Microsoft: 10,000 patents, $9 billion annually in research...and we get Vista?

Preston Gralla

In the last two weeks, Microsoft has touted its technological prowess, noting that it spends $9 billion annually in research and development, and was just awarded its 10,000th patent. Kudos to Microsoft for that...but shouldn't we get more than Vista out of it?

Last week, Steve Ballmer spoke at the Democratic Caucus retreat, and he noted that despite the economic downturn, Microsoft will spend $9 billion annually for research and development. Here's what he told the caucus:

Despite the tough economy -- I might even say because of the tough economy -- our company will continue to invest more than US $9 billion a year in R&D, because we think it's that R&D spending that will cause us to remain strong.

You can read his entire speech here.

Then this week, Microsoft made much of the fact that the company was just awarded its 10,000th patent. The Seattle Tech Report notes that it was U.S. Patent No. 7,479,950, for "Manipulating association of data with a physical object." It's for Microsoft's Surface table-top computer. The report adds that Microsoft was issued the fourth most patents of any U.S. company.

Here's the patent.

In addition, ars technica reports that

the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) ranked Microsoft's patent portfolio first across all industries in terms of its power and influence for the second year in a row.

What does this all mean? Clearly, Microsoft has long committed itself to research and innovation, and it plans to stay that way, possibly for as long as the company lives. For that, it should be held up as a model.

But all that begs the question: With $9 billion spent annually on R & D, and 10,000 patents, couldn't the company do better than Vista? I'm one of Vista's few fans, but even I recognize that it's got plenty of shortcomings.

I'm also a fan of Windows 7. But is it $9 billion worth of operating system? Ten thousand patents worth?

I know that I'm being simplistic here. Microsoft has a tremendously large technology portfolio, and its research and patents are spread out among them. In addition, the nature of research is that that much of what is learned does not go directly into products, and never will. So I hope that Microsoft continues spending the way it has on research.

But I also suspect that there's a missing link somewhere between research and actual products. Microsoft needs a better pipeline between its researchers and those who are on the front lines designing, coding, and releasing products. I'd like to see the company continue its research spending. But I'd also like to see that research turn into better operating systems.

Original here