微软宣布CEO鲍尔默12个月内辞职

 　　Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, who helped Bill Gates transform the company from a tiny startup into the world's most valuable business, announced plans on Friday to retire sometime in the next year - a move that presents another challenge to the tech giant as it struggles to move beyond the era of the personal computer.

　　Microsoft and other companies that thrived in the PC business have been scrambling¹ to win back consumers who increasingly prefer smartphones and tablets.

　　Microsoft shares leaped as much as 9 percent in pre-market trading and closed up 7.3 percent at $34.76, after the surprise announcement sparked a rally in the stock.

　　Detractors say Ballmer contributed to the situation by not taking early threats from Apple and Google seriously enough. He consistently pooh-poohed Google as a one-trick company and in 2007 declared: "No chance that the iPhone is going to get any significant market share."

　　Ballmer's jeers² proved premature³. Google quickly made important inroads in Internet video, online maps, e-mail and mobile computing⁴. Those successes contributed to the damage that Apple's iPhone and iPad did to Microsoft and its partners in the PC market.

　　Although it derives⁵ some three-quarters of its revenue from sales of software and services to businesses, Microsoft has failed to capture the imagination of consumers who have become more enamored with mobile gadgets⁶. Response to the newest version of its flagship Windows operating system, Windows 8, has been lukewarm.

　　When Ballmer took the helm in January 2000, the company was worth more than $601 billion. Today, its value is less than half that amount, at nearly $270 billion.

　　"There is never a perfect time for this type of transition, but now is the right time," Ballmer, 57, said in a statement. He plans to stay on until a replacement⁷ is found. Microsoft said the search committee will include Gates.

　　After the news broke, Microsoft's stock shot up as much as 9 percent and later came within $2 of a 52-week high.

　　Ballmer's announcement comes less than two months after the company unveiled a sweeping⁸ reorganization of its business in an attempt to catch up with Apple and Google.

　　In his statement, Ballmer noted⁹ that Microsoft is moving in a new direction and needs a CEO that will be there for the longer term.

　　Microsoft, he added, "has all its best days ahead".

　　Ballmer met Gates in 1973 while they were living down a dormitory hall from each other at Harvard University. He joined Microsoft in 1980 to bring some business discipline and salesmanship to a company that had just landed a contract to supply an operating system for a personal computer that IBM would release in 1981.

1 scrambling   

v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞

参考例句：

• Scrambling up her hair, she darted out of the house. 她匆忙扎起头发，冲出房去。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• She is scrambling eggs. 她正在炒蛋。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 jeers   

n.操纵帆桁下部（使其上下的）索具；嘲讽( jeer的名词复数 )v.嘲笑( jeer的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They shouted jeers at him. 他们大声地嘲讽他。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The jeers from the crowd caused the speaker to leave the platform. 群众的哄笑使讲演者离开讲台。 来自辞典例句

3 premature   

adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的

参考例句：

• It is yet premature to predict the possible outcome of the dialogue.预言这次对话可能有什么结果为时尚早。
• The premature baby is doing well.那个早产的婴儿很健康。

4 computing   

n.计算

参考例句：

• to work in computing 从事信息处理
• Back in the dark ages of computing, in about 1980, they started a software company. 早在计算机尚未普及的时代（约1980年），他们就创办了软件公司。

5 derives   

v.得到( derive的第三人称单数 )；（从…中）得到获得；源于；（从…中）提取

参考例句：

• English derives in the main from the common Germanic stock. 英语主要源于日耳曼语系。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He derives his income from freelance work. 他以自由职业获取收入。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 gadgets   

n.小机械，小器具（ gadget的名词复数 ）

参考例句：

• Certainly. The idea is not to have a house full of gadgets. 当然。设想是房屋不再充满小配件。 来自超越目标英语 第4册
• This meant more gadgets and more experiments. 这意味着要设计出更多的装置，做更多的实验。 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史

7 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

8 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

9 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。