Microsoft changes financial reporting structure

It has been less than two years since Microsoft underwent the task of revamping its reporting structure.

Infrastructure tools such as the Windows Azure cloud and SQL Server software will go into the second. The more personal computing segment would include results from licensing of the Windows operating system, devices such as Surface and phones, gaming, including Xbox consoles, and the search business. A CC will be held tomorrow at 12PM ET (webcast) to discuss the change.

By lumping together revenue and operating income into fewer segments, the move could make it more hard to for shareholders and analysts determine the specific financial results for different aspects of Microsoft’s business.

Microsoft Corporation announced that it will change the reporting of its financial results to reflect the company’s strategy and ambitions to build platforms and productivity services for a mobile-first, cloud-first world. The company’s strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its reasonable valuation levels, expanding profit margins, largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures and notable return on equity. Now, the tech giant further minimized them into three broader ones.

These new headers – which will be used for the first time in Microsoft’s next quarterly earnings report, coming out on October 22 – are considerably simpler (albeit admittedly more vague) than the ones that have been used for the past couple of years: D&C Licensing Computing and Gaming Hardware, Phone Hardware, D&C Other, Commercial Licensing, and Commercial Other.

Microsoft said it will release segment information for fiscal 2014 and 2015, as if reported under the new operating segment structure, on Tuesday.