Earlier today, Microsoft announced the biggest layoffs in the history of the company, axing 18,000 employees. Out of those 18,000, 12,500 employees are a part of Nokia that came under the leadership of the software giant. However, that’s not the only interesting bit in the email sent by Satya Nadella to its employees, he mentioned “select” Nokia X product designs will switch to Windows Phone.
“To win in the higher price tiers, we will focus on breakthrough innovation that expresses and enlivens Microsoft’s digital work and digital life experiences.” Nadella said in the email. “In addition, we plan to shift select Nokia X product designs to become Lumia products running Windows. This builds on our success in the affordable smartphone space and aligns with our focus on Windows Universal Apps.”
Nokia announced its Nokia X lineup at the Mobile World Congress 2014 event in February, but at that time, the Microsoft acquisition deal was not closed, and many reports suggested that Microsoft will kill the project sooner or later.
At the moment, it’s not clear if it’s completely dead or if we’ll see more Android devices, but Elop said in a follow-up email that the company will focus on making Windows Phone handsets, and will transition “select” Nokia X designs to Windows Phone. Elop further said that they will continue to sell and support the existing Nokia X devices. It’s likely that Nokia X lineup will be discontinued in the near future.
“We plan to deliver additional lower-cost Lumia devices by shifting select future Nokia X designs and products to Windows Phone devices. We expect to make this shift immediately while continuing to sell and support existing Nokia X products,” Elop said.
It seems Microsoft’s venture with Google operating system didn’t turn out to be as fruitful as everyone thought it would be.
