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Microsoft’s move to shift Nokia X handsets to Windows operating system has come as a surprise to many in the industry as devices based on Android OS are much in demand across the world. The decision comes nearly four months after Nokia unveiled its family of Android phones.
On Thursday, in an internal e-mail to its employees, Stephen Elop, chief of Microsoft devices, said the Nokia X Android project is over. Future Nokia X designs and products will be shifted to Windows Phone devices, he said in the communication.
“The Nokia X devices were launched as the prices of Nokia devices could not be brought below $100 (about ₹6,000). Android is a huge market for mobile handset manufacturers, not only in India but across the world,” said Anshul Gupta, principal research analyst at Gartner.
According to industry estimates, globally 80-85 per cent of the smartphones run on Android OS. Ditto is the case in India, with Android OS outshining Apple’s iOS, Windows and BlackBerry’s OS.
“Android phones have an overwhelming market-share across the world. Presence of Android devices is needed to capture the India market, which is one of the fastest growing in the world,” said Jaideep Ghosh, Partner at KPMG in India. In September last year, Microsoft had entered into an agreement to acquire Nokia's mobile phone business in a $7.2-billion deal. The acquisition was completed in April this year, while Nokia unveiled the Android phones at the Mobile World Conference in Barcelona in February.
“For Microsoft, it’s going to be clearly Windows as the company wants everyone to move over to smartphones,” said Manasi Yadav, analyst with IHS.
“The toned-down Android version phone was launched as a highly user-friendly device. In India, it had posted healthy sales during January-March,” she added.
In a growing market such as India, a cheap Android phone would go a long way in improving telecom penetration. Will this create a dearth of Android handsets?
“There wouldn’t be any dearth in handsets as there are a number of handset manufacturers catering to this space,” Gartner’s Gupta said.
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