Propelled by the iPhone 4 and continued success of the iPad, Apple has now surpassed Microsoft in quarterly revenue. While Microsoft posted a very respectable $16.2 billion, Apple managed to rocket past them and hit $20.34 billion.
The previous quarter, Microsoft held a small lead of just around $700 million.
However, as TechCrunch points out:
Naturally, it’s important to note that Microsoft still has a lead in profit — $5.41 billion to $4.31 billion — but that’s because one is mainly a software maker (huge margins), while the other is mainly a hardware maker (lower margins). If this trend continues, that will change soon shortly as well. Remember, it’s the holiday quarter now.
In May of 2010, Apple surpassed Microsoft in market capitalization and continues their $52 billion lead.
Despite Microsoft’s declining financial stature compared to Apple, Microsoft CEO Bill Gates still maintains his personal dominance over Apple CEO Steve Jobs. Jobs’ net worth is only $6.1 billion compared to Gates’ $54 billion.