Microsoft never recovered from Vista stumble, says CEO

"We got some uneven reception when [Vista] first launched in large part because we made some design decisions to improve security at the expense of compatibility. I don't think from a word-of-mouth perspective we ever recovered from that," said Ballmer.

Sales of PCs are down from 10pc to 15pc from their peak due to the current economic climate. Things just don't seem too positive for the release of Windows 7 scheduled for October 22. Regardless of an economic recession or not, the Vista was an object of annoyance among PC users because of its tendency to stall machines while deleting, copying and moving files.

The CEO of Microsoft remains optimistic that there will be a pick up in demand for "new equipment" in the coming months which is what Microsoft need to boost sales for their PCs and Windows 7 in particular.

Despite the Vista setback, Ballmer insists that Microsoft will continue its acquisition spree and the company is likely buy 15 more companies this year. Microsoft has recently pledged to invest 5pc to 10pc of their operating income on improving and marketing their existing products and services.

Microsoft's reputation among consumers took a serious beating after Vista's poor performance in the market. It will be difficult to judge if the Windows 7 could cut it as a better operating system until its official launch in October. Till then, Microsoft can only hope.