Microsoft CEOs Seek Brighter FutureThursday (May 24 12:29 AM ET) i highlight a couple interesting remarks--max
By MIA PENTA, Associated Press Writer
REDMOND, Wash. (AP) - Things seemed to be going so well for the high-tech community, but that was last year.
Now in the wake of declining profits, failing dot-coms and numerous layoffs, business leaders who attended Microsoft's fifth annual CEO summit Wednesday are hoping for a brighter future.
Outside of dot-com start-ups and the telecommunications industry, ``we think spending will be pretty good,'' Microsoft chairman Bill Gates (news - web sites) said during a news conference at the software giant's headquarters here.
He warned that chief executives at the summit are not ``super strong'' predictors of the economy's future, given they had no idea what was in store at the height of the dot-com mania last year.
But the demand for technology will continue into the next decade, Gates said.
``I will speak as an optimist of the opportunities out there,'' he told about 140 CEOs, including Disney's Michael Eisner and home-and-garden guru Martha Stewart, during his opening remarks at the summit.
Software programs that link computers, telephones and other communications devices will change the way business is conducted, and bring improvements in entertainment and in productivity, Gates said.
He stressed the importance of long-term investment in portable PCs and other equipment to allow digital meetings and ready access to available data.
next remark is crucial in my view--max
Development of broadband links to speed access to the Internet continues to be slow. Because of that, and because of broadband's high cost, Gates said he expects many people will continue to use phone-line connections to the Internet for the next few years.
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer predicted that the slowing PC market will be ignited by the upcoming Windows XP operating system, scheduled for release in October.
XP, touted as the most user-friendly version of Windows, features a cleaner, simpler desktop design and allows several users to keep files on one computer private from each other. It also allows an authorized person on one computer to access another computer over the Internet, to fix problems.
Joining Gates at the news conference were Ballmer and three other CEOs: Compaq's Michael Capellas, Citigroup's Sanford Weill and Internet auction site eBay's Meg Whitman.
Whitman said eBay had weathered the downturn well, benefiting from dot-com going-out-of-business sales of used equipment. And she said hiring quality high-tech employees was becoming easier as a result of the dot-com bust. |
