Microsoft: The Most Valuable Company On Earth

 Microsoft: The Most Valuable Company On Earth


American free-market capitalism has proven to be the greatest wealth generator in recorded human history. Most of the major stock indices are trading at all-time highs. While only 20% of Americans own 80% of all stocks traded on the exchanges, about half of all Americans own some kind of stocks as part of their personal financial portfolios. The Microsoft Corporation has recently surpassed the $3 Trillion market-cap with a reasonable multiple valuation of 35. With a better credit-rating than the U.S. Government, Microsoft has become the most valuable publicly-traded company on Earth.


I hold a B.S. Business Economics from Virginia Tech and I am a Microsoft Certified Windows Programmer. The recent Microsoft news was quite welcome as we started the new year 2024. At this time last year, there were a bunch of bank failures and the PC market was still in rapid decline from the PC “pandemic-boom” sales highs. However, with PC shipments and sales now stabilizing and expected to rise, my new year 2024 just got much better.


The story of Microsoft is the stuff of business legends. Microsoft’s original mission statement said that it wanted to put a personal computer in every household and on every desk. Bill Gates and the others at Microsoft were called crazy on many occasions for having such a bold vision for the personal computer. IBM was already well entrenched in the business community and Apple was selling computers by the lot to school districts and others.


In the late 1970’s not many American households had the money or the need for a personal computer. If you walked into the average American house in the late 1970’s you would find a radio, television, telephone, refrigerator, and a washer and dryer set. There was a very nasty recession in the late 1970’s and most households were lucky to afford those household items.


Not many businesses at the time were trying to place another “electronic appliance” in the household. The 1970’s recession ended and people had more money to spend on household appliances and other electronic gadgets. The 1980’s saw an explosion of digital electronic gadgets and other home electronic products. Consequently, the personal computer got much faster and more powerful. Today’s $2,000 Windows Personal Computer has 40x(times) the computing capability of an $8 million super-computer of the late 1970’s. That is a direct result of the 1970’s recession ending along with the Cold War ending in the late 1980’s and Americans spending more money on personal computers.


PC sales and usage had been in decline since the dot-com era of the early 2000’s. MIT did a, now infamous, article claiming the “Death of the PC.” The recent pandemic crisis had people sheltering-in-place and staying-at-home for safety reasons. Consequently, PC sales more than doubled during the pandemic crises, with sales levels not seen since the dot-com era. Windows PC’s became an essential device for work, school, entertainment, communications, and much more.


As stated earlier, I am a Microsoft Certified Windows Programmer. Most of my PC work meets or exceeds U.S. Government / Military standards. Today, a single Windows PC has the computing capability of running a small production factory, without any AI or cloud computing assistance. Until recently, the Microsoft Windows operating system controlled all vital systems aboard the International Space Station. As of January 2024, there are more than 1.5 billion active Windows Devices, worldwide.


Microsoft recently completed the $69 billion purchase of the video gaming company Activision-Blizzard. It was the largest corporate and tech deal of 2023, making Microsoft the leader in the electronic video game industry. I am very excited about this development in the video game industry, as a programmer and player, and look forward to what Microsoft Games Studios delivers to developers and video gaming fans, alike. The video game industry is now larger than both the movie and professional sports entertainment, combined.


The $1,000 I spent to obtain my Microsoft Windows Programming Certification might very well be the best money I ever spent in my life. However, today there are many online degree programs in Computer Science, Electronic Video Game Development, Cyber Security, E-Commerce, and Information Technology. I am presently researching the many different state-board requirements for teaching high-school Computer Science.


I am very happy to see PC sales are expected to rise in 2024, and Microsoft is now the most valuable publicly-traded company on Earth. Microsoft is truly one of the greatest companies in American history. I look forward to Microsoft’s earnings report this week and what this great company has for the future.



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