But some analysts questioned whether buying up the mobile business of Nokia, the fading star of the cellphone world, would aid Microsoft.
Microsoft, based in Redmond, Wash., has been racing to catch up with customers who are increasingly pursuing their digital lives on smartphones and tablet computers rather than traditional PCs. The shift is weakening Microsoft, which has dominated the PC software market for the past 30 years, and empowering Apple Inc., the maker of the trend-setting iPhone and iPad, and Google Inc., which gives away the world’s most popular mobile operating system, Android.
Microsoft is now betting it will have a better chance of narrowing the gap with its rivals if it seizes complete control over how mobile devices work with its Windows software.
But speaking to investors and analysts later Tuesday, Microsoft CEO Steven Ballmer admitted that the company still has to play catch-up with the likes of Apple and Android.
“We know we need to accelerate. We’re not confused about that,” he said.
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