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Shake-up at Microsoft

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, left, and Jeff Raikes, Microsoft president of business, listen during a press conference after the company's
Associated Press The Spokesman-Review
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, left, and Jeff Raikes, Microsoft president of business, listen during a press conference after the company's

SEATTLE — Microsoft Corp. announced a shake-up Thursday of the unit that includes its flagship Windows operating system, two days after the company admitted it won’t have its next consumer version of Windows ready for the holiday season as planned.

Under the changes, Microsoft said Steven Sinofsky, a high-ranking executive currently in charge of developing many of the company’s Office business products, will lead a new group that includes Windows and Windows Live, a key effort to provide more Web-based offerings.

Microsoft said Sinofsky will focus on planning future versions of Windows, while outgoing Windows executive Jim Allchin will work closely with another Microsoft executive, Brian Valentine, to finish the long-delayed Windows Vista.

Microsoft also said Ben Fathi, a Windows executive currently working on storage and file systems, will replace Mike Nash as head of its Security Technology Unit. Nash will take on another, as yet unannounced role at Microsoft.

On Tuesday, Microsoft said the consumer version of Windows Vista, its much anticipated new operating system release, would be delayed until early next year, missing the all-important holiday season. Some versions will be released to big businesses in November. Microsoft blamed the delay on setbacks in completing security enhancements and other functions.

The Redmond-based software maker said the restructuring is aimed at improving its online strategy, making quicker decisions without going through layers of executive approval, and responding more nimbly to online competitors.

The reorganization also will create a group to focus on the engineering of new online products, and another to handle business functions, such as marketing and advertising sales, for those products.

Other groups will work on the core operating system and on servers and software tools.

As previously announced, Allchin, co-president of the Platforms and Services division, will retire next year. Until then, he and Johnson, formerly a Microsoft sales and marketing executive, will continue to lead the division.

Microsoft shares fell 30 cents, or 1.1 percent, to close Thursday at $26.85 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.