Windows Phone to become a software division?

[Musicman247]

This is a speculation thread. If that's not allowed I understand completely and welcome it being locked.

With the moves that MS has been making in making MS apps and services available on other devices and updating apps on other platforms while not updating their own phone OS apps, I began wondering about the future of Windows Phone. Is it possible that MS might start focusing on apps and services for other platforms and eventually not make a Windows Phone operating system? It makes sense from a business standpoint - why try and create a third ecosystem with your services and instead piggyback onto the two large pre-existing ecosystems.

So, thoughts on the future of Windows Phone?

 

[gsquared]

MSFT has already drawn the line in the sand. They are in it for keeps. WP completes their own "ecosystem" for which they are competing against Google and Apple. To discontinue WP would be a major blow against that effort. There is one other area where MSFT is working that doesn't get much mention. Automobiles.

 

[martinmc78]

I think all they are doing at the moment is creating multi platform parity.

On the face of it were not likely to see Skype baked into the OS until 8.1 as it will constitute a major OS update and were more than likely to see additional updates to Skype on android and iOS before then. The updates to office products are just to make it look more like WP and give them the same features we have albeit they have to pay a subscription to take full advantage. Were bound to see a whole slew of updates to other MS packages on other platforms before our own as we already have the core experience set with WP8 and android and iOS is where the marketshare is.

MS has always been a software and services company so its just business as usual for them. They will be making money off android and iOS where all the software for WP8 is free of charge and therein lies the big bonus of having their own OS.

Yes you can have the same unified experience of windows 8 products but its going to cost you a little - However get a windows 8 phone and its all included.

 

[realwarder]

If Microsoft don't 'own' the OS, they are just another software vendor like anyone else. For that reason they have to be more than just a tools and services company and provide the platform too.

By controlling the platform you earn licensing revenue and set the future direction of everything that happens on the devices. You can also have App Stores and generate revenue from there, Tool sets (MSDN licenses etc.) and promote all your other services directly to users (Outlook.com, Bing etc.)

With the mobile and portable device market growing far faster than the desktop/server/AIO market, they need Windows on the Phone, Tablet and PC to survive.

So... while WP may change and integrate more with Windows on the tablet/desktop as hardware gets more powerful, I think you'll find it's future is quite safe, hence the massive marketing push you see daily online and on films, TV shows, celebrity hands and the usual spaces.

 

[spaulagain]

WP is here to stay, its a core part of the Windows/Microsoft experience.

I don't understand how getting rid of it "makes sense from a business standpoint." It actually makes no sense, especially now that it is growing fast and is integrated with their largest products, Windows, Office, etc.

 

[Noahma]

This is a speculation thread. If that's not allowed I understand completely and welcome it being locked.

With the moves that MS has been making in making MS apps and services available on other devices and updating apps on other platforms while not updating their own phone OS apps, I began wondering about the future of Windows Phone. Is it possible that MS might start focusing on apps and services for other platforms and eventually not make a Windows Phone operating system? It makes sense from a business standpoint - why try and create a third ecosystem with your services and instead piggyback onto the two large pre-existing ecosystems.

So, thoughts on the future of Windows Phone?

The speculation is that Windows phone will be moved into a division with Windows itself. Which would be a very good thing in my opinion. It seems that many of the bloggers that follow Microsoft think there will be a nice streamlining of the different divisions. Right now you have two different teams, Windows 8 and Windows phone 8. They do not work together, where they should be to get the experience equal between the two different OS's.

 

[spaulagain]

The speculation is that Windows phone will be moved into a division with Windows itself. Which would be a very good thing in my opinion. It seems that many of the bloggers that follow Microsoft think there will be a nice streamlining of the different divisions. Right now you have two different teams, Windows 8 and Windows phone 8. They do not work together, where they should be to get the experience equal between the two different OS's.

Ya it would be nice if things like tile placement, copy paste, etc all behaved similarly if appropriate. While the UI is mostly the same now between the two, there are still enough differences that need blended. Like how come my "Grouped" contacts on the phone don't sync into groups on my Windows devices? Things like that need unified more. And I don't think 8.1 has all of that.

That kind of unification can only come from teams working together, not silo'd like in the past.