Following Nokia’s decision to drop Symbian as its mobile platform of choice and adopt Windows Phone, many folks hoped that Nokia would eventually see green and begin cranking out Android-powered phones. Those people got their wish — kind of — with the debut of the Nokia X. However, now that Nokia is a part of Microsoft, it looks like at least some of those X devices will be traded to Team Live Tile.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella announced today that his company is working to integrate the Nokia Devices and Services division into Microsoft and, as part of that effort, the company’s phone offerings will align to follow Microsoft’s strategic plans. That means that “select Nokia X product designs” will change mobile teams and become Lumia devices that run Windows Phones.
The Nokia X family of devices are a big deal for Nokia because they’re the first non-Windows Phone products we’ve seen out of the firm in quite a while, and because they run Android. The Nokia X2 is perhaps even more notable because it debuted after Nokia had been consumed by Microsoft. It’s not surprising that Microsoft wants to switch some X devices from Android to Windows Phone, as WP is Microsoft’s own OS, and I’m sure that it’d rather see its own software flourish rather than relying on Google’s platform.
The future of the Nokia X line is unclear for now. Microsoft sys as that “select” Nokia X designs will become Lumia products, which implies that the Nokia X family isn’t completely disappearing. However, we’ll have to wait and see what kind of support that group receives going forward.
Nadella also announced today that as part of an effort to “realign [Microsoft’s] workforce,” his company will shed 18,000 jobs over the next year. Approximately 12,500 of those jobs will be professional and factory positions that came with the acquisition of Nokia’s Devices and Services team.
Via Microsoft
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