Earlier this year Nokia finally launched its much rumored Android lineup, the Nokia X. Even though these smartphones technically run Android, the OS has been heavily forked and modified to look a lot like Windows Phone. Despite rumors that Microsoft wasn’t too happy about Nokia’s Android ambitions, it appears that Redmond won’t gut the lineup immediately. Microsoft has already completed the acquisition of Nokia’s devices and services business which will now be referred to as Microsoft Mobile.
Stephen Elop, who was CEO of Nokia prior to the acquisition, has revealed that the newly formed Microsoft Mobile division will be committed to continuing support for features phone. He also said that the division will continue to support “the Asha family, and the Nokia X family of devices.”
Elop only talks about continuing to support the Android-based Nokia X lineup. That doesn’t mean that Microsoft will allow time and resources to be directed towards the development of new models. So its unclear right now if the Nokia X lineup will get additional models down the road, even if the company doesn’t kill support for it.
Nokia has singlehandedly led the Windows Phone cause for a few years now. Given that its device business is now a part of Microsoft, Redmond itself will become the largest manufacturer of Windows Phone devices.