From, quarterly earnings calls to top secret 3D video platforms, here are some extracts from popular news stories this week.
5 Highlights from Microsoft’s Quarterly Results
Microsoft has published its quarterly results amid a period of financial turbulence, beating expectations despite a slowdown in cloud growth.
Sales in the three-month period to 30 September 2022 grew 11 percent to $50.1bn.
However, against a backdrop of uncertainty, the vendor’s cloud unit reported revenue below market expectations. Sales generated from Azure, the heart of Microsoft’s cloud business, saw sales rise 35 percent against 40 percent in the previous quarter.
Guidance given for the current quarter was also considered weak by analysts, leading to a share price drop of six percent after the results were published.
Despite this, Microsoft Teams continues to see impressive growth. The Microsoft exec team picked out several highlights from the quarter to demonstrate the collaboration platform’s continued strength in the market.
However, Microsoft stopped short of releasing solid usage numbers, failing to provide an updated figure on the 270 million monthly active users it revealed earlier this year.
Partnerships and Hybrid Work Innovations Revealed at WebexOne 2022
Cisco has made a host of announcements to its Webex Suite during the WebexOne 2022 event.
Along with updates to the Webex Suite, the company also revealed a new collaboration device and partnerships to help expand its collaboration footprint.
Jeetu Patel, EVP and GM Cisco Security and Collaboration, commented: “Hybrid work is both different and harder than how we worked before.
“Regardless of job function – frontline worker, knowledge worker, IT admin or contact centre agent – people expect and deserve an amazing experience no matter where or how they work.
“This requires a holistic solution that only Cisco can deliver with its integrated platform across collaboration software, devices, networking and security.”
According to Cisco, the innovations have been designed to help customers navigate any challenges they face as offices reopen and give people flexibility over their working patterns.
Google Expands Testing of Top Secret 3D Video Platform
Google has revealed that testing on its Project Starline is set to be expanded through an early access program.
The project is a 3D video chat platform that uses multiple cameras and sensors to build up an image of a participant from different perspectives and present them to another participant.
The company has confirmed that Project Starline prototypes have been deployed in Google offices across the United States of America, with employees using the technology for meetings, employee onboarding and collaborating with colleagues.
Andrew Nartker, Director, Product Management, commented: “As hybrid work expands its footprint, how we work and collaborate continues to evolve.
“We’re continuing to explore ways to bring teams together and facilitate employee connection from afar through technology.
“That’s why last year we announced Project Starline, a technology project that enables coworkers to feel like they are together, even when they are cities apart.
“The technology works like a magic window, where users can talk, gesture and make eye contact with another person, life-size and in three dimensions.”
