A change in strategy at Microsoft could lead to the loss of as many as 7,800 jobs in its struggling handset division. The former Nokia employees face the job loss due to Microsoft’s struggle to absorb a $7.6 billion write down on its troubled handset business.
“We are moving from a strategy to grow a standalone phone business to a strategy to grow and create a vibrant Windows ecosystem including our first-party device family,” Microsoft chief Satya Nadella said in a release. “In the near-term, we’ll run a more effective and focused phone portfolio while retaining capability for long-term reinvention in mobility.”
Microsoft says that in addition to the write-down, it also forecasts a $750 million to $850 million restructuring charge.
Microsoft acquired Nokia in a $9 billion deal back in 2013. The company made the move in order to create a standout first-party device business to support its Windows Phone platform. Microsoft has continued to struggle with the platform, and is now shifting to a “Windows Everywhere” branding strategy. The company combined its operating system and device divisions into one division under Terry Myerson in June of this year.
It was almost one year ago today that Microsoft announced the largest round of layoffs in the firm’s history, ridding itself of 18,000 employees, almost 14% of its then current workforce. Employees originally employed by Nokia bore the brunt of those layoffs also.
