Microsoft/Intuit Synergies
There is a great deal of synergy between the Microsoft and Intuit that would be beneficial for Microsoft if an acquisition were to take place. Intuit’s position in the personal finance market would lend a considerable benefit to Microsoft given their difficulty in that market. Microsoft would also be able to take advantage of the similarity in their products and use their considerable marketing advantages to enhance the revenue created by Intuit. In 1994, Bill Gates envisioned an emerging future market as an online marketplace to handle consumer needs. In order for Microsoft to develop its capability to control its own destiny in online entertainment and commerce, it needed to acquire additional core competencies of “cable and/or telephone networks, on-line networks, electronic shopping networks, video on demand, and business networks.” Microsoft needed to evaluate what competencies would be developed in house and which would be acquired in an effort to most efficiently use its human resources and financial assets. With Gate’s vision of the future online consumer, Intuit’s product line could be a great benefit to Microsoft being able to position them as a leader in that market. In terms of market share in the personal finance/checkbook software market, Intuit had a 69% share in units and an 85% share in value. This is in comparison to a 22% and 7% share for Microsoft respectively. Bill Gate’s vision of the future relies heavily on personal financial management and electronic commerce, and with the significant position Intuit has created in the personal finance market, Microsoft would be able to capitalize, integrate and position them for future success. By integrating Intuit’s 7 million users under their own umbrella, they would easily dwarf the second leading firm in the market, Prodigy, which numbered under 2 million users in