Windows Phone has not been the greatest success story in the world, and Microsoft’s purchase of Nokia to produce its own handsets looks to have been an even bigger flop. The company today announced that it is writing off $7.6B against the Nokia business – more than it paid for the company in the first place.
Microsoft has also revealed that it will be laying-off 7,800 staff – more than 6% of its workforce – over the next few months, mostly from the Phones business …
CEO Satya Nadella said in an email to staff that the company would be moving away from attempts to grow its phone hardware business.
“We are moving from a strategy to grow a standalone phone business to a strategy to grow and create a vibrant Windows ecosystem including our first-party device family,” Nadella said. “In the near-term, we’ll run a more effective and focused phone portfolio while retaining capability for long-term reinvention in mobility.”
He insists, however, that this does not mean the company is entirely giving up on producing its own handsets, reports the NY Times.
“I am committed to our first-party devices including phones,” Mr. Nadella said. “However, we need to focus our phone efforts in the near term while driving reinvention.”
Nadella had previously warned staff of the need to make “tough choices” and “solve hard problems.” The employment of former Nokia CEO Stephen Elop was apparently one of those choices – he left the company last month.
ComScore data last month showed that Microsoft’s Windows Phone platform held just a 3.6% market share, behind Android’s 53.2% and Apple’s 41.3%.
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Microsoft was never able to make a dent in the two-horse race. BlackBerry showed them it wasn’t possible, yet they still tried. And failed.
The ONLY way things will change is if Samsung decides to ditch Android for Tizen.
You make a valid marketing point about the two horse race, and then completely lost me with the Tizen comment.
Oops!
http://www.techhive.com/article/230151/idc_windows_phones_to_overtake_iphone_ios_by_2015.html
Lol! Stupid anal-yst.
So if you were holding your breath for an awesome flagship Windows phone, now you know you were wasting your time.
Actually there’s some speculation that Microsoft may come out with a new Surface line of phones, which would be their “awesome flagship” line, compared with the lower-budget Lumias. The Surface brand is well respected due to the success of the Surface tablets, so having a comparable Surface phone would make sense.
Once Windows 10 comes out, Windows phones will become a lot more interesting. They’ll be able to run iOS and Android apps, and they’ll run the full Windows 10, meaning you can plug your phone into a dock and use it like a desktop machine with monitor and keyboard. Probably not a very powerful desktop machine, but good enough for basic business needs. A high-end Surface phone might actually be marketable.
There are only two companies competing in the premium space and one, Samsung, has seen earnings decline 5 quarters in a row. The majority of Microsoft phone sales came at the low end. There is zero evidence to suggest consumers would be willing to pay for a premium Microsoft phone. Surface is only a respected brand in the delusional minds of Microsoft fanboys.
The term fanboy used as a derogatory term should be relegated to school playgrounds the world over and not bandied around by adults on here.
The ‘first-party device family’ comment has me interested in what’s coming up. Likely a Surface based phone. What’s lured me (and kept me) to the Mac/iOS ecosystem is the seamless transition between all my Apple devices. I have all my bookmarks between my devices, and can see any open tabs between them. Starting a document on one device and then finishing it off on another. The integration between my MacBook, iPad, iPhone, and watch isn’t even in the realm of possibility with other companies. I’m very interested in seeing what Microsoft does with Windows 10 and helping users move between their devices seamlessly.
I think they won’t be able to run iOS apps for too long. They have no right to steal iOS (and Android) apps. I know, their market with apps is very, very sad. When I saw it, I had to laugh what a hole it is.
Reblogged this on Talk Mac Tech and commented:
Tony-This could be signaling Big Changes for Microsoft
Microsoft. The loss-leaders of the computer and technology world.
Thanks for your clear, comparative reporting, Ben. It is very useful to us readers to have that valuable extra data, as the relativity of the statistics outlines the real size and importance of this news.
That’s a pity. I really think the Windows Phone OS was a good competitor, with its own style. I didn’t like the ‘cut-offs’ at the screens edges, but the OS itself did look good from the reviews.
And what’s this with the market share: 53% vs 41%? Here I am thinking it was more like 80/20. For Apple to compete against every freaking HW maker in the world this puts their competition to Shame, yes with a capital S. It really shows the incompetence of Samsung and others, and in spite of their vast resources they cannot create a better phone than the iPhone. Without ‘being a fanboy’, that is kinda pathetic.
That is US market share. Worldwide the market share for all intents and purposes is 80/20 android.
Very minor correction Ben: The ComScore for June shows Windows phone at 3.0%, down from 3.6%.
And now presenting the Ballmer Death Spiral… Elop turned out to be the smartest guy in the room, if you want to be characteristically precise.. He took Ballmer’s money, did two years in hell and bolted… Smart move if $ 100 MILLION gets your attention.,
This NEW Klown boy will close the lid on M/S’s casket….
Gave the big phone away. Gave the Surface away. Going to smash the lap top to death when I buy my top end iMac with the lot.