Microsoft, the software titan is planning to buy back $40 billion of its shares as its previous buy back scheme comes to a close at the end of 2016. Microsoft also increased its dividend in a move that many investors cheered. The US software giant bought LinkedIn earlier this year for $26 billion which many analysts feared was too much. A cynical view of the move may suggest that the buybacks are to cover for struggling innovation and market share in many emerging tech sectors as Microsoft finds itself swamped and outpaced by rivals in a more niche digital economy.

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