Steven Anthony Ballmer is an American businessman, investor and philanthropist who was the chief executive officer of Microsoft from January 2000 to February 2014, and is the current owner of the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association . As of January 2018, his personal wealth is estimated at US$38.7 billion, ranking him the 21st richest person in the world.
Ballmer was hired by Bill Gates at Microsoft in 1980 after dropping out of Stanford University. He eventually became President in 1998, and replaced Gates as CEO in 2000. It was announced on August 23, 2013, that he would step down as Microsoft's CEO within 12 months. On February 4, 2014, Ballmer retired as CEO and was succeeded by Satya Nadella; Ballmer resigned from the Board of Directors on August 19, 2014 to prepare for teaching a new class and for the start of the NBA season. On May 29, 2014, Ballmer placed a bid of $2 billion to purchase the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers after NBA commissioner Adam Silver forced Donald Sterling to sell the team. He officially became the Clippers owner on August 12, 2014; Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen is a fellow owner in the NBA, having owned the Portland Trail Blazers since 1988.
His time as Microsoft CEO has been seen as mixed, with critics noting the company's tripling of sales and doubling of profits, but losing its market dominance and missing out on 21st century technology trends.
“I don't think anyone has done a [tablet] product that I see customers wanting.”
Here's Why Surface Beats Apple's iPad: Ballmer, 25 October 2012, 2014-02-28, CNBC's Squawk Box http://cnbc.com/id/49551054,
2010s
[17 January 2000, https://web.archive.org/web/20021220014429/http://www.microsoft.com/freedomtoinnovate/newsletter/finnews_011700.asp, "DOJ Case: Your Voice Counts!", Freedom to Innovate Network, Microsoft, 2018-01-03]
2000s
" Microsoft CEO takes launch break with the Sun-Times https://web.archive.org/web/20011108013601/http://www.suntimes.com/output/tech/cst-fin-micro01.html" (1 June 2001) Chicago Sun Times
2000s
“We've had DRM in Windows for years. The most common format of music on an iPod is "stolen."”
[John, Lettice, http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/10/07/ballmer_doesnt_get_it/, Love DRM or my family starves: why Steve Ballmer doesn't Get It, Software, The Register, 7 October 2004, 2007-04-20]
2000s
Business Insider: "Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has advice for Facebook and Google: Don't make the mistake we did" http://www.businessinsider.com/ex-microsoft-ceo-steve-baller-tech-industry-work-with-regulators-2018-6?r=UK&IR=T (23 June 2018)
2010s
Worth Watching: Steve Ballmer in the heart of Silicon Valley http://blogs.zdnet.com/Foremski/?p=308&tag=rbxccnbzd1 in ZDNet (26 September 2008)
2000s
“Most people still steal music.”
[Andy, and Michael Parsons, McCue, http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9593_22-5397733.html, Ballmer talks tech, Application Development, ZDNet News, 5 October 2004, 2007-04-20]
2000s
Yahoo Finance: "Ex-Microsoft CEO Ballmer: How Silicon Valley should handle some of its most vexing questions" https://finance.yahoo.com/news/ex-microsoft-ceo-ballmer-silicon-valley-handle-vexing-questions-182046774.html (22 June 2018)
2010s
Ballmer says Google's hiring pace is 'insane', Bloomberg News, 16 March 2007, 2007-04-20 http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/307730_msftgoogle16.html,
2000s
Steve Ballmer says Microsoft plans to compete with Apple in every market http://appleinsider.com/articles/12/07/10/steve_ballmer_says_microsoft_plans_to_compete_with_apple_in_every_market in AppleInsider (10 July 2012)
2010s
And I said "Right," and I never came back.
CNBC: "How Steve Ballmer went from making $50,000 a year as an assistant at Microsoft to becoming a billionaire" https://www.cnbc.com/2018/07/27/billionaire-steve-ballmer-started-out-making-only-50000-at-microsoft.html (27 July 2018)
2010s
Interview by CNET https://www.cnet.com/news/microsoft-vp-steve-ballmer-speaks/ (May 1996)
1990s
“Google’s not a real company. It's a house of cards.”
2005 court records as quoted by Kurt Eichenwald in Microsoft's Lost Decade http://vanityfair.com/news/business/2012/08/microsoft-lost-mojo-steve-ballmer Vanity Fair (August 2012)
Attributed
Ballmer sees Mac as a main competitor, iPhone as just buzz http://appleinsider.com/articles/09/02/24/ballmer_sees_mac_as_a_main_competitor_iphone_as_just_buzz.html in AppleInsider (24 February 2009)
2000s
“We are in the Windows era — we were, we are, and we always will be.”
Ballmer: We Will ALWAYS Be In The Windows Era http://businessinsider.com/ballmer-shareholders-meeting-2011-11 in Business Insider (15 November 2011)
2010s
Ballmer's New Mission for Microsoft, 29 October 2012, 2014-02-28, The Wall Street Journal http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052970204789304578087112202063912,
2010s
Ballmer: "The Internet Was Designed For The PC. The Internet Is Not Designed For The iPhone" http://businessinsider.com/henry-blodget-ballmer-the-internet-was-designed-for-the-pc-the-internet-is-not-designed-for-the-iphone-2009-10 in Business Insider (21 October 2009)
2000s
“I've got my kids brainwashed: You don't use Google, and you don't use an iPod.”
[Telis, Demos, http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2006/04/03/8373041/index.htm, The sleeping giant goes on the offensive, Fortune, CNNMoney.com, 29 March 2006, 2007-04-20]
2000s
TechCrunch Interview With Steve Ballmer http://youtube.com/watch?v=1OpRQMRa270 in YouTube (24 September 2009)
2000s
25th Anniversary Event of Microsoft at Seattle http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvsboPUjrGc (5 September 2000).
2000s
Live from Microsoft's CES 2011 keynote http://engadget.com/2011/01/05/live-from-microsofts-ces-2011-keynote in Engadget (5 January 2011)
2010s
“There's no chance that the iPhone is going to get any significant market share. No chance.”
CEO Forum: Microsoft's Ballmer having a 'great time', 2007-04-30, USA TODAY http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/management/2007-04-29-ballmer-ceo-forum-usat_N.htm,
2000s
Steve Ballmer - Developers, 2017-04-02, YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhh_GeBPOhs,
2000s
