Microsoft Tops European Commission Global R&D Investment League Table
Microsoft has been ranked as the No. 1 global investor in R&D by the European Commission’s 2008 EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard report. The Scorecard is published less than two weeks after Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer’s visit to Europe (29 September to 3 October), where he highlighted Microsoft’s long and productive research and development relationship with Europe.
The European Commission Scorecard reported that Microsoft’s R&D investments exceeded €5.58 billion in 2007, showing a 14.6 per cent year on year increase, significantly outstripping the global average of 9 per cent.
“Microsoft sees Europe as a critical innovation resource, central to its global R&D strategy, and has an expanding network of more than 40 research and development facilities in 19 EU nations. Announcing significant new Microsoft R&D investments in Europe on 2 October Ballmer said, “To compete in a global, innovation-driven economy, we need to draw on the talent and skills of the world’s smartest, most creative minds. Increasingly, we are turning to Europe to find the talent we need. With 2,000 scientists, engineers, and developers, Europe has Microsoft’s largest concentration of R&D staff outside the United States.”
The report looks at R&D investment data from 2,000 participating companies’ own accounts over the 2007/8 financial year.
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