On Microsoft's Windows 10 Mobile strategy for 2016

[Windows Central]

Did Microsoft give up on Windows 10 Mobile? If not, what is their plan in 2016? With dipping sales, a ho-hum portfolio of Lumias, and an OS that is increasingly accused of being not ready for primetime, many are proclaiming this is the end of Microsoft's mobile ambitions.

However, I contend what we are witnessing is not the end, but rather a repositioning in the market. It is not easy, nor is it comforting, for those of us who prefer Windows 10 Mobile. But this change in approach is necessary for a company that veered too far from its roots.

Full story from the WindowsCentral blog...

 

[cracgor]

I think Microsoft's strategy for mobile is to make the best software for iOS and Android. Windows Phone 7 was an attempt to get back in the market after WM6.5 kind of died. WP8 was trying to incrementally improve things and a hope to join WP8 and W8. W10 is the WP8 plan again with more cross platform integration but too many years of failed app gap bridging. WM10 feels kind of like one of the experimental projects Microsoft works on. I think the biggest problem with Windows Mobile is that every predecessor has failed and every successor has been a reboot. WP7 didn't let app developers or users upgrade to WP8. WP8 can upgrade to WM10, but not all the apps can port over as simply. Everytime they reboot, the software is a little more buggy than the previous instance. I hope that they have a different plan than the same previous plans. I think the only hope is a new class of products that does what iPhones did to phones.

 

[Guytronic]

I just noticed the chair in the back of the auditorium where Microsoft was sitting is empty

My take is that MS is trying to slip quietly out of the phone hardware business.
If I remember correctly WM doesn't cost anything when second line manufacturers inject it into their mobile hardware.

Seems to me Microsoft pushing the hardware on to other makers will cause the company to spend much less.
This may also satisfy existing users with better low cost viable phones.
Wouldn't it be better if other makers spent money marketing their phones when MS doesn't really want to?

The building blocks are there.
If Microsoft can't stack them up the right way maybe other manufacturers can do it for them.