Microsoft buys Nokia’s handset Business

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One of the most enticing "what-ifs" of recent years has come true: Microsoft has purchased Nokia's devices and services unit, bringing the Lumia lineup under the Redmond roof. The move unites Windows Phone 8 with its biggest hardware supporter, giving the company the integrated mobile offering it's been looking for with Surface and other devices. When the deal closes in the first quarter of 2014, Microsoft will pay €3.79 billion for Nokia's business, plus another €1.65 billion for its portfolio of patents. (The €5.44-billion total is considerably less than Microsoft paid for Skype in 2011.) 32,000 people are expected to transfer from Nokia to Microsoft, including 18,300 that are "directly involved in manufacturing."

The purchase comes on the heels of what appeared to be a failed acquisition in June, at which point it seemed conversations had broken off entirely. Now the two come together, in what outgoing Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer called "a bold step into the future." In an email, Ballmer cited the Lumia 1020 as an example of what the companies could do together, but said the phone hadn't caused the marketshare bump it deserved. "Now is the time to build on this momentum and accelerate our share and profits in phones," he wrote.

Asha will be an on-ramp to Windows Phone

A driving force behind the sale seems to be Nokia's low-end Asha brand, which Microsoft has acquired outright. Asha gives Microsoft a far larger footprint for Windows Phone, and access to millions of customers in developing countries that it plans to use as an "on-ramp to Windows Phone." The emphasis also lends some credibility to the notion that Nokia's high-end strategy isn't working — analysts predicted a horrific Q3 for the company, and its struggles to find a foothold are well-documented. In fact, Microsoft's licensing deal for the Nokia brand doesn't include future Lumias — Nokia as a smartphone brand is effectively dead, as Microsoft takes the lineup in-house.

Nokia's days as a smartphone brand are over

Though Nokia was by leaps and bounds Microsoft's best hardware partner for Windows Phone 8, EVP of operating systems Terry Myerson was careful to note that Microsoft's purchase doesn't come with nepotism. As Google has with Motorola, Myerson promised every partner would be treated the same, even quoting a song by The Killers to make his point. And from Huawei to HTC, there are still other partners — Nokia's coming in-house, but Windows Phone 8 isn't being walled off.

Its device business now gone, Nokia's plan is to focus on three core technologies: NSN (its network infrastructure) HERE (its maps and location-based services); and Advanced Technologies (a licensing and development arm). Microsoft will pay Nokia for a four-year license of the HERE services, bringing the new company more revenue and stability than it had previously. But it also makes Nokia a much smaller company.

Stephen Elop is going back to Microsoft

As part of the agreement, Nokia CEO and President Stephen Elop is stepping aside; as of today he's Nokia's executive vice president of devices & services reporting to interim CEO Risto Siilasmaa, previously chairman of Nokia's Board of Directors.  When the transaction closes, Stephen Elop will go back to Microsoft and lead an expanded devices team, reporting directly to Steve Ballmer. Julie Larson-Green will report to Elop and continue to run the devices and studios team.

Another notable departure is that of Marko Ahtisaari, Nokia's executive vice president of design. Ahtisaari will be leaving the company in November to "pursue entrepreneurial opportunities," according to a Nokia press release. He was credited with fathering the company's current Lumia design language, which has its roots in the ill-fated N9 smartphone.

For $7.2 billion, Microsoft bought its way into the category of "devices and services company." It gives Microsoft the kind of end-to-end control in mobile that only Apple and BlackBerry have enjoyed (to varying success), and a critical measure of quality control. But can Microsoft succeed where Nokia failed? Was Nokia holding Windows Phone back, or was Windows Phone the problem? The big questions aren't going away, but maybe now we'll get answers.

Correction: This article incorrectly stated that Stephen Elop is now leading Microsoft's devices team. However, Stephen won't join Microsoft until after the acquisition is approved.

The question always was who will buy Nokia? Today that was answered with Microsoft agreeing to pay $7.2 billion for Nokia’s handset business and manufacturing patents. Post the deal, it will strengthen the Windows 8 brand with Microsoft now manufacturing both the device and the software. So is the price of $7.2 billion too much to pay for the Lumia brand of phones? For most consumers, when it comes to a Windows Phone 8 device, the brand that pops into their head is Nokia’s Lumia. Of course, Samsung and HTC had also launched Windows 8 mobiles but they didn’t make much of a sales dent. As IDC noted it is Nokia Lumia that has accounted for 81.6 percent of all Windows Phone smartphone shipments during Q2 of 2013. The Lumia brand effectively helped Windows Phone 8 beat BlackBerry for the third spot as far as the smartphone OS is concerned. After the deal, the Lumia and the Microsoft brand will merge. Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters In terms of numbers, 2013 has seen modest growth for Lumia. According to Gartner, Nokia’s Lumia sales grew 112.7 percent in the second quarter of 2013 thanks to its expanded Lumia portfolio such as Lumia 520 and Lumia 720. “With the recent announcement of the Lumia 1020, Nokia has built a wide portfolio of devices at multiple price points, which should boost Lumia sales in the second half of 2013,” said Anshul Gupta, analyst with Gartner. In short, Windows 8 has gained some nominal success this year and managed to establish itself as number three in the market. And the credit for that goes to the Nokia Lumia brands. 8.7 million Windows Phones were shipped in Q2 of 2013, which gave Microsoft a modest market share of 3.7 percent. According to IDC, Windows Phone posted the largest year-over-year increase among the top five smartphone platforms. So yes, for Microsoft, the licensing deal has worked with Nokia’s Lumia brand as far as gaining some attention goes. But it does not yet pose a serious threat to Google’s Android or Apple’s iOS. In fact, in the biggest smartphone market in the world, that is China, Nokia is not even in the top five, according to research firm Canalys. In India, Nokia is at number 4 and while phones such as Lumia 520 and 720 have done well for the firm, Android phones by Micromax, Karbonn and other Indian brands are doing much better. As far as product development and launches are concerned, in July Nokia launched the Lumia 1020, a new Windows Phone 8 device but with a 41 megapixel camera. The phone also has a dual-core processor and a 4.5-inch AMOLED screen. The company is rumoured to be working on a new Windows RT Tablet code-named Sirius and 6-inch phablet mobile as well, codenamed Bandit. The Bandit will be one of the first Lumia/Windows Phone 8 device which will support 1080p screen resolution and a quad-core processor according to the rumour mills. Nokia and Microsoft still have a few tricks up their sleeves and if the company’s 6-inch phone does well in key markets such as China, US and Europe, it could help them get back in the game. But this was what Nokia and Microsoft had hoped for when they had launched Lumia 920, which was followed by a Lumia 925 that had the same specs as the 920 but an aluminium body. In fact analysts mocked the Lumia 925 as looking like the Lumia 920 on a diet. The fact is that Lumia’s flagship devices such as Lumia 920 , 925, etc are not the most talked about phones for the brand. The phones that are doing well for Lumia are the 520, 720, the lower-end phones. The fact is that Lumia still hasn’t launched a phone that is equivalent to say Apple’s iPhone 4S or Samsung’s Galaxy SIII. Till it does that, the Lumia brand doesn’t seem to be worth the $7.2 billion.

Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/tech/microsoft-buys-nokias-handset-biz-is-lumia-worth-7-2-billion-1081553.html?utm_source=ref_article

The question always was who will buy Nokia? Today that was answered with Microsoft agreeing to pay $7.2 billion for Nokia’s handset business and manufacturing patents. Post the deal, it will strengthen the Windows 8 brand with Microsoft now manufacturing both the device and the software. So is the price of $7.2 billion too much to pay for the Lumia brand of phones? For most consumers, when it comes to a Windows Phone 8 device, the brand that pops into their head is Nokia’s Lumia. Of course, Samsung and HTC had also launched Windows 8 mobiles but they didn’t make much of a sales dent. As IDC noted it is Nokia Lumia that has accounted for 81.6 percent of all Windows Phone smartphone shipments during Q2 of 2013. The Lumia brand effectively helped Windows Phone 8 beat BlackBerry for the third spot as far as the smartphone OS is concerned. After the deal, the Lumia and the Microsoft brand will merge. Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters In terms of numbers, 2013 has seen modest growth for Lumia. According to Gartner, Nokia’s Lumia sales grew 112.7 percent in the second quarter of 2013 thanks to its expanded Lumia portfolio such as Lumia 520 and Lumia 720. “With the recent announcement of the Lumia 1020, Nokia has built a wide portfolio of devices at multiple price points, which should boost Lumia sales in the second half of 2013,” said Anshul Gupta, analyst with Gartner. In short, Windows 8 has gained some nominal success this year and managed to establish itself as number three in the market. And the credit for that goes to the Nokia Lumia brands. 8.7 million Windows Phones were shipped in Q2 of 2013, which gave Microsoft a modest market share of 3.7 percent. According to IDC, Windows Phone posted the largest year-over-year increase among the top five smartphone platforms. So yes, for Microsoft, the licensing deal has worked with Nokia’s Lumia brand as far as gaining some attention goes. But it does not yet pose a serious threat to Google’s Android or Apple’s iOS. In fact, in the biggest smartphone market in the world, that is China, Nokia is not even in the top five, according to research firm Canalys. In India, Nokia is at number 4 and while phones such as Lumia 520 and 720 have done well for the firm, Android phones by Micromax, Karbonn and other Indian brands are doing much better. As far as product development and launches are concerned, in July Nokia launched the Lumia 1020, a new Windows Phone 8 device but with a 41 megapixel camera. The phone also has a dual-core processor and a 4.5-inch AMOLED screen. The company is rumoured to be working on a new Windows RT Tablet code-named Sirius and 6-inch phablet mobile as well, codenamed Bandit. The Bandit will be one of the first Lumia/Windows Phone 8 device which will support 1080p screen resolution and a quad-core processor according to the rumour mills. Nokia and Microsoft still have a few tricks up their sleeves and if the company’s 6-inch phone does well in key markets such as China, US and Europe, it could help them get back in the game. But this was what Nokia and Microsoft had hoped for when they had launched Lumia 920, which was followed by a Lumia 925 that had the same specs as the 920 but an aluminium body. In fact analysts mocked the Lumia 925 as looking like the Lumia 920 on a diet. The fact is that Lumia’s flagship devices such as Lumia 920 , 925, etc are not the most talked about phones for the brand. The phones that are doing well for Lumia are the 520, 720, the lower-end phones. The fact is that Lumia still hasn’t launched a phone that is equivalent to say Apple’s iPhone 4S or Samsung’s Galaxy SIII. Till it does that, the Lumia brand doesn’t seem to be worth the $7.2 billion.

Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/tech/microsoft-buys-nokias-handset-biz-is-lumia-worth-7-2-billion-1081553.html?utm_source=ref_articlev

The question always was who will buy Nokia? Today that was answered with Microsoft agreeing to pay $7.2 billion for Nokia’s handset business and manufacturing patents. Post the deal, it will strengthen the Windows 8 brand with Microsoft now manufacturing both the device and the software. So is the price of $7.2 billion too much to pay for the Lumia brand of phones? For most consumers, when it comes to a Windows Phone 8 device, the brand that pops into their head is Nokia’s Lumia. Of course, Samsung and HTC had also launched Windows 8 mobiles but they didn’t make much of a sales dent. As IDC noted it is Nokia Lumia that has accounted for 81.6 percent of all Windows Phone smartphone shipments during Q2 of 2013. The Lumia brand effectively helped Windows Phone 8 beat BlackBerry for the third spot as far as the smartphone OS is concerned. After the deal, the Lumia and the Microsoft brand will merge. Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters In terms of numbers, 2013 has seen modest growth for Lumia. According to Gartner, Nokia’s Lumia sales grew 112.7 percent in the second quarter of 2013 thanks to its expanded Lumia portfolio such as Lumia 520 and Lumia 720. “With the recent announcement of the Lumia 1020, Nokia has built a wide portfolio of devices at multiple price points, which should boost Lumia sales in the second half of 2013,” said Anshul Gupta, analyst with Gartner. In short, Windows 8 has gained some nominal success this year and managed to establish itself as number three in the market. And the credit for that goes to the Nokia Lumia brands. 8.7 million Windows Phones were shipped in Q2 of 2013, which gave Microsoft a modest market share of 3.7 percent. According to IDC, Windows Phone posted the largest year-over-year increase among the top five smartphone platforms. So yes, for Microsoft, the licensing deal has worked with Nokia’s Lumia brand as far as gaining some attention goes. But it does not yet pose a serious threat to Google’s Android or Apple’s iOS. In fact, in the biggest smartphone market in the world, that is China, Nokia is not even in the top five, according to research firm Canalys. In India, Nokia is at number 4 and while phones such as Lumia 520 and 720 have done well for the firm, Android phones by Micromax, Karbonn and other Indian brands are doing much better. As far as product development and launches are concerned, in July Nokia launched the Lumia 1020, a new Windows Phone 8 device but with a 41 megapixel camera. The phone also has a dual-core processor and a 4.5-inch AMOLED screen. The company is rumoured to be working on a new Windows RT Tablet code-named Sirius and 6-inch phablet mobile as well, codenamed Bandit. The Bandit will be one of the first Lumia/Windows Phone 8 device which will support 1080p screen resolution and a quad-core processor according to the rumour mills. Nokia and Microsoft still have a few tricks up their sleeves and if the company’s 6-inch phone does well in key markets such as China, US and Europe, it could help them get back in the game. But this was what Nokia and Microsoft had hoped for when they had launched Lumia 920, which was followed by a Lumia 925 that had the same specs as the 920 but an aluminium body. In fact analysts mocked the Lumia 925 as looking like the Lumia 920 on a diet. The fact is that Lumia’s flagship devices such as Lumia 920 , 925, etc are not the most talked about phones for the brand. The phones that are doing well for Lumia are the 520, 720, the lower-end phones. The fact is that Lumia still hasn’t launched a phone that is equivalent to say Apple’s iPhone 4S or Samsung’s Galaxy SIII. Till it does that, the Lumia brand doesn’t seem to be worth the $7.2 billion.

Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/tech/microsoft-buys-nokias-handset-biz-is-lumia-worth-7-2-billion-1081553.html?utm_source=ref_article

The question always was who will buy Nokia? Today that was answered with Microsoft agreeing to pay $7.2 billion for Nokia’s handset business and manufacturing patents. Post the deal, it will strengthen the Windows 8 brand with Microsoft now manufacturing both the device and the software. So is the price of $7.2 billion too much to pay for the Lumia brand of phones? For most consumers, when it comes to a Windows Phone 8 device, the brand that pops into their head is Nokia’s Lumia. Of course, Samsung and HTC had also launched Windows 8 mobiles but they didn’t make much of a sales dent. As IDC noted it is Nokia Lumia that has accounted for 81.6 percent of all Windows Phone smartphone shipments during Q2 of 2013. The Lumia brand effectively helped Windows Phone 8 beat BlackBerry for the third spot as far as the smartphone OS is concerned. After the deal, the Lumia and the Microsoft brand will merge. Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters In terms of numbers, 2013 has seen modest growth for Lumia. According to Gartner, Nokia’s Lumia sales grew 112.7 percent in the second quarter of 2013 thanks to its expanded Lumia portfolio such as Lumia 520 and Lumia 720. “With the recent announcement of the Lumia 1020, Nokia has built a wide portfolio of devices at multiple price points, which should boost Lumia sales in the second half of 2013,” said Anshul Gupta, analyst with Gartner. In short, Windows 8 has gained some nominal success this year and managed to establish itself as number three in the market. And the credit for that goes to the Nokia Lumia brands. 8.7 million Windows Phones were shipped in Q2 of 2013, which gave Microsoft a modest market share of 3.7 percent. According to IDC, Windows Phone posted the largest year-over-year increase among the top five smartphone platforms. So yes, for Microsoft, the licensing deal has worked with Nokia’s Lumia brand as far as gaining some attention goes. But it does not yet pose a serious threat to Google’s Android or Apple’s iOS. In fact, in the biggest smartphone market in the world, that is China, Nokia is not even in the top five, according to research firm Canalys. In India, Nokia is at number 4 and while phones such as Lumia 520 and 720 have done well for the firm, Android phones by Micromax, Karbonn and other Indian brands are doing much better. As far as product development and launches are concerned, in July Nokia launched the Lumia 1020, a new Windows Phone 8 device but with a 41 megapixel camera. The phone also has a dual-core processor and a 4.5-inch AMOLED screen. The company is rumoured to be working on a new Windows RT Tablet code-named Sirius and 6-inch phablet mobile as well, codenamed Bandit. The Bandit will be one of the first Lumia/Windows Phone 8 device which will support 1080p screen resolution and a quad-core processor according to the rumour mills. Nokia and Microsoft still have a few tricks up their sleeves and if the company’s 6-inch phone does well in key markets such as China, US and Europe, it could help them get back in the game. But this was what Nokia and Microsoft had hoped for when they had launched Lumia 920, which was followed by a Lumia 925 that had the same specs as the 920 but an aluminium body. In fact analysts mocked the Lumia 925 as looking like the Lumia 920 on a diet. The fact is that Lumia’s flagship devices such as Lumia 920 , 925, etc are not the most talked about phones for the brand. The phones that are doing well for Lumia are the 520, 720, the lower-end phones. The fact is that Lumia still hasn’t launched a phone that is equivalent to say Apple’s iPhone 4S or Samsung’s Galaxy SIII. Till it does that, the Lumia brand doesn’t seem to be worth the $7.2 billion.

Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/tech/microsoft-buys-nokias-handset-biz-is-lumia-worth-7-2-billion-1081553.html?utm_source=ref_article

The question always was who will buy Nokia? Today that was answered with Microsoft agreeing to pay $7.2 billion for Nokia’s handset business and manufacturing patents. Post the deal, it will strengthen the Windows 8 brand with Microsoft now manufacturing both the device and the software. So is the price of $7.2 billion too much to pay for the Lumia brand of phones? For most consumers, when it comes to a Windows Phone 8 device, the brand that pops into their head is Nokia’s Lumia. Of course, Samsung and HTC had also launched Windows 8 mobiles but they didn’t make much of a sales dent. As IDC noted it is Nokia Lumia that has accounted for 81.6 percent of all Windows Phone smartphone shipments during Q2 of 2013. The Lumia brand effectively helped Windows Phone 8 beat BlackBerry for the third spot as far as the smartphone OS is concerned. After the deal, the Lumia and the Microsoft brand will merge. Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters In terms of numbers, 2013 has seen modest growth for Lumia. According to Gartner, Nokia’s Lumia sales grew 112.7 percent in the second quarter of 2013 thanks to its expanded Lumia portfolio such as Lumia 520 and Lumia 720. “With the recent announcement of the Lumia 1020, Nokia has built a wide portfolio of devices at multiple price points, which should boost Lumia sales in the second half of 2013,” said Anshul Gupta, analyst with Gartner. In short, Windows 8 has gained some nominal success this year and managed to establish itself as number three in the market. And the credit for that goes to the Nokia Lumia brands. 8.7 million Windows Phones were shipped in Q2 of 2013, which gave Microsoft a modest market share of 3.7 percent. According to IDC, Windows Phone posted the largest year-over-year increase among the top five smartphone platforms. So yes, for Microsoft, the licensing deal has worked with Nokia’s Lumia brand as far as gaining some attention goes. But it does not yet pose a serious threat to Google’s Android or Apple’s iOS. In fact, in the biggest smartphone market in the world, that is China, Nokia is not even in the top five, according to research firm Canalys. In India, Nokia is at number 4 and while phones such as Lumia 520 and 720 have done well for the firm, Android phones by Micromax, Karbonn and other Indian brands are doing much better. As far as product development and launches are concerned, in July Nokia launched the Lumia 1020, a new Windows Phone 8 device but with a 41 megapixel camera. The phone also has a dual-core processor and a 4.5-inch AMOLED screen. The company is rumoured to be working on a new Windows RT Tablet code-named Sirius and 6-inch phablet mobile as well, codenamed Bandit. The Bandit will be one of the first Lumia/Windows Phone 8 device which will support 1080p screen resolution and a quad-core processor according to the rumour mills. Nokia and Microsoft still have a few tricks up their sleeves and if the company’s 6-inch phone does well in key markets such as China, US and Europe, it could help them get back in the game. But this was what Nokia and Microsoft had hoped for when they had launched Lumia 920, which was followed by a Lumia 925 that had the same specs as the 920 but an aluminium body. In fact analysts mocked the Lumia 925 as looking like the Lumia 920 on a diet. The fact is that Lumia’s flagship devices such as Lumia 920 , 925, etc are not the most talked about phones for the brand. The phones that are doing well for Lumia are the 520, 720, the lower-end phones. The fact is that Lumia still hasn’t launched a phone that is equivalent to say Apple’s iPhone 4S or Samsung’s Galaxy SIII. Till it does that, the Lumia brand doesn’t seem to be worth the $7.2 billion.

Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/tech/microsoft-buys-nokias-handset-biz-is-lumia-worth-7-2-billion-1081553.html?utm_source=ref_article

The question always was who will buy Nokia? Today that was answered with Microsoft agreeing to pay $7.2 billion for Nokia’s handset business and manufacturing patents. Post the deal, it will strengthen the Windows 8 brand with Microsoft now manufacturing both the device and the software. So is the price of $7.2 billion too much to pay for the Lumia brand of phones? For most consumers, when it comes to a Windows Phone 8 device, the brand that pops into their head is Nokia’s Lumia. Of course, Samsung and HTC had also launched Windows 8 mobiles but they didn’t make much of a sales dent. As IDC noted it is Nokia Lumia that has accounted for 81.6 percent of all Windows Phone smartphone shipments during Q2 of 2013. The Lumia brand effectively helped Windows Phone 8 beat BlackBerry for the third spot as far as the smartphone OS is concerned. After the deal, the Lumia and the Microsoft brand will merge. Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters In terms of numbers, 2013 has seen modest growth for Lumia. According to Gartner, Nokia’s Lumia sales grew 112.7 percent in the second quarter of 2013 thanks to its expanded Lumia portfolio such as Lumia 520 and Lumia 720. “With the recent announcement of the Lumia 1020, Nokia has built a wide portfolio of devices at multiple price points, which should boost Lumia sales in the second half of 2013,” said Anshul Gupta, analyst with Gartner. In short, Windows 8 has gained some nominal success this year and managed to establish itself as number three in the market. And the credit for that goes to the Nokia Lumia brands. 8.7 million Windows Phones were shipped in Q2 of 2013, which gave Microsoft a modest market share of 3.7 percent. According to IDC, Windows Phone posted the largest year-over-year increase among the top five smartphone platforms. So yes, for Microsoft, the licensing deal has worked with Nokia’s Lumia brand as far as gaining some attention goes. But it does not yet pose a serious threat to Google’s Android or Apple’s iOS. In fact, in the biggest smartphone market in the world, that is China, Nokia is not even in the top five, according to research firm Canalys. In India, Nokia is at number 4 and while phones such as Lumia 520 and 720 have done well for the firm, Android phones by Micromax, Karbonn and other Indian brands are doing much better. As far as product development and launches are concerned, in July Nokia launched the Lumia 1020, a new Windows Phone 8 device but with a 41 megapixel camera. The phone also has a dual-core processor and a 4.5-inch AMOLED screen. The company is rumoured to be working on a new Windows RT Tablet code-named Sirius and 6-inch phablet mobile as well, codenamed Bandit. The Bandit will be one of the first Lumia/Windows Phone 8 device which will support 1080p screen resolution and a quad-core processor according to the rumour mills. Nokia and Microsoft still have a few tricks up their sleeves and if the company’s 6-inch phone does well in key markets such as China, US and Europe, it could help them get back in the game. But this was what Nokia and Microsoft had hoped for when they had launched Lumia 920, which was followed by a Lumia 925 that had the same specs as the 920 but an aluminium body. In fact analysts mocked the Lumia 925 as looking like the Lumia 920 on a diet. The fact is that Lumia’s flagship devices such as Lumia 920 , 925, etc are not the most talked about phones for the brand. The phones that are doing well for Lumia are the 520, 720, the lower-end phones. The fact is that Lumia still hasn’t launched a phone that is equivalent to say Apple’s iPhone 4S or Samsung’s Galaxy SIII. Till it does that, the Lumia brand doesn’t seem to be worth the $7.2 billion.

Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/tech/microsoft-buys-nokias-handset-biz-is-lumia-worth-7-2-billion-1081553.html?utm_source=ref_article

The question always was who will buy Nokia? Today that was answered with Microsoft agreeing to pay $7.2 billion for Nokia’s handset business and manufacturing patents. Post the deal, it will strengthen the Windows 8 brand with Microsoft now manufacturing both the device and the software. So is the price of $7.2 billion too much to pay for the Lumia brand of phones? For most consumers, when it comes to a Windows Phone 8 device, the brand that pops into their head is Nokia’s Lumia. Of course, Samsung and HTC had also launched Windows 8 mobiles but they didn’t make much of a sales dent. As IDC noted it is Nokia Lumia that has accounted for 81.6 percent of all Windows Phone smartphone shipments during Q2 of 2013. The Lumia brand effectively helped Windows Phone 8 beat BlackBerry for the third spot as far as the smartphone OS is concerned. After the deal, the Lumia and the Microsoft brand will merge. Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters Nokia Lumia 920 is seen in this file photo. Reuters In terms of numbers, 2013 has seen modest growth for Lumia. According to Gartner, Nokia’s Lumia sales grew 112.7 percent in the second quarter of 2013 thanks to its expanded Lumia portfolio such as Lumia 520 and Lumia 720. “With the recent announcement of the Lumia 1020, Nokia has built a wide portfolio of devices at multiple price points, which should boost Lumia sales in the second half of 2013,” said Anshul Gupta, analyst with Gartner. In short, Windows 8 has gained some nominal success this year and managed to establish itself as number three in the market. And the credit for that goes to the Nokia Lumia brands. 8.7 million Windows Phones were shipped in Q2 of 2013, which gave Microsoft a modest market share of 3.7 percent. According to IDC, Windows Phone posted the largest year-over-year increase among the top five smartphone platforms. So yes, for Microsoft, the licensing deal has worked with Nokia’s Lumia brand as far as gaining some attention goes. But it does not yet pose a serious threat to Google’s Android or Apple’s iOS. In fact, in the biggest smartphone market in the world, that is China, Nokia is not even in the top five, according to research firm Canalys. In India, Nokia is at number 4 and while phones such as Lumia 520 and 720 have done well for the firm, Android phones by Micromax, Karbonn and other Indian brands are doing much better. As far as product development and launches are concerned, in July Nokia launched the Lumia 1020, a new Windows Phone 8 device but with a 41 megapixel camera. The phone also has a dual-core processor and a 4.5-inch AMOLED screen. The company is rumoured to be working on a new Windows RT Tablet code-named Sirius and 6-inch phablet mobile as well, codenamed Bandit. The Bandit will be one of the first Lumia/Windows Phone 8 device which will support 1080p screen resolution and a quad-core processor according to the rumour mills. Nokia and Microsoft still have a few tricks up their sleeves and if the company’s 6-inch phone does well in key markets such as China, US and Europe, it could help them get back in the game. But this was what Nokia and Microsoft had hoped for when they had launched Lumia 920, which was followed by a Lumia 925 that had the same specs as the 920 but an aluminium body. In fact analysts mocked the Lumia 925 as looking like the Lumia 920 on a diet. The fact is that Lumia’s flagship devices such as Lumia 920 , 925, etc are not the most talked about phones for the brand. The phones that are doing well for Lumia are the 520, 720, the lower-end phones. The fact is that Lumia still hasn’t launched a phone that is equivalent to say Apple’s iPhone 4S or Samsung’s Galaxy SIII. Till it does that, the Lumia brand doesn’t seem to be worth the $7.2 billion.

Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/tech/microsoft-buys-nokias-handset-biz-is-lumia-worth-7-2-billion-1081553.html?utm_source=ref_article