Did Microsoft Alter Windows Sales Figures?

Saxophonist writes "InformationWeek claims to have analyzed Microsoft's most recent Form 10-Q and observed that a reported increase in earnings for the Windows unit may be due to accounting trickery rather than actual sales growth. Microsoft apparently increased its reported revenues for its Windows, Server & Tools, and Office units at least partly through shifting revenues from other units. While there may be nothing 'to suggest the company's revisions violate any accounting rules,' the actual growth in Windows sales was likely nowhere near the high double-digit percentage growth claimed. InformationWeek speculates that revenues from Xbox and Surface may have been among the revenues shifted to the other divisions."

Comments

Accoutant Interview:

[AnonymousClown]

A manager was interviewing accountants for a job. The first accountant came in and the boss asked, "What's 2+2?"

The first guy says, "4".

The mgr thanked him for his time and dismissed him because he was too honest. Then he called the second guy in. "What's 2+2?", he asked again.

"5" was the response.

He was thanked and rejected because he was incompetent, The manager then asked the third accountant in. "What's 2+2?"

The third accountant answered, "What do you want it to be?"

He was hired on the spot.

Re:Company released sales figures

[dkleinsc]

Except of course that people are using these numbers to do something important.

And this isn't just an idle problem: There have been colleges, pension funds, charitable foundations, and retirees crippled financially for decades because they looked at companies like Enron which were generating good consistent returns and decided that it was a good investment. This stuff does real damage to people, and the SEC simply doesn't have the resources to stop it.