Wait, does All Things D / BoomTown actually agree with Microsoft on Software-plus-services?
Did I just hear Kara Swisher from All Things Digital’s BoomTown blog let it slip that she agrees with Microsoft on “Software-plus-services”? 
Kara interviewed Stephen Elop, President of Microsoft’s Business Division, about 10 days back and asked him about his view on innovation and trends in the industry. See interview below (the Software-plus-services stuff starts about 1:45 in).
I think Kara works hard to be neutral and balanced in her reporting, and this interview is a good example of that. As she discloses on BoomTown, she’s also married to a Google VP, and I’ve never known Kara to go easy on Microsoft. So getting validation from Kara on Software-plus-services (albeit with a subtle poke at Microsoft for coining the new term) is noteworthy.
By the way, Software-plus-services also shows up in a session title at Interop Las Vegas this May. Is the concept starting to get some recognition as a distinct and valuable evolution from “pure-play” SaaS?
If you’re not familiar with the Software-plus-services term, it’s first and foremost an evolutionary industry trend to marry the best of rich experiences in software with services from the cloud. Elop does a nice job explaining it in the video (at Kara’s request), and gives examples of the Facebook iPhone app, Amazon Kindle, and Google Chrome (which is both a browser and a delivery vehicle for Google-made rich client software).
Internally at Microsoft, Software-plus-services is also a strategy to lead the industry at enabling amazing experiences that bring together the best of software in the cloud, on servers, and across a wide array of “edge” devices – PCs, phones, cars, and more.
You can learn more about Software-plus-services here.
Enjoy the video!
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About john.mullinax
John Mullinax is a Platform Strategy Advisor with Microsoft's DPE Team. Before joining Microsoft in 2006, John held a vartiety of positions at Ford Motor Company, most recently leading IT services strategy to support explosive business growth in China. Other positions included: Enterprise Architect, Application Portfolio Management, Technology Governance, and Product Manager. Prior to joining Ford, John earned his MBA at the University of Washington. Before that, he was Director of Elections for Douglas County, Washington, where he conducted the first Federal mail-ballot election in the USA. Subsequently, he joined the Secretary of State's office as a consultant working with county election officials in Washington state to improve operational effectiveness, integrity, and security (aka, to prevent the kind of debacle we saw in Florida in 2000).
