Ballmer bigs up Microsoft's 'fantastic' future in the online and entertainment worlds

Microsoft chief executive officer Steve Ballmer promised more excitement and innovation from the software giant going forward as it sets out to take the online and entertainment markets by storm.

In his keynote speech at the company's annual financial analyst meeting, Ballmer said that Microsoft will be successful in these new markets, just as it has done in both the desktop and server arenas.

"...The innovations, the long-term approach that we've applied, have allowed us to essentially have these two big muscles. They each have their own customer set, products that are involved, technologies, delivery models, business models - and we've been successful now in two dimensions. I don't think most technology companies ever get a second big set of capabilities. And we're trying to grow today two new cores, one in online and one in entertainment," said Ballmer.

He continued: "But certainly if we can build the kind of capability and deliver the kind of performance that we've done in our so-called desktop business and our server businesses... we will all sit here 10 years from now and agree we're not only fantastic in terms of the innovation delivered, but also in terms of the returns that came back."

The CEO said that these new market opportunities, coupled with the forthcoming launches of Windows Vista and Office mark the beginning of a new era for Microsoft.

"I think a lot about how the company will move forward, our growth, our innovation, where we're going, and I think that we have so many amazing assets in the company, and so many things to be excited about," he said.

"I know that there are certainly also some questions that people have, but I think that this next era of Microsoft will be more exciting, we'll be able to generate more shareholder value, we'll be able to generate more innovation and have more impact that changes the world positively than even the last 10, 15, 20, 30 years."

At the same event, Kevin Johnson, co-president of Microsoft's Platforms and Services Division gave the company additional scope to extend the he arrival of Windows Vista. "..We're going to ship the product when it's ready, and we're just going to take it milestone by milestone," he told the audience.

At present, the operating system is due to ship in November and January for businesses and consumers respectively, but this latest statement will only add to existing scepticism about the moveable nature of these dates.

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