14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft keeps struggling to innovate on multiple fronts right now, competing with several large companies, including Google and Apple.
But a new research conducted by Forrester reveals that Redmond is actually winning the war as far as consumer mindshare is concerned, with Microsoft becoming more trusted and essential than both Apple and Samsung.
The study conducted in August 2013 across 4,551 US online adults revealed that Microsoft topped the TRUE (trusted, remarkable, unmistakable, and essential) rankings.
“In a surprise upset, Microsoft trumped Apple and Samsung in the TRUE brand rankings. In fact, Microsoft was the only brand in the survey to achieve the coveted trailblazer status – indicating that the Microsoft brand is ‘at the forefront of brand building with a unique and distinct brand identity that sets it apart from other brands,’” Forrester wrote in the findings.
“All three brands were seen as innovative by consumers, so what sets Microsoft apart? While Apple and Samsung battle it out to reign supreme with the coveted Millennial generation, Microsoft has quietly stolen the consumer technology crown by becoming more trusted and essential across multiple generations. The very ubiquity that perhaps renders it uncool turns out to also be its strength.”
In the meantime, Microsoft continues the One Microsoft transformation plan that’s supposed to get it closer to becoming a devices and services firm, with a new CEO to be appointed in the coming months. According to a new report, Ford’s CEO Alan Mulally is no longer a candidate for the vacant seat, which makes cloud boss Satya Nadella the front-runner to take over from Steve Ballmer.
As part of this transformation plan, Microsoft is also set to launch new devices, including a smaller Surface tablet and new SKUs featuring LTE connectivity. Only minor details are available right now, but Microsoft has promised to disclose more on these plans in early 2014.