There won’t be another Bill Gates, analysts say

SEATTLE — Analysts doubt whether anyone could wield the same power and influence at Microsoft Corp. as Chairman Bill Gates, who said Thursday he plans to step down from his duties as chief software architect.

“The most important title he had wasn’t chief software architect, it was Bill Gates,” said Greg DeMichillie, senior analyst for Directions on Microsoft, an independent research firm in Kirkland.

As the co-founder of Microsoft, Gates often had the final word. He certainly had everyone’s ear, DeMichillie said.

“He could change the technical direction of products,” he said.

Gates, 50, said he wants to remain the company’s chairman indefinitely after transferring his duties over a two-year period so he can concentrate on the charitable work of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the world’s largest philanthropic organization.

Analysts said it was inevitable that Gates would relinquish control of the company he founded with childhood friend Paul Allen. Gates frequently has talked about giving the bulk of his wealth to charity.

“Gates has always made it clear that he’d be giving the vast majority of it away,” DeMichillie said. “This is a well thought-out succession plan.”

“It’s clearly the end of an era. He was THE visionary that made Microsoft what it is. Now the company is going to go through a transition,” said Michael Miller, chief content officer for Ziff Davis Media in New York and PC Magazine columnist.

Miller said Gates’ leaving is a sign Microsoft is adopting a more service and Web-oriented approach.

“It’s a big change for Microsoft. Bill has been involved in every major product the company has put out. It’s good it’s a long transition.”

Microsoft’s Chief Technical Officer Ray Ozzie will immediately assume Gate’s title as chief software architect and begin working with Gates on overseeing all software technical design.

Chief Technical Officer Craig Mundie will immediately take the new title of chief research and strategy officer and will work with Gates in those areas. Mundie also will work with general counsel Brad Smith to guide Microsoft’s intellectual property and technology policy efforts.

Gates was probably the biggest advocate for designing products as a group, said Rob Helm, director of Directions on Microsoft.