Is Microsoft Starting to Adopt Google’s Strategies?

Wired‘s Ryan Tate makes a compelling argument that the former software empire may be adopting strategies first crafted by its rival Google in offering free cloud services and a free Windows Azure OS to compete with Chrome OS and act as a conduit for users to Microsoft’s varied cloud services. New Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella is an expert in cloud computing so it should be interesting to see how the implementation of this strategy goes forward but it is interesting to note the massive cultural shift such a move denotes occurring within Microsoft; namely, a move away from software licensing fees as a major source of revenue to service software model pioneered by Adobe with its suite of programs and Google with its Docs set of applications.