Microsoft is no longer an evil empire; friendships begin with Apple

I think critics are turning blind to the bigger picture when they say that Microsoft became complacent in the past decade. Sure they did. After the success of Windows XP, the dark ages of Windows Vista pulled the plague over most Microsoft loyalists. Add the trickle down effect of Macs due to the increasing popularity of Apple’s iPod and the past 10 years of open source paladins, Microsoft was pillaged by complacency.

Today however, Microsoft is singing a different tune. As Google got bigger, so did Apple and it seems today that Microsoft is going back to its roots as an innovator and underdog while Apple remains steadfast against its battle with Google. The latest seems to be talks to replace Apple’s default iPhone and Safari search with Bing, in the stead of Google Search.

Ten years sure does a lot to people. It does more to companies. I think Microsoft is slowly recovering and going back to their “A Game” and part of the reason is because its competitor has seen that my enemy’s enemy could be my friend.

Turning Bing into the iPhone’s default search will reap a ton for Microsoft, not only by brand equity but for entire industries to be built around Bing’s interface (i.e. mobile advertising).