Microsoft 4Q net income surges 48%

Microsoft says businesses are beginning to spend money on technology again after freezing their budgets during the financial crisis.

MICROSOFT Corp said on Thursday that its net income surged 48 per cent in the most recent quarter, the latest sign that businesses are again spending money on technology.

Strong sales of Windows, particularly to Microsoft's corporate customers, helped boost results in the fiscal fourth quarter. Microsoft said it has sold more than 175 million licences of the newest version, Windows 7, since it went on sale last year.

Big businesses stopped replacing aging computers, servers and software during the worst of the recession. Last quarter, the software maker said it saw signs that its corporate customers were starting to spend again.

This quarter's results, which follow a strong report from chipmaker Intel Corp, show the trend has continued. Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Peter Klein said billings for its multi year agreements with big companies increased in the quarter.

For the April-June period, Microsoft's net income jumped to $US4.52 billion ($A5.16 billion), or 51 cents per share, from $US3.05 billion ($A3.48 billion), or 34 cents per share, last year.

Revenue rose 22 per cent to $US16.04 billion ($A18.3 billion), from $US13.1 billion ($A14.94 billion) in the same period a year ago.

The results were stronger than Wall Street had expected. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters had forecast net income of 45 cents per share on $US15.3 billion ($A17.45 billion) in revenue.

Revenue for the group that makes Windows increased 44 per cent to $US4.5 billion ($A5.13 billion), more than a quarter of Microsoft's total. The division that makes Office 2010 and other business software saw revenue rise 15 per cent to $US5.3 billion ($A6.05 billion).

Microsoft's server software group reported a 14 per cent increase in revenue to $US4 billion ($A4.56 billion).

Klein said Microsoft's currency-hedging program protected it from the effects of a stronger US dollar. Otherwise, sales made in foreign currencies would have translated into fewer US dollars.