As part of its own plan to manage its expenses, Microsoft will decrease its spending $500 million for the remainder of its 2009 fiscal year, which ends June 30, he said. The company also will lower headcount costs by revising hiring strategies and cutting employee costs such as travel expenses, Liddell said.

Microsoft also plans to lower its marketing expenses to keep the company running efficiently, he said. In this area, the company recently spent $300 million on a marketing and advertising campaign for Windows Vista, which already has been spoofed by competitor Apple in television ads.

Microsoft also will invest only in "key opportunities" for growth as the economic climate remains uncertain, he said. Liddell did not address the possibility of Microsoft making another bid for Yahoo, although recently CEO Steve Ballmer said publicly that a deal between the two companies would still make sense economically.