Microsoft has finally announced that there will be no more new apps or updates for the Windows Phone platform. Announced in a series of tweets, Microsoft has made the point clear about the reasons to do so.
The tweets were posted by Joe Belfiore, Corporate Vice President in the Operating Systems Group at Microsoft. He said that there will be bug fixes and updates for the platform, but there will be not be any new features.
Of course we'll continue to support the platform.. bug fixes, security updates, etc. But building new features/hw aren't the focus. 😟 https://t.co/0CH9TZdIFu
— Joe Belfiore (@joebelfiore) October 8, 2017
Introduced back in October 2010 with the Windows Phone 7, the Microsoft Windows Phone platform is coming to an end now. This was Microsoft’s attempt at capturing the smartphone market, it did not end well.
The key abilities of Windows Phone were that you could synchronize your phone and PC seamlessly. This helped Windows Phone users keep their data organized. This allowed Microsoft to make a closed ecosystem just like Apple iOS.
We have tried VERY HARD to incent app devs. Paid money.. wrote apps 4 them.. but volume of users is too low for most companies to invest. ☹️ https://t.co/ePsySxR3LB
— Joe Belfiore (@joebelfiore) October 8, 2017
Lack of interests from the developers is stated as the major reason for the downfall of the Windows Phone. Even in his tweet, Joe Belfiore admitted that Microsoft tried hard to retain and make developers interested. Another reason is told as low engagement from the people.
The road ahead
Microsoft may have withdrawn the Windows Phone platform but there are ways by which they are present in the smartphone segment. The first one being the Microsoft launcher and then the Microsoft Edge. Microsoft has announced the Edge browser for Android and iOS and a launcher for Android.
With Microsoft Launcher for Android, the company is offering the Windows Phone experience on every phone. While this is more pleasing for the Windows Phone fans, this launched has the added benefit of having a large collection of Android apps too. With more focus on apps within the Android ecosystem, Microsoft may be able to provide the Windows experience on every device.
