Benefitted from demand for its cloud-based services during pandemic-induced remote working and learning

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Microsoft Corp. beat Wall Street expectations for quarterly revenue on Tuesday, as the software giant benefitted from demand for its cloud-based services during the pandemic-induced remote working and learning.

The global shift to work from home has spurred demand for cloud-based computing, which is an advantage for Microsoft as well as its rivals including Alphabet Inc’s Google Cloud and Amazon.com Inc’s cloud unit.

Microsoft said revenue in its “Intelligent Cloud” segment rose 23 per cent to US$15.1 billion, with 50 per cent growth in Azure. Analysts had expected a 46.3 per cent growth, according to consensus data from Visible Alpha.

On a constant currency basis, Azure revenue growth was 46 per cent in the quarter.

Revenue from its personal computing division, which includes Windows software and Xbox gaming consoles, rose 19 per cent to US$13 billion, Microsoft said.

The company’s revenue rose 19 per cent to US$41.7 billion in the third quarter ended March 31, beating analysts’ estimates of US$41.03 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

© Thomson Reuters 2021