Microsoft’s big shakeup: job losses and product cuts under a new CEO – The Verge

Microsoft abandons plans to take on Netflix with original Xbox TV shows

2014-07-17T13:41:09-04:00

Microsoft's Xbox Originals, a series of original television projects, only debuted in June, but they're already the casualty of CEO Satya Nadella's new restructuring. Recode reports that Microsoft will shut down its Xbox Entertainment Studios, cutting positions as part of the 18,000 job eliminations planned over the next 12 months. Microsoft had big plans for its Xbox Entertainment Studios, including a much-anticipated Halo series that Steven Spielberg is executive producing. In an internal memo to Xbox employees, Xbox chief Phil Spencer notes that the Halo series will continue, alongside Signal to Noise, but Microsoft will not produce future …

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How big are Microsoft’s layoffs?

2014-07-17T12:27:52-04:00

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella announced today that the company will be laying off 18,000 employees over the next year, the largest round of cutbacks in Microsoft's history. For anyone who loses their job, that's painful news - but in the context of big layoffs at some of Redmond's peers, Nadella's move is also quite severe. We stacked up the job cuts that have taken place at Microsoft, which were principally targeting the company's Mobile division and the employees it took on when it acquired Nokia. We compared that to the cuts made by Google across Motorola Mobility and layoffs at HP, Intel, and BlackBerry since 2011. In terms of raw numbers, …

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Microsoft is killing off Nokia’s feature phones in favor of Windows Phone

2014-07-17T10:40:58-04:00

Nokia might have been famous for its feature phones, but Microsoft is planning to wind that business down over the course of the next 18 months. In an internal memo sent to Microsoft employees, Jo Harlow, who heads up the phone business under Microsoft devices, reveals the focus is very much on Windows Phone. Development and investment for Asha, Series 40, and Nokia X handsets will shift to what is described as "maintenance mode," and services to support existing devices will be shut down over the next 18 months. "This means there will be no new features or updates to services on any mobile phones platform as a result of these plans," says Ha …

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Microsoft kills off its Nokia Android phones

2014-07-17T08:40:22-04:00

Microsoft is planning to scrap its Nokia X Android efforts and replace them with Windows Phone in the future. The news comes as part of today's announcement that Microsoft is cutting 18,000 jobs in the next year. In an email to former Nokia staff, Microsoft devices chief Stephen Elop details the company's renewed focus on Windows Phone. "In addition to the portfolio already planned, we plan to deliver additional lower-cost Lumia devices by shifting select future Nokia X designs and products to Windows Phone devices," says Elop. "We expect to make this shift immediately while continuing to sell and support existing Nokia X products."

While m …

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Microsoft announces biggest-ever job cuts: 18,000 in the next year

2014-07-17T08:08:31-04:00

Microsoft is announcing its biggest ever job cuts today, affecting 18,000 employees. In a memo, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says the company will cut 18,000 positions in the next year, with former Nokia employees expected to account for around 12,500 jobs. "We are moving now to start reducing the first 13,000 positions, and the vast majority of employees whose jobs will be eliminated will be notified over the next six months," says Nadella. Microsoft currently had 127,104 employees as of June 5th, so the cuts mean a reduction of around 14 percent of the company's workforce.

While the number is significant, it's not surprising Microsoft is focu …

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Microsoft prepares for biggest ever job cuts

2014-07-15T03:07:02-04:00

Microsoft is reportedly planning its biggest job cuts for five years. Bloomberg reports that the reductions will likely affect marketing, engineering, and the former Nokia employees that make up Microsoft's new mobile group. The cuts could be the biggest yet, after Microsoft reduced its headcount by 5,800 in 2009, and reductions are also expected to affect divisions that overlap with the Nokia phone business. Some job cuts will also reportedly hit groups like the global Xbox marketing team.

Microsoft currently has 127,104 employees as of June 5th, and previous reports from Gigaom suggest that the software maker might be planning to cut as much …

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Microsoft CEO readies big shakeup, drops devices and services focus

2014-07-10T10:01:48-04:00

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella sent a broad email to all employees today outlining the company's ambitions for the new financial year. Top of the agenda is reshaping what the "core" of Microsoft is, and Nadella admits the devices and services description, introduced by former CEO Steve Ballmer, was helpful, but that "we now need to hone in on our unique strategy." That unique strategy is a Microsoft that's focused on mobile and cloud, a similar message that Nadella has hinted at previously. "We will reinvent productivity to empower every person and every organization on the planet to do more and achieve more," Nadella boldly states.

Xbox is safe …

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