Windows Phone
Work on a major Windows Mobile update began as early as 2004 under the codename Photon. The project moved slowly and was ultimately cancelled before it could launch. Microsoft reorganized its Windows Mobile group in 2008 to start work on a new mobile operating system. The product was originally scheduled for release in 2009 as Windows Phone, but delays forced the company to develop Windows Mobile 6.5 as an interim solution instead. Following this decision, development accelerated rapidly to meet market demands. One result of this rushed timeline was that the new operating system would not be compatible with existing Windows Mobile applications. Larry Lieberman, senior product manager for Microsoft's Mobile Developer Experience, told eWeek that more time might have allowed for backward compatibility. Terry Myerson, corporate VP of Windows Phone engineering, explained that the move to capacitive touch screens required breaking application compatibility with Windows Mobile 6.5. From the beginning until at least 2015, Joe Belfiore led development and served as the public face of the platform.
On the 11th of February 2011, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and Nokia CEO Stephen Elop announced a partnership in London. This alliance made Windows Phone the primary smartphone operating system for Nokia, replacing Symbian. Elop stated that differentiation was the single most important word when choosing Windows Phone over Android. The pair integrated Bing search across all Nokia devices and merged Nokia Maps with Bing Maps. They also combined Nokia's Ovi store with the Windows Phone Store. Funds changed hands for royalties, marketing, and ad-revenue sharing measured in billions of dollars. Jo Harlow ran Nokia's smartphone business using a structure aligned with Terry Myerson's team. The first Nokia Lumia phones, the Lumia 800 and Lumia 710, were announced in October 2011 at Nokia World 2011. On the 2nd of September 2013, Microsoft announced a deal to acquire Nokia's mobile phone division outright. The merger completed after regulatory approval in April 2014, making Nokia's hardware division a subsidiary named Microsoft Mobile.
Windows Phone 7 launched publicly on the 8th of November 2010, in the United States after being announced earlier that year. In 2011, Microsoft released Windows Phone 7.5 Mango, which included Internet Explorer 9 and multi-tasking capabilities. A minor update known as Tango lowered hardware requirements to allow devices with 800 MHz CPUs to run the system. Windows Phone 8 arrived on the 29th of October 2012, replacing the Windows CE-based architecture with the Windows NT kernel used by PC versions of Windows. This change made all existing Windows Phone 7 devices incompatible with the new operating system. Windows Phone 8.1 was announced on the 2nd of April 2014, introducing Cortana and support for Internet Explorer 11. Windows 10 Mobile followed on the 17th of March 2016, emphasizing unification with its PC counterpart through the Universal Windows Platform. Updates were issued for selected Windows Phone 8.1 devices until active development ceased in 2017. The platform reached end of life on the 14th of January 2020.
The home screen called the Start Screen featured Live Tiles inspired by the Zune HD interface. These tiles updated in real time to show unread messages or live weather updates. Users could add, rearrange, or remove tiles from the display. Several features organized into hubs combined local and online content via social networks like Facebook and Twitter. The People hub aggregated contacts from multiple sources including Windows Live, Facebook, and Gmail. A dark theme prolonged battery life on OLED screens because fully black pixels do not emit light. Third-party applications automatically adopted the user's chosen accent color for buttons and links. Windows Phone 8.1 introduced transparent tiles that revealed a customizable background image when scrolling. This parallax effect gave an illusion of depth to the visual design.
As of Q3 2013, an average of 21% of mobile developers used the Windows Phone platform. A well-known example of developer resistance was Snapchat, which announced a crackdown on third-party apps in November 2014. Microsoft removed third-party Snapchat apps from the Windows Phone Store a month later while never developing an official app. A petition from users requesting an official Snapchat app reached 43,000 signatures in 2015. Google twice blocked Microsoft's own YouTube app for violating terms of service regarding video downloads and ad prevention. Many high-profile apps were discontinued by 2015 such as American Airlines, NBC, and Pinterest. Between 2014 and 2015, developers backed out of the platform due to low market share. The main criticism remained the lack of applications compared to iOS and Android platforms.
Microsoft discontinued active development of Windows 10 Mobile in 2017. The platform was declared end of life on the 14th of January 2020. In August 2017, the New York Police Department ordered Apple iPhone products to replace its deployment of 36,000 Lumia 830 and Lumia 640 devices. This decision cited Microsoft's end of support for Windows Phone 8.1 on the 11th of July 2017. The company began prioritizing software development and integrations with Android and iOS instead. Stephen Elop had joined Microsoft to lead its in-house mobile division following the acquisition of Nokia's hardware business. The duopoly of Android and iPhone remained dominant throughout the platform's existence despite early optimism from IDC and Gartner about surpassing competitors.
Common questions
When did Microsoft officially announce Windows Phone 7?
Windows Phone 7 launched publicly on the 8th of November 2010 in the United States. The operating system was announced earlier that year before its public release.
What date marked the end of life for Windows Phone?
The platform reached end of life on the 14th of January 2020. Active development ceased in 2017 and support ended shortly after.
Which company partnered with Microsoft to make Windows Phone their primary smartphone operating system?
Nokia became the partner that made Windows Phone the primary smartphone operating system for its devices. This partnership was announced by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and Nokia CEO Stephen Elop on the 11th of February 2011 in London.
Why were existing Windows Mobile applications incompatible with Windows Phone 8?
Windows Phone 8 replaced the Windows CE-based architecture with the Windows NT kernel used by PC versions of Windows. This architectural change rendered all existing Windows Phone 7 devices incompatible with the new operating system.
How much money did Microsoft lose when acquiring Nokia's mobile phone division?
Microsoft took a write-off of $7.6 billion on acquired Nokia hardware assets. The acquisition deal was announced on the 2nd of September 2013 and completed after regulatory approval in April 2014.