Tensions between Microsoft and Intel have been easing in recent months

Abstract: Relationship alienation when Microsoft launched its Surface tablet earlier this year, Intel executives were shocked: Microsoft started developing its own branded tablet, including a product that uses Intel's chips, but didn't notify Intel, nor did it seek

Distant relationship

When Microsoft launched the Surface tablet earlier this year, Intel executives were shocked: Microsoft started developing its own branded tablet-including a product that uses Intel's chips-but did not notify Intel or ask for help. Like other Microsoft partners, Intel got the message before surface was about to be released and did not play any role in the conference. Microsoft decided to do it like Apple.

Microsoft's decision reflects the embarrassing reality of the Wintel Alliance, where the two companies, both in the software and chip sectors, have grown more and more in recent years. With the development of mobile devices, the original solid relationships in the PC industry began to falter, forcing major technology companies to make new alliances. The challenge for Intel and Microsoft is particularly acute: it has to adapt to new computing patterns and avoid making its technology obsolete.

"If two strong companies can be mutually beneficial, the situation will be good." "But if both Microsoft and Intel are underperforming in the mobile market, the relationship will start to burst," said Patrick Moorhead, a market research firm Moor Insights & Strategy analyst Patrick Mohaid. Microsoft does not believe that Intel can reduce the energy consumption or price of the processor, thereby helping them to expand the mobile market. ”

The latest evidence of estrangement was in Tuesday, when Otellini, the CEO of Intel, said at a meeting that Microsoft was not yet fully ready to release Windows 8. In Wednesday, Intel issued a statement reaffirming that it would support Microsoft and Windows.

"Windows 8 is one of the best products Intel has ever seen." "Intel said.

Of course, Intel's collaboration with Microsoft will continue. The new generation of windows will surely push up the sales of the next generation of Intel chips, allowing two companies to continue to dominate their respective areas. But for both sides, the road in recent years has been really bumpy.

The root of the contradiction

The root of the problem is smartphones and tablets, and as PC growth slows, moving into the mobile sector is a priority for Intel and Microsoft. However, both sides are underperforming in this market.

According to Gartner, a market research firm, Windows phone accounted for only 2.7% of global handset sales in the second quarter of this year. Although Intel has made some headway in the mobile market, it is still not enough to capture much of its share in the smartphone and tablet industries. There are only a handful of handsets using Intel chips, including the recently released Motorola RAZR I. Both Microsoft and Intel said the mobile market was still in its infancy, but they did fall behind.

The rise of the mobile industry poses a test for the Wintel Alliance. Both Intel and Microsoft have distanced themselves from each other in planning their respective strategies. Microsoft has developed a new windows that is no longer compatible with Intel and AMD processors, and has instead supported low energy products such as Qualcomm. Intel allied itself with Google's Android operating system and began to develop its own system.

The rift between Microsoft and Intel may have come from the keynote address of Microsoft CEO Ballmer Steve Ballmer in January 2011 at the International Consumer Electronics Show ("CES"). Mr Ballmer said the next generation of Windows would be the first Windows system compatible with the ARM architecture.

Such chips are produced by companies such as Qualcomm, NVIDIA and Texas Instruments, and are typically less energy efficient than PC chips such as Intel and AMD. Thanks to this advantage, ARM chips are almost all adopted by mobile devices, including the iphone and ipad.

Windows phone phones now use Qualcomm chips, and Microsoft's Surface tablet uses Nvidia's processors. Another surface, although using Intel chips, still needs to be cooled by a fan. The device uses Intel's notebook processors rather than the mobile (atom) processors developed for smartphones and tablets.

To find a new love

Intel has a big headache from Microsoft's promise to support arm chips. Renee James, Intel software business director, said at an investor conference in May 2011 that Windows RT was not compatible with older Windows software Rennie James. Microsoft then retorted, issuing a statement to several media that Renee's statement was "inaccurate or misleading". But Microsoft did not express the error, and the company subsequently said that legacy Windows apps did not work in Windows Rt.

Intel claims its chip energy efficiency has been very close to arm. The company said it would now consider energy efficiency when designing chips, and that the chips would be used by many different smartphones, tablets and lightweight notebooks. Motorola, Lenovo and other companies have launched or are about to launch the use of Intel chip handsets, other manufacturers may also follow up.

CES 2011 caused the Wintel alliance to sink into a slump, and Microsoft has since rarely mentioned the chip partner in various conferences, but is more willing to emphasize the advantages of its own products. At the recent Computex and Mobile World Congress, Microsoft has made little mention of Intel.

With Microsoft starting to forge alliances with Intel's rivals, Intel is also working with other software vendors. At the September 2011 Intel Developer Conference, Otellini announced that the company would work more closely with Google's Android operating system. The two companies will work together to optimize the Android system for Intel chips to make it easier for Android phone makers to use Intel processors.

Although no specific amount has been disclosed, Intel has since been investing heavily in the Android system. The most notable example is that Intel has recruited about 1200 engineers in the past few years to work on Android development. The company did not disclose the number of Windows engineers, but it could reach thousands of people.

Intel is also working on its own open source operating system, first with Nokia to develop Meego, but failed, and then worked with Samsung to develop the Tizen system. It is reported that Samsung will launch the Tizen smartphone by the end of this year or early next year.

Reshaping relationships

Some insiders say the tension between Microsoft and Intel has been easing in recent months. This is partly because Windows RT encountered some resistance.

Microsoft has limited the number of manufacturers that can develop tablets and deformable notebooks for the system, hoping to tighten control over product design and ensure product quality. But some PC makers, including HP and Toshiba, have abandoned plans to develop Windows RT devices immediately. Industry insiders suspect that other manufacturers ' equipment may not be released until next year.

HP and Toshiba are still planning to develop Windows 8 devices, but they have changed their plans after Microsoft accidentally launched the Surface tablet computer. Intel has little knowledge of the device, but Microsoft's other chips and PC partners are also unaware. Industry insiders believe that the reason for the company's own development of surface tablets, the main reason is worried about the quality of the partner's equipment.

Despite Paul Otellini's comments, Windows 8 still seems to have made decent progress. Intel says it has worked with PC partners to develop 20 Windows 8 Tablet PCs and will showcase some of its products in Thursday.

A 30-year-old Wintel Alliance is "still solid and Windows 8 offers a new opportunity to showcase innovation," a spokesman for Intel said in Wednesday. "Includes a touch screen, power management, security, graphics and multimedia and many other new features.

At the same time, Microsoft has just reiterated that Windows 8 was the most tested operating system in the history of the company, but has not commented more.

Ultimately, Microsoft and Intel still depend on each other. While they are all exploring the mobile world, most of their revenue still comes from PCs. Chip makers, based on ARM architecture, have said they will someday enter the traditional computing world, but for now, Intel or AMD processors are still the best choice for laptops and desktops.

If Windows 8 fails, it will be bad for Intel and Microsoft. Success would be an important opportunity for them to expand their mobile landscape. In any case, the fate of Intel and Microsoft will continue to be interconnected.