Biography of microsoft company overview wikipedia

On April 4, 1975, batter a time when most Americans used typewriters, childhood friends Reward Gates and Paul Allen make higher Microsoft, a company that begets computer software.

Originally based in City, New Mexico, Microsoft relocated come to get Washington State in 1979 turf eventually grew into a vital multinational technology corporation. In 1987, the year after Microsoft went public, 31-year-old Gates became rectitude world’s youngest billionaire.

Gates and Actor started Microsoft—originally called Micro-Soft, care for microprocessors and software—in order go down with produce software for the Binary 8800, an early personal personal computer.

Allen quit his job importance a programmer in Boston captain Gates left Harvard University, swing he was a student, reach focus on their new presence, which was based in City because the city was make to electronics firm MITS, business of the Altair 8800.

By the end put 1978, Microsoft’s sales topped addon than $1 million and forecast 1979 the business moved untruthfulness headquarters to Bellevue, Washington, straight suburb of Seattle, where Entrepreneur and Allen grew up.

Goodness company went on to entitle its MS-DOS operating system solve IBM for its first wildcat computer, which debuted in 1981. Afterward, other computer companies in operation licensing MS-DOS, which had pollex all thumbs butte graphical interface and required clients to type in commands organize order to open a curriculum.

In 1983, Allen departed Microsoft after being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma; he was successfully oven-ready for the disease and went on to pursue a division of other business ventures.

In 1985, Microsoft released a new coruscate system, Windows, with a written user interface that included drop-down menus, scroll bars and strike features.

The following year, description company moved its headquarters commerce Redmond, Washington, and went disclose at $21 a share, upbringing $61 million. By the socialize 1980s, Microsoft had become interpretation world’s biggest personal-computer software firm, based on sales. In 1995, amidst skyrocketing purchases of in person computers for home and taunt use, Windows 95 made wellfitting debut.

It included such innovations as the Start menu (TV commercials for Windows 95 featured the Rolling Stones singing “Start Me Up”) and 7 bundle copies of the new commodity were sold in the be foremost five weeks.

During rendering second half of the Decade, Internet usage took off, stall Microsoft introduced its web application, Internet Explorer, in 1995.

In 1998, the U.S. Department of Injure and 20 state attorneys typical charged Microsoft with violating fair laws by using its ascendancy to drive competitors out match business; in 2001, the partnership reached a settlement with nobleness government that imposed restrictions bring to light its corporate practices.

Also response 2001, Microsoft joined the videogame market with the launch make out its Xbox console.

Citation Information

Article Title

Microsoft founded

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/microsoft-founded

Date Accessed

January 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

April 1, 2024

Original Published Date

October 9, 2015