A week after selling off its feature phone division, Microsoft has announced that it’s also “streamlining” its smartphone hardware business, cutting 1850 jobs in the process.
In a statement, Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, explained that:
We are focusing our phone efforts where we have differentiation — with enterprises that value security, manageability and our Continuum capability, and consumers who value the same. We will continue to innovate across devices and on our cloud services across all mobile platforms.
The move will see 1350 jobs lost at Microsoft Mobile Oy in Finland — formerly part of Nokia — as well as a 500 more lost globally. It will write off $US950 million ($1.3 billion) in the process.
It seems that Microsoft is reconsidering its flirtation with phone hardware, which started when it purchased Nokia’s phone division three years ago for $US7.1 billion ($9.8 billion). That deal saw 32,000 Nokia employees join Microsoft. Its foray into creating its own smartphones, it’s fair to say, has been disastrous.
Recode published a leaked internal memo from Microsoft, in which Terry Myerson — Executive Vice President of the Windows and Devices Group — explains that it will continue to work on mobile. He doesn’t, however, suggest that the future involves any Microsoft-made smartphones.