3 ms·

I don't think this analogy really works here, the reason the Nokia acquisition didn't work is because it was too late. Microsoft was simply too late to make the

I don't think this analogy really works here, the reason the Nokia acquisition didn't work is because it was too late. Microsoft was simply too late to make the necessary changes to compete on the OS level and they kept changing development kits entirely driving away developers and consumers.

hajile 7y ago
The issues seem even deeper there. In the US, the Nokia brand had basically disappeared outside of Symbian pre-paid feature phones which isn't a great association to have. In Europe, a lot of people seemed unhappy with the switch to Windows Phone and killing Meego/SwipeUI (the n9 sold gangbusters considering it wasn't available in any of the Nokia markets that could actually afford an expensive smartphone). Finally, lots of people were upset that Europe's flagship phonemaker was sold off to Microsoft and then gutted costing a ton of good-paying jobs. Next, there's the general issue that the MS brand is a bit poisonous to a lot of people. Windows has (somewhat undeservedly) a pretty bad reputation with performance, bloat/slowdowns, and reliability. When Android and iOS basically "just work" and Windows not being necessary, not a lot of people want to deal with perceived potential issues (real or imaginary). Finally, on the development side, most of the people making apps didn't seem keen on the Windows Phone platform and their passive neglect was a huge complication (supposedly, even multi-million dollar incentives couldn't get the devs on board).
jsight 7y ago
I don't see how it could have been too late. Nokia switched to MS way before the acquisition. It wasn't successful for a lot of reasons and I don't think an earlier acquisition would have really changed that.
- partiallypro 7y ago
  I didn't say the acquisition was too late, I said Microsoft pivoted too slowly in mobile.
  - com2kid 7y ago
    MS had a solid OS with Windows Phone 7 years before Android had anything resembling a good user experience. Waiting years between updates with no news pushes away OEMs and ensures consumers forget you even exist.
  - jsight 7y ago
    Oh, that is a fair point. If they'd have bought Nokia before they both became turkeys it might have ended differently. But at that point, Nokia probably wasn't for sale and the "two turkeys" analogy wouldn't have applied either, tbh.

hajile 7y ago

The issues seem even deeper there. In the US, the Nokia brand had basically disappeared outside of Symbian pre-paid feature phones which isn't a great association to have. In Europe, a lot of people seemed unhappy with the switch to Windows Phone and killing Meego/SwipeUI (the n9 sold gangbusters considering it wasn't available in any of the Nokia markets that could actually afford an expensive smartphone). Finally, lots of people were upset that Europe's flagship phonemaker was sold off to Microsoft and then gutted costing a ton of good-paying jobs. Next, there's the general issue that the MS brand is a bit poisonous to a lot of people. Windows has (somewhat undeservedly) a pretty bad reputation with performance, bloat/slowdowns, and reliability. When Android and iOS basically "just work" and Windows not being necessary, not a lot of people want to deal with perceived potential issues (real or imaginary). Finally, on the development side, most of the people making apps didn't seem keen on the Windows Phone platform and their passive neglect was a huge complication (supposedly, even multi-million dollar incentives couldn't get the devs on board).

jsight 7y ago

I don't see how it could have been too late. Nokia switched to MS way before the acquisition. It wasn't successful for a lot of reasons and I don't think an earlier acquisition would have really changed that.

partiallypro 7y ago
I didn't say the acquisition was too late, I said Microsoft pivoted too slowly in mobile.
- com2kid 7y ago
  MS had a solid OS with Windows Phone 7 years before Android had anything resembling a good user experience. Waiting years between updates with no news pushes away OEMs and ensures consumers forget you even exist.
- jsight 7y ago
  Oh, that is a fair point. If they'd have bought Nokia before they both became turkeys it might have ended differently. But at that point, Nokia probably wasn't for sale and the "two turkeys" analogy wouldn't have applied either, tbh.