Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has send a letter to shareholders in which he states that Microsoft wants to develop more products for which the company creates both the hardware and the software. The company is currently pursuing this business model with the Xbox and Surface tablets, where Microsoft has designed the hardware and developed the software / OS. Unfortunately the letter doesn't say the reasoning behind this decision, but the success of Apple might have something to do with it, they do nothing else than selling their own hardware with their own software.
While according to Ballmer this isn't the end of the open Windows eco-system where OEMs develop the hardware and install Windows on it, the OEMs aren't too happy with the fact that Microsoft is going to compete with them. Before, the CEO of Acer already warned Microsoft to 'think twice' before launching competing hardware. And while Nokia exclusively makes phones with Windows Phone, there are also rumors that Microsoft wants to develop their own phone which could bring tensions between both tech giants.
