Former Nokia CEO and Vice President of Devices & Services, Stephen Elop, has been quietly hustled out of the Nokia camp to take the reigns at the unified Microsoft Devices & Studios branch, responsible for the software giant’s Xbox, Surface and game development divisions.
According to an internal memo obtained by Geekwire, Elop will be moved into the role after the Nokia-Microsoft deal is finalised and approved by regulators. The outgoing Devices & Studios head, Julie Larson-Green, is headed to the Microsoft Applied Sciences Group, leading the My Life & Work team as chief experience officer.
Elop inherits the division that, in the past couple of years, has been responsible for the Xbox One, Surface Pro 2, the original Surface Pro, and the much-maligned duet of Surface RT tablets. []