[joe_mamba]

> As present trends continue, eventually nobody is going to need any Microsoft products anymore.

People have been saying this for about 30 years now. Just like IBM, Apple, Adobe, etc, MS will probably outlive all its haters.

>What, exactly, does anyone need Microsoft for anymore?

Brand recognition? Why do people still buy Mercedes, BMW, Audi, VW when a Hyundai or Dacia does the same thing for cheaper?

Inertia and complacency? Most (non-startup) companies in Germany and Austria are Microsoft shops because that's what they've been using for 20+ years and MS has big customer support and sales teams here that wine and dine them regularly, but unicorn focused HN is oblivious to that.

[trollbridge]

Hardly anyone is still using IBM OfficeVision, though. Or, for that matter, HCL Notes.

[joe_mamba]

Who said anything about that? IBM does consultancy like nobody else.

Also IBM still makes PowerPC CPUs and mainframes and those are still selling to niche customers who don't trust the cloud.

Microsoft will have its niche too if it flops.