Here's what one plugged-in source tells us about Steven Sinofsky's exit at Microsoft.
Sinofsky felt that he deserved to be Microsoft's next CEO, and wanted to be designated as Steve Ballmer's successor after Windows 8 shipped, according to this source's version of his ouster.
He threatened to quit if he didn't get the nod. Ballmer, who has previously indicated he plans to keep running Microsoftuntil he retires in 2017 or 2018, called his bluff.
Getting named CEO was not a vain or fanciful hope. Sinofsky, a hard-charging executive who built Microsoft Office into a powerhouse, went on to fix Microsoft's broken Windows franchise after the disastrous launch of Vista.
He knew Microsoft's two most important businesses inside and out.
And this was not lost on outsiders. Almost a decade ago, Business 2.0 declared that Sinofsky was a credible candidate for the job.
We briefed Microsoft on the story we heard and the company declined to comment.
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