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Neowin: Microsoft's Windows Phone Business 'Is Dead' (neowin.net)
An anonymous reader quotes Neowin:
If you've been expecting Microsoft to issue a press release formally announcing the end of its Windows phone business, you're probably hoping for a bit too much. But make no mistake: its phone hardware business is dead. RIP-dead. Send-flowers-dead. Worm-food-dead. Some fans, and even some in the media, have consistently refused to acknowledge this, despite the clear signs in recent quarters. Now, Microsoft's own figures, and its statements regarding its phone division, should make it irrefutably clear that there is no life left in its Windows phone business.
During the quarter ending in December, Microsoft's phone revenue dropped to just $200 million, which included some sales of feature phones, before the company completed its sale of that business unit to Foxconn in November. That figure has now dropped to virtually nothing... Today, as Microsoft published its earnings report for Q3 FY2017, it revealed that its "Phone revenue declined $730 million". Based on its earlier financial disclosures, that means the company's phone hardware revenue fell to just $5 million for the entire quarter ending March 31, 2017. During Microsoft's earnings call today, its chief financial officer, Amy Hood, acknowledged this, stating that there was "no material phone revenue this quarter". The outlook for the next few months is similarly bleak, as Hood predicted "negligible revenue from Phone" in the coming quarter.
During the quarter ending in December, Microsoft's phone revenue dropped to just $200 million, which included some sales of feature phones, before the company completed its sale of that business unit to Foxconn in November. That figure has now dropped to virtually nothing... Today, as Microsoft published its earnings report for Q3 FY2017, it revealed that its "Phone revenue declined $730 million". Based on its earlier financial disclosures, that means the company's phone hardware revenue fell to just $5 million for the entire quarter ending March 31, 2017. During Microsoft's earnings call today, its chief financial officer, Amy Hood, acknowledged this, stating that there was "no material phone revenue this quarter". The outlook for the next few months is similarly bleak, as Hood predicted "negligible revenue from Phone" in the coming quarter.
It won't stop working today, but quickly things will become deprecated and unusable. Things like the web browser will stop rendering pages correctly as standards move on. Things like the app stores will start blocking the device. Things like Bing Maps and other utilities that are tied to the device will stop supporting it. Eventually other APIs will move on and no longer work with the device (like ActiveSync). Of course, somewhere in between IT departments will block it form checking email and syncing calendars/contacts. If Blackberries are of any predictor, this could happen all in the course of a couple of years. You will be left with a smart phone that can do phone calls and text messages.
MeeGo would have failed too.
This is the mobile equivalent of the mid 1990s. Unix dying, commodore dead, Apple II dead, Apple dying, OS/2 dying. Windows was the answer and won. Companies only wrote software for Windows as it was the winner because consumers only wanted what companies wrote software for in a cycle. Why blow $2000 on a dead platform when Windows was what everyone was using and was a sure bet etc.
Funny thing is same is killing WIndows Phone in reverse. Meego was too late. If you were not in by 2009 you were out. 2010/2011 is when mobile developers hit apps on smartphones and consumers knew if they wanted apps they had to make a choice. Apple or Google. MeeGo didn't ahve a playstore and was expected to have mobile carriers be the appstore. Remember the shitty $3.00 midi file ring tones back then? Vommit. Apple gave the carrier the finger. Google followed and rest is history.
WebOS was pretty cool too and so was QNX by Blackberry. All failed as people wanted companeis to set the standards like what MS did on the desktop.
I think in 2017 it is done. Move on. Even Steve Jobs admitted Windows won which is why he refused to hire corporate account executives. Same is true here. UWP apis came 8 years too late. Meego never caught on and was a late commer.
http://saveie6.com/
I still like my Windows Phone, and my next one will be a Windows Phone, as well. The UI is much better than the other two.
I don't respond to AC's.
I'm on the Insider program, and my Lumia 640 gets more updates in a month than either my Android 4.3 and 6.0 have ever gotten throughout their entire lifetime.
Seriously, when walking out of the store, Android feels like abandonware. At least I know the known vulnerabilities are getting addressed on WP. On Android...the list is just getting bigger over time.