Q4'09 Revenue Down Across the Board

Revenue and profits were down steeply from the previous year in Microsoft’s quarter ended June 30, 2009 (the fourth quarter of Microsoft’s 2009 fiscal year), with revenue down 17% to US$13.10 billion and net income down 29% to US$3.05 billion. For the first time in company history, annual revenue and net income also declined, dropping 3% and 18%, respectively. The decline was driven by poor sales of PC and server hardware and tight IT budgets, and although the company sees some signs that economic conditions are improving, it did not predict when growth would resume.

(For an overview of Microsoft’s recent financial performance, see “Microsoft Financials for the Last Five Quarters“.)

Segment Results

For the first time since Microsoft began reporting operating results by business segment, quarterly revenue decreased from the previous year in all five segments. However, PC and server hardware shipments increased slightly from the previous quarter, giving the company some reason for optimism.