In an email to Microsoft employees, CEO Satya Nadella announced that the software giant would trim its global workforce by 18,000 over the course of the year. The first batch of layoffs will begin later this year, and will see over 13,000 employees leaving the organization.
In the email, Nadella talked about integrating Nokia's Devices and Services unit into Microsoft, which apparently involves bringing select Nokia X products to the Windows phone platform. Nadella said:
In addition, we plan to shift select Nokia X product designs to become Lumia products running Windows. This builds on our success in the affordable smartphone space and aligns with our focus on Windows Universal Apps.
While we're not entirely sure as to how Microsoft would achieve this, it is likely that the Nokia X line would be discontinued in the near future, with the hardware rebranded as a Lumia and offered on the Windows Phone platform.
Details regarding the change should be forthcoming tomorrow at Nadella's monthly Q&A event. We'll keep you posted as soon as we hear more, but for now it looks like the Nokia's flirtation with Android is set to come to an end.
What do you guys think of the move? Did any of you purchase a device in the Nokia X series?
Source: Microsoft
