Microsoft has acquired GitHub in a deal which can be considered one of the most significant development to hit the software field in this year. Both the companies were reported to have been in touch to get into some sort of an alliance though things progressed to the extent that GitHub will now be a part of Microsoft.
The acquisition is also in line with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s vision and mission of aligning with coders and developers the world over. In fact, that also has been the core aspect of his tenure so far since taking over as the chief executive in 2014.
The take over also means Microsoft is getting access to 27 million developers right away. The combined workforce is also responsible for the development of about 80 million repositories of code which again applies to just about every facet of human-computer interaction, be it via Windows, Linux, Android, iOS or whatever.
GitHub also said one reason they consented to being taken over by Microsoft is their appreciation for CEO Satya Nadella. The latter has also been extremely passionate towards the developer community, irrespective of them working on Windows related projects or anything else.
Microsoft also happens to be the single biggest contributor to the site with more than 1,000 developers who actively contribute to code repositories on GitHub. Similarly, nearly all the big-name tech firms like Amazon, Google, Apple and so on are active on GitHub and host their projects, codes and related documentations on a regular basis.
The financial terms of the deal is, however, being kept under wraps though its likely to easily run into billions of dollars. GitHub has earlier been estimated at more than $2 billion in 2015. The code repository site, however, has also been incurring some loses and is currently on the lookout for a new CEO to replace co-founder and chief executive Chris Wanstrath.
Microsoft acquires Semantic Machines to bolster Cortana’s conversational skills
However, not all developers seem to be impressed with the latest development, particularly among those who are active proponents of open source model of software development. Maybe that has to do with the Redmond giant’s past where a major chunk of their revenue came from licensing deals from Windows and related applications.
