Microsoft: Windows and Windows Phone become one operating system
Windows and Windows Phone will become one, unified operating system. That is what Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said at the presentation of the quarterly figures. That means, among other things, that there will be one application store for Windows.
It is unknown when the first unified Windows version will be released; Nadella just says that “the next version of Windows will be streamlined from three operating systems to one, unified operating system.”
While Nadella doesn’t name current Windows releases in his review of quarterly earnings, he probably means Windows PC and phone versions, among other things. It’s unclear whether the third system he’s referring to is Windows RT for tablets or Windows for Xbox.
The change means that applications can be built in one go for all three platforms without too much effort. There will also be a uniform application store, Nadella promises. Earlier, Microsoft already came up with a tool that allows developers to build applications for the PC, phone and Xbox in one go.
On Tuesday, the first screenshots of Windows 9 appeared, which according to several well-informed websites are authentic. The screenshots include a new start menu. Microsoft has not officially announced Windows 9 yet. Windows 8 came out in the fall of 2012.
At the same time, Microsoft seems to have canceled the Surface Mini, although the company says so indirectly. Microsoft merely states that it will not ship a new model of device; there’s a good chance it’s the Surface Mini. Microsoft made $23.3 billion in revenue in the past quarter, equivalent to €17.2 billion. Despite an increase in sales, quarterly profit fell by 7.1 percent, mainly due to the mobile branch: the mobile division acquired from Nokia caused a drop in profit of 700 million dollars. Microsoft expects that the mobile branch will still be at a loss for some time and in June 2016 should be broken even in June 2016 thanks to the reorganization. Microsoft also said it shipped 1.1 million “Xbox consoles,” without distinguishing between Xbox 360 and Xbox One models.