Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) on Monday introduced a portfolio of new solutions that will work seamlessly with its Windows Azure hosted cloud services, saying that the products will help businesses thrive in the era of cloud computing and connected devices.
The software giant also said it has agreed to acquire InCycle Software Inc.'s InRelease business unit. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
InRelease is a release management solution for Microsoft .NET and Windows Server applications. Microsoft noted that the acquisition of InRelease will extend its offerings in the application lifecycle management and DevOps market.
At the TechEd North America 2013 conference that is aimed at IT professionals and enterprise developers, Microsoft introduced upcoming releases of its key enterprise IT solutions for hybrid cloud, including Windows Server 2012 R2, System Center 2012 R2 and SQL Server 2014. The company noted that the products will be available in preview later in June.
Microsoft noted that using these products, enterprises can make IT services and applications available across clouds and scale them up or down according to business needs. Windows Server 2012 R2 and System Center 2012 R2 are slated for release by the end of calendar year 2013, while SQL Server 2014 is scheduled for release shortly thereafter.
Further, Microsoft also announced the public preview of Windows Azure BizTalk Services for enterprise integration solutions, both on-premises and in the cloud.
Brad Anderson, Server & Tools Corporate Vice President said, "The products and services introduced today illustrate how Microsoft is the company that businesses can bet on as they embrace cloud computing, deliver critical applications, and empower employee productivity in new and exciting ways. Only Microsoft connects the dots for the enterprise from 'client to cloud."
During the keynote address, Iain McDonald, Partner Director of Program Management for Windows,detailed key business features in the recently announced Windows 8.1 update.
McDonald said that new networking features in Windows 8.1 aim to improve mobile productivity for the workforce, with system-on-a-chip-integrated mobile broadband, native Miracast wireless display and near field communication or NFC-based pairing with enterprise printers.
Microsoft said it will release a public preview of the Windows 8.1 update for Windows 8 and Windows RT customers at the Build 2013 developer conference in San Francisco on June 26.
At the TechEd conference, Microsoft also introduced Visual Studio 2013, and demonstrated new capabilities for improving the application lifecycle, both on-premises and in the cloud. The company noted that a preview of Visual Studio 2013 is slated for release in the coming weeks, timed with the Build conference.
In addition, Microsoft announced new benefits that will enable Microsoft Developer Network or MSDN subscribers to more easily develop and test more applications with Windows Azure.
According to the company, new enhancements include up to $150 worth of Windows Azure platform services per month at no additional cost for Visual Studio Professional, Premium or Ultimate MSDN subscribers and new use rights to run select MSDN software in the cloud.
Meanwhile, technology news website AllThingsD reported Monday, citing sources close to the situation, that Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is working on a likely restructuring of the company that will focus on configuring Microsoft around devices and services. As part of the restructuring, several current executives at the company could likely be moved to more prominent roles.
Bloomberg reported that Microsoft will cut the price of its Windows software for small tablets. The company is reportedly trying to get more manufacturers to adopt Windows RT, a version of its flagship software for tablets, with the price cuts affecting Windows RT for small-sized tablets.
In Monday's regular trading session, MSFT is trading at $35.21, up $0.31 or 0.89 percent on a volume of 15.28 million shares.
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