Microsoft Draws The Final Curtain On Windows 10 Mobile

Platform will only receive bug fixes and security patches going forward.

Microsoft has admitted that it has no plans to release any new hardware or software for its Windows 10 Mobile and the platform will only receive bug fixes and security patches going forward, effectively ending Microsoft’s current journey on the hardware side of the mobile market.

Microsoft’s vice president of Windows Experience, Joe Belfiore, confirmed in a series of tweets that the Redmond based technology giant will continue to release bug fixes and security updates for the foreseeable future but no new hardware will be forthcoming.

“Of course we’ll continue to support the platform… bug fixes, security updates, etc. But building new features/hw aren’t the focus,” Belfiore also added that he too had switched to Android.

The end is nigh for Windows 10 Mobile. Microsoft announced its end on Twitter, of all places…

Inevitable decline? Lack of apps to blame?

The news comes as no great surprise. Microsoft had struggled to carve out a significant share in the mobile market. It acquired Nokia’s mobile business in 2013, a move that has since been seen as a failure. In 2015, it took a $7.6 billion hit on its Nokia business and axed thousands of jobs.

Belfiore also said that one of the main issues with the Windows Mobile platform was the lack of apps. He wrote that despite working hard to incentivise developers and even building the apps for them, there were just too few Windows mobile users for it to be viable.

“We have tried VERY HARD to incent app devs. Paid money… wrote apps 4 them… but volume of users is too low for most companies to invest,” he tweeted.

Google and Apple

Despite valiant attempts to make inroads into mobile hardware, Microsoft struggled to make headway against rivals Google and Apple and announced that they were quitting smart-phone manufacturing last year. At that time, Windows Phone accounted for less than 1% of the market.

Despite a slick OS, that was easy to use, easy to master, and installed on good hardware from Nokia, the writing was seen as being on the wall even back in January. Windows Phone and then Windows 10 Mobile had a promising, if slow start, but sales never really took off after a peak in 2014.

Writing was on the wall

Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft and the man behind Windows has also admitted a few weeks ago that he also no longer uses a Windows phone and opted for an Android based one. Gates broke the news, albeit somewhat reluctantly, in an interview with Fox News Sunday’s Chris Wallace last month.

The New York City Police Department (NYPD) also announced recently, that it was replacing the 36,000 Windows smartphones it handed out to officers over the last 24 months. That announcement proved to be controversial. The new is hardly surprising, if embarrassing for police chiefs in the Big Apple. Unconfirmed reports state that the final nail in the proverbial coffin was Microsoft officially ending support for Windows phone. (Windows Phone as opposed to Windows 10 Mobile.)

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Microsoft’s vice president of Windows Experience, Joe Belfiore, confirmed in a series of tweets on Sunday that the Redmond based technology giant will continue to release bug fixes and security updates for the foreseeable future but no new hardware will be forthcoming.

“Of course we’ll continue to support the platform.. bug fixes, security updates, etc. But building new features/hw aren’t the focus,” Belfiore also added that he too had switched to Android.

Inevitable decline? A lack of apps to blame?

The news comes as no great surprise. Microsoft had struggled to carve out a significant share in the mobile market. It acquired Nokia’s mobile business in 2013, a move that has since been seen as a failure. In 2015, it took a $7.6 billion hit on its Nokia business and axed thousands of jobs.

Belfiore also said that one of the main issues with the Windows Mobile platform was the lack of apps. He wrote that despite working hard to incentivise developers and even building the apps for them, there were just too few Windows mobile users for it to be viable.

“We have tried VERY HARD to incent app devs. Paid money.. wrote apps 4 them.. but volume of users is too low for most companies to invest,” he tweeted.

Google and Apple

Despite valiant attempts to make inroads into mobile hardware, Microsoft struggled to make headway against rivals Google and Apple and  announced that they were quitting smart-phone manufacturing last year. At that time, Windows Phone accounted for less than 1% of the market.

Despite a slick OS, that was easy to use, easy to master, and installed on good hardware from Nokia, the writing was seen as being on the wall even back in January. Windows Phone and then Windows 10 Mobile had a promising, if slow start, but sales never really took off after a peak in 2014.

The NYPD, Windows and Gates; the writing was on the wall

Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft and the man behind Windows has also admitted a few weeks ago that he also no longer uses a Windows phone and opted for an Android based one. Gates broke the news, albeit somewhat reluctantly, in an interview with Fox News Sunday’s Chris Wallace last month.

The New York City Police Department (NYPD) also announced recently, that it was replacing the 36,000 Windows smartphones it handed out to officers over the last 24 months. That announcement proved to be controversial. The new is hardly surprising, if embarrassing for police chiefs in the Big Apple. Unconfirmed reports state that the final nail in the proverbial coffin was Microsoft officially ending support for Windows phone. (Windows Phone as opposed to Windows 10 Mobile.)