Pondering Microsoft's 'Everett Dirksen moment'

Update at 7:00 a.m. July 19: Typo fixed in the senator's last name.

Illinois Sen. Everett Dirksen is remembered for the quip, "A billion here, a billion there, pretty soon, you're talking real money." (Truth be told, it's unclear whether those were his exact words, but he's got that tagline for posterity.)

I was thinking of the former senator after listening to Microsoft's chief financial officer explain to analysts why the company intends to continue to pour hundreds of millions of dollars into a business which still isn't producing much of a return. But the online advertising business is just too important to Microsoft's future to be penny wise and pound foolish. Of course, it helps when you're the CFO of a company with tens of billions of dollars in cash and marketable securities. For more, check out the conversation I had with my CNET News colleague, Ina Fried, earlier Friday.

[bob haring]

your item is interesting, but the senator's name was dirksen, not dirkson. bob haring

[Michichael]

Dirksen.

[saffroncapital]

'Penny wise and pound foolish' or 'damned if you do and damned if you don't'??

Microsoft is willing to pour billions of shareholders funds down to drain in order to just keep up - its a weak business model, but if they don't then the company would likely move into a slow decline. In fact slow decline may be the preferable option from a shareholders point of view - continue to eek out its Windows monopoly and let investors do the diversifying of their portfolios by buying into Google et al...

[RegCrowder]

There was a time when IBM more or less occupied the position that Microsoft does today. IBM could do no wrong. There was a saying in corporate IT (in those days called MIS - Management Information Systems) to the effect that "nobody ever lost their job by going with IBM." And that was true, then.

IBM truly DID invent the PC and then made it accessible to the world.

And then, IBM just sort of started fading away. IBM had all the advantages but it just didn't matter. Somehow, it just couldn't bring itself to stay in touch with reality.

Microsoft seems to be following (stumbling) along in the footsteps of IBM. Strange, isn't it? I think I can see WHAT is happening. But what I can't fathom is WHY it is happening.

But it sure is happening.

REG CROWDER
Freelance Finance and Investment Writer
London, UK & Brittany, France

[http://www.utalkmarketing.com/Blogs/UserBlogs.aspx?UserID=6304]

[http://www.journalistdirectory.com/journalist/TgTQ/REG-CROWDER]

[Sumatra-Bosch]

MSFT is doomed as long as the Boy Fuhrer from Duncan Hines is running the show. IBM was able to reinvent itself. Ballmer thinks if you scream loud enough and throw enough chairs, you win. Or something.

[charlie cooper]

yes, it is. sloppy editing on my part. fixed now.

tx