Calista Technologies

Microsoft Corporation

Logo since 2012
Company type	Public
Industry	Technology
Founded	April 4, 1975 (1975-04-04) in Redmond, Washington, USA
Headquarters	Redmond , United States
Area served	Worldwide
Products	Software, consumer electronics, personal computers, services (including MS-DOS, Windows, Microsoft Office, Xbox, Skype, LinkedIn, GitHub)
Website	microsoft.com

Microsoft is a publicly traded American multinational corporation based in Redmond, Washington, USA, specializing in the development, manufacturing, licensing, and support of a wide array of computing-related products and services. Established on April 4, 1975, with the goal of creating and marketing BASIC interpreters for the Altair 8800, Microsoft became the dominant force in the home computer operating system sector during the mid-1980s through its MS-DOS platform, followed by the Microsoft Windows series. The company also holds a leading position in the office suite market with Microsoft Office. Beyond software, Microsoft has expanded into gaming with its Xbox lineup and ventured into consumer electronics and digital platforms via products such as Zune, MSN, and the Windows Phone operating system.

Microsoft's shares debuted on March 14, 1986, closing at $27.75 per share with a market valuation of $519.777 million. Since then, the corporation has completed more than 225 acquisitions, invested in 64 companies, and divested 25 businesses, with 107 acquisitions originating in the United States. Specific financial details for many transactions remain confidential.

Beginning with its initial acquisition in 1986, Microsoft has averaged approximately six acquisitions annually, reaching a peak of 18 deals in 2006—including purchases like Onfolio, Lionhead Studios, and Massive Incorporated. Fourteen acquisitions have surpassed the billion-dollar mark, including notable deals such as Skype (2011), aQuantive (2007), Navision (2002), Visio Corporation (2000), Yammer (2012), Nokia's mobile division (2013), Mojang (2014), LinkedIn (2016), GitHub (2018), Affirmed Networks (2020), ZeniMax Media (2020), Nuance Communications (2021), and Activision Blizzard (2022).

In terms of investments exceeding one billion dollars, Microsoft holds an 11.5% stake in Comcast valued at $1 billion, a 22.98% interest in Telewest worth $2.263 billion, and a 3% share in AT&T amounting to $5 billion. Among divestitures, only Expedia Group sold for over one billion dollars—acquired by USA Networks on February 5, 2002, for $1.372 billion.

Key acquisitions

The company's inaugural acquisition was Dynamical Systems Research (DSR) on June 20, 1986. DSR created a DOS-based clone of IBM's TopView operating environment; Microsoft leveraged their technology and talent to enhance Windows development. The following year, on July 30, 1987, Microsoft acquired Forethought, known for developing the presentation software that evolved into Microsoft PowerPoint.

On December 31, 1997, Microsoft completed its largest acquisition at that time by purchasing Hotmail for $500 million and integrating it into its MSN platform. Hotmail was founded in 1996 by Jack Smith and Sabeer Bhatia and had amassed over 8.5 million users at acquisition.

In 1999, Microsoft sought to acquire Nintendo; however, negotiations were unsuccessful as Nintendo's executives declined the offer according to Xbox co-inventor Kevin Bachus.

On January 7, 2000, Microsoft acquired Seattle-based Visio Corporation for $1.375 billion. Visio’s diagramming software was incorporated into Microsoft's product suite as Microsoft Visio.

Microsoft purchased Navision on July 12, 2002, for $1.33 billion. The acquired technology became the basis for Microsoft Dynamics NAV within the newly formed Microsoft Business Solutions division—later rebranded as Microsoft Dynamics.

On August 13, 2007, Microsoft acquired advertising company aQuantive for $6.333 billion. Ranked fourteenth worldwide by revenue among advertising agencies at that time, aQuantive included subsidiaries such as Avenue A/Razorfish, Atlas Solutions, and DRIVE Performance Solutions.

To strengthen its search capabilities, Microsoft bought Norwegian enterprise search firm Fast Search & Transfer on April 25, 2008, for $1.191 billion.

Microsoft announced its acquisition of Skype Technologies for $8.5 billion on May 10, 2011—the largest deal to date—integrating Skype as a distinct division under former CEO Tony Bates who reported directly to Microsoft's CEO.

On September 2, 2013, Microsoft agreed to purchase Nokia’s mobile hardware division for €3.79 billion plus €1.65 billion to license Nokia’s patents; this arrangement excluded Nokia’s Here mapping service and infrastructure units. The transaction closed in early 2014; however, by May 2016 Microsoft had exited the mobile phone market.

In September 2014, Mojang was acquired by Microsoft for $2.5 billion; this purchase brought the popular game Minecraft under Microsoft's ownership.

Microsoft announced plans to acquire LinkedIn for $26.2 billion on June 13, 2016. LinkedIn continued operating as an independent brand with CEO Jeff Weiner reporting to Satya Nadella; the acquisition was finalized on December 8, 2016.

On June 4, 2018, Microsoft completed its acquisition of GitHub for $7.5 billion paid in stock.

The company declared its intention to acquire ZeniMax Media along with its subsidiaries for $7.5 billion on September 21, 2020; this deal closed on March 9, 2021.

On January 18, 2022, Microsoft announced plans to purchase Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion in cash; following approval from both companies' boards and regulatory review processes, the acquisition was completed on October 13, 2023 at a total cost of $75.4 billion.

Acquisitions

	Date	Company	Industry	Country	Purchase Price (USD)	References
1	REDIRECT Template:Date table sorting	Dynamical Systems Research	Operating system development	Template:USA	Template:Nts
2	REDIRECT Template:Date table sorting	Forethought, Inc.	Software solutions	Template:USA	Template:Nts
3	REDIRECT Template:Date table sorting	Consumers Software	Software products	Template:CAN	—
4	REDIRECT Template:Date table sorting	Fox Software	PC database applications	Template:USA	Template:Nts
5	REDIRECT Template:Date table sorting	Softimage	3-D visualization software distribution	Template:CAN	Template:Nts
6	REDIRECT Template:Date table sorting	Altamira Software	Software development	Template:USA	—

#	Date	Company	Core Business	Country	Acquisition Cost (USD)	References

The table above illustrates Microsoft's targeted acquisitions spanning software, gaming, cloud infrastructure, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and professional networking industries. Among the most substantial transactions are the $8.5 billion acquisition of Skype Technologies in 2011; the $26.2 billion purchase of LinkedIn in 2016; the $7.5 billion buyout of GitHub in 2018; and the $75.4 billion takeover of Activision Blizzard in early 2022. These strategic investments have been crucial in broadening Microsoft's presence and product offerings across cloud computing, enterprise solutions, social platforms, interactive entertainment, and AI-driven technologies.

Stakes

Date	Company	Sector	Country	Investment Amount (USD)	References
REDIRECT Template:Date table sorting	Santa Cruz Operation	Wholesale software distribution	Template:USA	—
REDIRECT Template:Date table sorting	Dorling Kindersley	Reference publishing	Template:UK	Template:Nts
REDIRECT Template:Date table sorting	Stac Electronics	Data compression technology	Template:USA	align="right"| Template:Nts	style="text-align: center;" |

|-

1. REDIRECT Template:Date table sorting

entries continued below:

1. REDIRECT Template:Date table sorting

Date	Company	Industry	Country	Investment Value (USD)	References

Template:UUNet Internet service provision Template:USA style="text-align:center"| — style="text-align:center"|

1. REDIRECT Template:Date table sorting

Template:Wang Laboratories Software consulting services Template:USA align="right"| Template:Nts style="text-align:center"|

1. REDIRECT Template:Date table sorting

Template:Mobile Telecom Technologies Cellular phone technology Template:USA align="right"| Template:Nts style="text-align:center"|

Divestitures

Date	Buyer	Divested Entity	Business Segment	Buyer Location	Transaction Amount (USD)
1989-03-31	Steve Ballmer	Microsoft	Software distribution	USA	46,200,000
1992-06-17	Microsoft	Microsoft	Software distribution	USA	63,750,000
1994-07-06	Microsoft	Microsoft	Software distribution	USA	348,000,000
1994-12-22	TCI Technology Ventures	MSN	Internet service provision	USA	125,000,000
1996-11-15	Microsoft	MSN	Internet service provision	USA	125,000,000
1996-12-19	Proginet	TransAccess	Software products	USA	1,740,000
1998-08-03	Avid Technology	Softimage	3D visualization software	CANADA	284,295,000
1999-09-21	Ticketmaster Online-CitySearch	MSN Sidewalk	Online city guide	USA	340,000,000
2000-02-24	Electronic Arts	DreamWorks Interactive	Video game development	USA	—
2000-08-10	Envoy Communications	Sage Information Consultants	Consulting services	CANADA	23,730,000
2000-09-01	Jupiter Telecommunications	Titus Communications	Cable TV services	JAPAN	—
2000-12-31	Technology Crossover Ventures	Expedia, Inc.	Online travel services	USA	50,000,000
2001-06-26	CNBC	MSN MoneyCentral	Financial data services	USA	—

See also

• List of largest mergers and acquisitions
• Lists of corporate acquisitions and mergers

External links

• Microsoft Investor Relations – Acquisition History
• Visual Guide to Microsoft's Extensive Acquisition Record | Techi.com
• Comprehensive Dashboard and Analysis of Microsoft Acquisitions