie-playing) box The Xbox 360 has already carved a great role for itself as a streaming-media hub, and rumors point to the next Xbox possibly being a true rival to a future Apple … Read more

Microsoft has confirmed one of the worst-kept secrets in tech: The next Xbox will be revealed on May 21.

The company on Wednesday morning sent out invitations to the media for a product unveiling.

"A New Generation Revealed," the invitation reads. "Don Mattrick and the Xbox team invite you to the Xbox campus for a special unveiling." (Mattrick is the president of Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment Business division that includes the Xbox.)

The company plans to broadcast the unveiling live on the Xbox, as well as on Spike TV.

Earlier this month, longtime Microsoft blogger Paul … Read more

Touch ultrabooks are seeing decent price cuts at the Microsoft Store, making these expensive models a bit more affordable.

Touch-screen laptops are generally priced significantly higher than non-touch models, as the screens have been expensive to procure.

The well-received Acer Aspire S7 has seen one of the steepest discounts, falling to $1,299 from $1,649.

The S7 features a 256GB solid-state drive, a 13.3-inch 1,920x1,080 resolution display, and a 1.9GHz Intel Core i7-3517U processor.

Next up, Sony's Vaio T Series 13 has been reduced to $999 from $1,299. That 13.3-inch touch model … Read more